Presented by: Holly Rae Bemis-Schurtz & Laura Grant, NM State University New Mexico Technology in Education Conference October 2009 Educators around the world are utilizing Twitter as a personal learning environment, but how else can microblogging be used in education? From K12 to Higher Education, we will present the possibilities of Twitter and alternative tools in both instructional and student support contexts. We’ll share examples of how elementary, secondary and higher education faculty and institutions are using microblogging to augment communication in thoughtful ways, but we won’t stop there. Social media tools like this require important safety and security considerations as well as outcomes based planning. Join us and identify issues and strategies you’ll need to know about Twitter for educational purposes.

1. Twitter in EducationConsiderations & Possibilities http://success.nmsu.edu/twitter http://nmtiepresentation.pbworks.com Holly Rae Bemis-Schurtz @hollyraehollyrae@nmsu.edu Laura Grant @laurapresently lgrant@nmsu.edu

3. a ‘headline’ of one’s status

4. shared with followers

5. often using @replies

8. #hashtag RT - retweet

9. Overview Possibilities Higher Education Secondary Education Elementary Education Considerations Outcomes Based Approach Safety & Security Alternative Tools http://www.flickr.com/photos/myklroventine/2537309848/

10. Higher EducationPossibilities

11. Educators Institutions Educators Institutions Disburse information

13. Educators Institutions Listen

15. Educators Institutions Engage

16. Student support

17. Instruction

18. Educators Institutions Fostering a decentralized network

21. Educators Institutions Having a plan

22. “We are @nmsu a group of students and staff members..” Follow @nmsu Who @nmsu follows Improve @nmsu Team members Current updates Other NMSU personas http://success.nmsu.edu/twitter

23. Secondary EducationPossibilities

24. What are we looking for?

25. News and Updates

26. Attendance? Vocabulary?... ru 4 real?

27. Idealized Backchannel S1: In Bio listening to a great lecture on cell division. She ROCKS! S2: Reading "Chapter 7" for Mr Wilson. Not my favorite so far but I'll get through it S3: Great quote from Mr B: "History is written by the winners." He said it's not his original quote, tho’ S4: @S1 Mrs D is awesome! Looking forward to 5th period when I'll hear it, too S4: @S2 Tell me about it. I've got to read it tonight. But I'm a fast reader. S2: Anyone know a good website to help me to understand Chapter 7? S1: @S3 Yeah, I heard that quote before, too. Hold on and I'll look it up for you. From Twitter with Students? @jgates513

28. Possible Backchannel? S1: wht's 4 lunch? I'm staving!S2: NFW I'm readg that @#$ Chapter 7. Hes got 2 B Sh*ttin' me!S3: "History is writn by th winners?" DUH!S4: I get out of her class 5th period, dude! S*cks 2 B U!S4: @S1 its only 9:30 dude! U cnt B hungry alrdy U pig!S2: Any1 know if any of ths @#$% in Ch 7 will B on the test?S1: @S3 No duh! Who ELSE wld write it. Hes so lame! From Twitter with Students? @jgates513

29. Collaborative Research http://socialtechineducation.wikispaces.com/ from @teachpaperless

30. Collaborative Assessment Students have access to texts and translation tools Allowed to use Twitter to ask questions and offer help Instructor can listen and contribute if assistance is needed Each student translates a different part of the passage One score to entire class as long as equal contributions to the hashtag Students shared resources and translations by linking to blogs All discussion had to take place on Twitter. http://teachpaperless.blogspot.com from @teachpaperless

31. A few more ideas for Secondary Education Collaborative writing Collaborative research Real time reflections Communicate with subject matter experts Crowdsourcing Follow or research live events Providing ‘lifeline’ assistance/support Opt in text notifications Easy web page updates http://delicious.com/hollyrae/microblogging+education http://nmtiepresentation.pbworks.com

32. Elementary EducationPossibilities

33. Parent ‘IMHO’ "I guess my point is (IMHO) if I found out that my 6th grader's school time was being used to learn about Twitter, MySpace, or any other social tool, that school would be getting a rather terse phone call from me. Teach my kid math, english, history, etc. I'll teach him about twitter etc....when I think he's ready and so that I can set boundaries…” Fromhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/jessica-gross/embracing-the-twitter-cla_b_204463.html

34. School Presence

35. Classroom Presence Possibiliites Opt in network for parents and family members Send reminders about homework or announcements Microblog of classroom events

36. Collaborative Writing

37. ! Safety & SecurityConsiderations

39. @PawLuxury

40. Considerations about Twitter itself API Vulnerabilities Google Results Location Awareness

41. Responsible Use Considerations What else will students do with this? What policies are in place? Cyberbulling committee, anonymous reporting Responsible use agreement Parental consent, student assent How will account(s) be administered? Blocking, following, privacy

42. ! Outcomes Based ApproachConsiderations

43. Define parameters & goals What is the purpose of the account? Determine outcomes, norms, parameters What links, names, locations should be shared (if any)? Consider limiting information in your profile’s bio Who can follow (if private) and how will that be managed? What will happen on vacation, breaks, nights or weekends? Higher Ed example @nmsu

44. Prepare to stay involved & immersed Monitor/listen to your brand or community Research your integration of search and search widgets (ongoing) Change account name when necessary Be mindful of password access or third party access (ie: Twitpic email address) Listening Engines * http://www.socialmention.com/ * http://search.twitter.com/ * http://www.whostalkin.com/ * http://www.samepoint.com/

45. Know your tools! Be familiar with the support documentation.

46. Include & inform stakeholders Acceptable/responsible use Parental consent Student assent Administrational approval Responsible and transparent classroom use will require your advocacy!

47. ! Alternative ToolsConsiderations

48. Private account with GroupTweet http://www.grouptweet.com

50. Attribution is included

53. Consider the size of the conversation

54. Additional microblogging networks Microclassroom Edmodo.com Enterprise (domain based) Yammer.com Present.ly SocialCast.com White Label Twingr.com Open Source Laconi.ca Created with http://www.wordle.net

55. Twitter for Education ! ? … Twitter has safety and security liabilities Safety and security is a moving target Requires a strong & ongoing commitment Alternative tools can support many of the benefits with fewer safety considerations

56. Questions & Comments http://success.nmsu.edu/twitter http://nmtiepresentation.pbworks.com Holly Rae Bemis-Schurtz @hollyraehollyrae@nmsu.edu Laura Grant @laurapresently lgrant@nmsu.edu