Using Twitter for Education Professional Development - Jen Quimbey

Using Twitter
for
Professional Development
Jennifer Quimbey
November 2014

What is Twitter?
Online social networking service that enables
users to send and read short 140-
character messages called "tweets.“

Twitter Facts
Twitter was created in March 2006 and by July
2006 the site was launched.
As of July 2014, Twitter had more than 500
million users, out of which more than 271
million were active users.
Twitter Inc. is based in San Francisco and has
more than 25 offices around the world.
 The logo is a Mountain Bluebird.

Why use Twitter for PD?
 Access links, ideas, opinions, and resources from a hand-picked
selection of global professionals.
 Share ideas and get instant feedback.
 Reflect on what is going well and what needs
improvement, and receive supportive or challenging
feedback.
 Stay up-to-date on news and current affairs, as well as on
the latest developments in areas of interest like school
leadership and technology.
 Expressing yourself in 140 characters or less is difficult.
Learn to communicate professionally without waffling or
cushioning.

Time-Saving Tool
 Although some people argue that Twitter is one
more distraction in a tech-saturated world, David
Cosand says it's been a time-saver for him. He was
writing a grant proposal recently to buy more
technology for his school and realized he needed to
learn more about document cameras. "I put a tweet
out asking people which cameras they have found
useful. In half an hour, I got great feedback from all
over the country," he says, and he wound up
narrowing down the list to an AVerVision CP300
model.

How to use Twitter for PD
Use Hash Tags: Hashtags are a great way for
engaging in professional conversations. Get to
know the trending hashtags in your field and use
those hashtags when you tweet. You can also
create your own hashtag to start a new
conversation.
Use Twitter Tools: There are several web tools that
have been created specifically for Twitter users.
These tools can help you perform a wide range
of activities you could not otherwise do using
Twitter alone. Some of these tools can help you
conduct effective searches on Twitter, others turn
your twitter into a magazine with recent tweets
as prominent headlines, and many more.

How to use Twitter for PD (cont.)
Use Twitter for Research: Reach out to other
educators and ask them for help when you need it,
ask for guidance. Keep updated about what others
tweet and always make sure you interact with their
tweets by favoriting or retweeting. Use the
research functionality in twitter to look for
resources and links and again you can ask people
for help.
Share what you Read: If you read an interesting
book or an article then make sure to share it on
your Twitter. People will get to learn from you too
and you will get to build an online reputation. This
is also a good way to spark academic discussions
with your followers.

Examples of Helpful Twitter Posts

How to Set Up an Account
Go to Twitter.com. Fill in the fields. Where
they ask for your Full Name, use your real
name if you want people to recognize you.
Once you've completed the registration
process, click Sign up for Twitter. It will ask you
to enter some text to ensure you're not a
robot.

Using Twitter for Education Professional Development - Jen Quimbey

Navigating Twitter
 A Tweet is an expression of a moment or idea. It
can contain text, photos, and videos. Millions of
Tweets are shared in real time, every day.

Navigating Twitter (cont.)
Favorite a Tweet to let the author know you like it.
Reply to a Tweet and join the conversation.

Retweet to share a Tweet with your followers. You
can even add your own thoughts before sharing it.
Hashtags assign a topic to a Tweet. So, for
example, Tweets that contain #WorldCup are
about just that. Click on a hashtag to see Tweets
related to a topic.

Where do Tweets Live?
When you follow people, their Tweets instantly
show up in your timeline. Similarly, your Tweets
show up in your followers' timelines.
Compose?
Write a Tweet, post a photo, or share a video.

 Notifications allow
you to see when
someone retweets
or favorites one of
your Tweets, replies
to you, or mentions
you.

Messages allow you to have private conversations
with your followers.
 Click on your picture to access your profile, lists,
followers, and the
people you follow.

 Quickly follow people by adding their usernames. Perfect
for when you meet someone and you're exchanging info.

Popular Education Hashtags
 #edchat – Wide range of educators worldwide, many U.S.
 #schools – Wide ranging but used far less than #edchat or
#ukedchat
 #teaching – Largely used for jobseeking
 #lrnchat – Learning chat
 #TT – Teacher Tuesday, educators suggest others to follow
 #kinderchat – Discuss kindergarten-aged children
 #ukedchat – UK Education
 #GlobalEd – Education with a global dimension

Tech in Education Hashtags
 #edtech – a very wide range of tweets relating to the use of
technology in education
 #elearning – eLearning topics
 #mlearning – the use of mobile technologies in education
 #edapp – educational apps
 #gbl - games-based learning
 #slide2learn – iDevices and learning
 #vitalcpd – effective use of technology in the classroom

Subject-Specific Hashtags
 #mathchat – mathematics
 #scichat – science
 #engchat – English
 #artsed – the arts in education
 #musedchat – music
 #eltchat – english language teacher
 #STEM – widely used for posts and resources in STEM education
 #SSChat – social studies chat
 #RETeacher – Religious Education
 #HistoryTeacher – History
 #GeographyTeacher – Geography
 #PhysicsEd – Physics

