Twitter+Reflection

Twitter for Educators When I was first presented with this lesson of using Twitter I was not excited. At the time I honestly could not conceive the notion that it could actually be a useful tool for me, it seemed like it was going to be just another time drain. What I found is that both are true; it is a useful tool while also being a time drain. Twitter became valuable for me when I posted a “tweet” asking for suggestions on how to blog with my students. I was amazed that within seconds I had eight suggestions, including a kid friendly blog site that I have been using with my students. Sharing information and ideas seems to be the main benefit of using Twitter. As I sit here at my computer typing this I see a number of “tweets” pop up from Tweetdeck, many of them spark my interest but I can’t take the time to explore any of them. That would be the downfall, or at least //my// downfall – lack of time. This is not a fault of Twitter but rather a fault of life and the many things that pull on our time. Even though posting and following others on Twitter was an assignment I still found it extremely difficult to fulfill the expectations of the assignment. I tend to get lost in things and lose track of time. That is what keeps me from exploring the many interesting “tweets” that continue to pop up on my screen, right now I must focus on the task at hand which always seems to be my predicament. To date I am following nine people and being followed by seven people on Twitter. This small number is not surprising considering the limited time I spent posting and/or reading posts. However I am interested in sharing ideas with fellow teachers so I plan to continue using Twitter and eventually spend a bit more time exploring the wealth of knowledge flowing through the “Tweets.”