The Power of Twitter

Recently I listened to a podcast I downloaded from Hack Learning with Principal Dan McCabe on developing a growth mindset by Talks with Teachers.  In this podcast Mr. McCabe talks about his own personal growth experiences as an educator, his most challenging moments and his greatest achievements.  Although there were so many highlights to this podcast I could share, the thing that stood out to me the most was Dan’s comments about the power of Twitter for educators.  I have only personally been active on Twitter this past year, and much of what Dan speaks of resonated with me.  Dan does not exaggerate the function Twitter can play as he talks about Twitter’s uniqueness and benefits to not only the educator, but education as a whole. 

My personal journey with Twitter started in 2007.  I wanted to know what all the hype was about so I cautiously created my own account under a “non-identfying” Twitter handle.  What I mean by that is that I created a name to hide behind (just in case things didn’t work out).  I didn’t want people I knew to be able to find me on Twitter. After all what would they think about me? What could I possibly have to say that anyone would care about?  I did lurk on Twitter for a short time there, cautiously followed some people I knew, and even more cautiously posted a handful of tweets.  I was still left wondering what was all the hype about, basically thinking that Twitter was a vast waste of my time. 

Fast forward to the late Spring of 2014.  I can’t recall what drew me back to Twitter, but I began to explore this social media tool once again.  I read a couple of articles to learn about hashtags and lists, and began to really pay attention to what people were posting and how they were posting.  I started to follow organizations of interest, local and global.  I started searching topics of interest and following other users, particularly those related to education.  I became more and more intrigued and amazed by the number of followers some people had.  I equated the number of followers to the importance of the message, which by the way I know now is not always the case.  Even the user with the least amount of followers can inspire me the most and be the next up and coming user to follow. 

Twitter began to have a daily presence in my life.  I recently tweeted...

Now this isn't a plug for technology before caffeine as a way of life, but speaks to the impact Twitter was having on me.  I was being fueled by it's energy on a daily basis. I was finally beginning to understand the impact the information I was accessing, and most importantly the relationships I was developing, were having on my life on both a professional and personal level.  My interactions with @dinamoati and @jenniferetate led to the development and successful implementation of higherEdcamp.  That experience helped me further understand the power of the #PLN (professional learning network) I was developing.  I was inspired daily by tweets from @RusulAlrubail, who later encouraged me to start up my own blog where I could share my own ideas and experiences.  A pretty bold move for a gal who was hiding behind the “non-identifying” Twitter handle.  It was around that time that I decided to change my user handle to reflect my new commitment to learning, sharing and collaborating. 

Today, just over a year later, I am participating in Twitter chats on many topics related to education and learning with podcasts by Greg Curran at Pushing the Edge.  I am reading books such as Mindset by Carol Dweck which is having a profound impact on both my professional practice and my own personal mindset.  I am lurking and learning on #CLMOOC, thanks to @hj_dewaard, a place where educators are encouraging and inspiring each other to create and remediate content.  I have recently been introduced to things such as Hack Learning where I am able to download, read and listen to some very inspiring topics related to education such as assessment and feedback, connecting with students, creating backchannels and much, much more. I am further developing skills in leadership and collaboration.  Most recently I posed a question to my #PLN about the use of discussion boards as a teaching tool.  I was pleasantly surprised to see just how many educators came to join in to the chat, all providing worthy thoughts and suggestions to support my reflections.  It is amazing how just one question can lead to such valuable discussion.  Shortly after that the conversation was later shared on here on Edutopia. It was a privilege for me to be acknowledged in that way.   You can read that conversation here.  All of this is a direct connection to me being open to using Twitter as a learning and sharing tool.

Dan McCabe was right when he said Twitter is a tool that reinvigorates, offers opportunity to consume vast amounts of educational literature and professional development, yet is still under utilized by educators as a whole.  If you haven’t considered Twitter a valuable tool for you both professionally and personally, I encourage you to do so.  It may take some time but with some commitment you will see the value and potential Twitter can offer you as an educator.