Specific Area Hashtags
 #pgce – widely used, great way to share ideas and support
 #gtchat – gifted and talented education
 #esl – English as a second language
 #Bullying – bullying resources, not confined to school bullying
 #cpchat – connected principals discussion
 #ntchat - new teachers
 #spedchat – special educational needs
 #homeschool – everything related to home schooling
 #playoutdoors – outdoor play and learning ideas
 #TLChat – Teacher Librarians’ discussions/resources

Popular People/Organizations to Follow in
Education
@edutopia: inspiration and information for
what works in education.
@Edudemic: educators and technologists
looking to enhance learning.
@E_Sheninger: Eric is the principal of New
Milford HS ( NJ ), winner of the National
Digital Principal Award ( 2012 ), Google
certified teacher and Adobe education leader.
@medkh9: Educators technology - where
technology intersects with learning.

Popular People/Organizations to Follow in
Education (cont.)
@MindShiftKQED: explores the future of
learning, covering cultural and tech trends and
innovations in education.
@WeAreTeachers: ideas, inspiration &
information for your best days & double that
for your hard ones. Supporting kids means
supporting educators, always.
@isteconnects: advances excellence in
learning and teaching.

Tweet Like Your Mama & Principal are Watching
 Just like other forms of social media, it’s up to
you to protect yourself and your career when
using it.
Keep separate personal and professional
accounts.
 If you wouldn’t say something in front of a
superior, don’t tweet it – even if you have your
account set to private. Being set to private
doesn’t prevent others from re-tweeting your
tweets to their followers.

Personal Accounts
Fun!
Follow friends, family, athletes, celebrities
Vote on reality shows like The Voice
Express your personal opinion, but still act like
your principal is watching.

Other Twitter Tools and Features
There are several web tools that have been
created specifically for Twitter users. These
tools can help you perform a wide range
of activities you could not otherwise do using
Twitter alone.

Popular Education Twitter Chats

Nearbytweets
Nearby tweets allows you to search local
tweets from Twitter by location and keyword.
By default it will show you tweets near your
current location.

WeFollow
With WeFollow you can search for people by
interest and sort them by their Prominence
Score.
 This ranking system lets you quickly discover,
follow and learn from the most prominent people
around the world.

The Tweeted Times
This is a real time personalized newspaper
generated from your Twitter account.
You can create a newspaper for any topic of
your interest.
Topical newspapers are based on streams
produced by Twitter lists or Twitter search.

Twitter Cheat Sheet / Tips
 Follow for Quality, not Quantity.
 Don’t just be a consumer of Twitter, share too. If you
were having a conversation with someone and you
weren’t responding, the conversation wouldn’t go very
far, would it?
 Keep it interesting by offering a good variety in your
stream of links, blog posts, retweets, responses, and
questions.
 Use keywords that are important to your field to attract
followers.
 Use some of the Twitter tools out there to help with
getting connected, researching and organization.

References
Boss, S. (2011, April 22). Twittering, Not Frittering: Professional
Development in 140 Characters | Edutopia.
Retrieved November 10, 2014, from
http://www.edutopia.org/twitter-professional-development-technology-
microblogging
Brumley, M. (n.d.). Twitter for Professional Development: Ultra
Beginner Edition » Teach Amazing! Retrieved November 10,
2014, from http://teachamazing.com/twitter-for-professional-development-
ultra-beginner-edition/
Caron, S.W. (2013, January 7). Education World: Using Twitter
for Professional Development. Retrieved November 10, 2014,
from http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/using-twitter-for-
professional-development.shtml

Dunn, J. (2011, October 3). The A-Z Dictionary of Educational
Twitter Hashtags | Edudemic. Retrieved November 10, 2014,
from http://www.edudemic.com/twitter-hashtag-dictionary/
Educational Technology and Mobile Learning. (n.d.). The Best 15
Twitter Hashtags for Teachers. Retrieved November 10, 2014,
from http://www.educatorstechnology.com/2012/06/best-15-
twitter-hashtags-for-teachers.html
Educational Technology and Mobile Learning. (n.d.). Top 14
Educational Technology Tweeters to Follow.
http://www.educatorstechnology.com/2012/08/top-14-
educational-technology-tweeters.html

Edudemic. (n.d.). The Teacher's Guide to Twitter.
http://www.edudemic.com/guides/guide-to-twitter/
Walker, L. (2009, April 16). Nine Reasons to Twitter in Schools |
Tech Learning. Retrieved November 10, 2014, from
http://www.techlearning.com/curriculum/0035/nine-reasons-to-
twitter-in-schools/45908
What Is Twitter About. (n.d.). Retrieved November 23, 2014,
from https://about.twitter.com/what-is-twitter

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