Download - Twitter for Educators: Why Start Now
Twitter for Educators:Why Start Now?
Education Undergraduate SocietyFebruary 6, 2012
Kurtis HewsonFaculty Associate
University of Lethbridge@hewsonk27
Additional Resources
• http://kurtishewson.wordpress.com– For each slide, related additional
resources and further information
• Twitter for Pre-Service Teachers– Scoop.It page with resources, videos
and other things related to Twitter
Essential Questions
• Why start now?• How do I start an account?• What are some basic terms/features to know• What are some general Twitiquette rules to be
aware of?• What are hashtags?• What are chats?• What are Twitter Clients?
Why Start Now
• Establish a network of other educators and supports prior to entering your first classroom
• Find information fast and keep current of trends and resources
• Develop and strengthen technology skills
• Network – open doors to connections and possible contacts
Why Start Now
Sharing from Tweeters in the room…
Starting an Account
• Go to http://twitter.com
• Consider:• Choose your name wisely – consider your “brand”
for a uniform on-line presence• Complete your profile, including a blog address• Include profile details that will be informative to
other professionals and capture you as a professional
• Begin tweeting and following others
Some basics
RT – Retweet (passing along someone else’s tweet) – shares with an increasing circle of followers @ – Reply (references the initial author
or directly sends the tweet to another user (but seen by all followers)
Shortened URL – used to shorten long url’s (Twitter Clients do this automatically, or go to https://bitly.com
# – Hashtag (posts the tweet on a list that many more people may follow) – distributes the tweet to a larger, often particular audience
Direct Message – same as an email to a Twitter follower – only seen by the message recipient
Twitiquette
• Post – share thoughts, resources, other people to follow…but no need to share every detail of your life
• Thank you to those that follow you
• Block spam
• Consider who views your posts…
• Ask for who to follow
Hashtags
• Great way to follow a topic or get a tweet out to a wider audience
• Will begin to observe frequently used or useful hashtags– #abed, #edchat, #uleth
• Great for creating a conversation/backchannel
• Used for chats
Chats
• Utilize hashtags
• Formal chats scheduled on pre-determined topics (list on the blog)
• Can view past chats online
• Can “participate” or just observe
• Establish your own chats
Twitter Clients
• Make it easy to utilize Twitter on your desktop or mobile device
• View multiple social media platforms
Questions and Further Support
• Questions??
• http://kurtishewson.wordpress.com
• Follow me @hewsonk27
• List of U of L Education students– @hewsonk27/u-of-l-education-students