twitter

Twitter has become a most interesting social network application.  If that's even the correct description of it.

I signed up a while ago for a Twitter account and then never used it until last year when I thought it would be interesting to turn the Sticky-Note Book Report assignment in College Comp II into a Twitter Book Report.  I began using my account and encouraged my student to create theirs.  They all could via their phones, despite Twitter being blocked by our nefarious web blocker.

The students actually preferred to do the old fashioned Stick-Note Book Report rather than use Twitter.  They found Twitter's 140 character limit too constricting.

Students still used it, though, to comment on assignments or ask questions.

For those who are not familiar with Twitter.  Here is how it works.

It's a lot like texting in that there is a limit to how much you can tweet (I can't tell you how long it took me to get used to saying that).

So whatever I tweet goes up on my wall.  Those who follow me can see it.  They can also mention or contact me by typing the @ in front of my username.  I have it set up so as soon as they tweet that I am notified via email, text, and twitter.  Talk about instant feedback.

We can also use hashtags (the # symbol) for discussions.  If I assign a story, such as "Young Goodman Brown," I can also tell students to tweet their questions or ideas about it by using the hastag #ygb.  When their tweet come up, I can click on the #ygb and see all the tweets in that discussion.  It's a handy way to see their commentary as it happens in real time.  Where else are students allowed to do that?

I think Twitter is superior to Facebook because, right now anyway, fewer people are on Twitter.  So there is less crap put up by people.  I can't tell you how sick I am of looking at my FB wall and seeing song quotes, complaints, insults, and drama from my 'friends.'

I don't get a whole lot of that on Twitter.

The best feature of Twitter right now is that there are a ton of fellow educators using it.  So I follow them and see what articles they are reading and what teaching strategies they are using.  In fact, one of the best things about Twitter is that the teachers and administrators and writers I follow tend to include links in their Tweets.  These links are to interesting articles or blogs they come across.  This is an excellent way to stay caught up on my professional reading.

Twitter is also great because it is maybe the best embodiment of what Friedman called "a flat world."  What I mean by that is there are no walls separating those of us on Twitter.  It doesn't matter if it's little old me in NW MN Tweeting or Ochocinco out in California or Terry Dullum in GF.  Now the difference is that I have a couple followers, Ochocinco has tens of thousands and Dullum has hundreds.  That means their messages go out to far more people than mine.  But still if I wanted I could follow Ochocinco and send him a message.  Now, he might not reply, but he would get it.  There is instant contact.

Two people I religiously follow on Twitter are Michelle Rhee and Diane Ravitch, both education reformers, though at total odds with one another.  I just got a notification that Rhee is following me and Ravitch even replied to one of my tweets! 

The days of writing letters to authors in elementary school and getting a stock response back are gone.  Now, tweeting Stephen King probably isn't going to merit a response, but you'd be surprised the number of authors - both locally and nationally - on twitter.

Another advantage of Twitter is that it makes reporters out of all of us.  Now, this is not always a good thing as many aren't trained in how to report or even how to write.  But it is superior because you don't have to wait for the six o'clock news anymore. 

Here's what I mean.  I used to watch Sports Center religiously this time of year.  I couldn't wait to see who the NFL free agents were and where they were signing.  Of course of the 60 minutes that comprise Sports Center, maybe 3 minutes is devoted to covering NFL free agency.   So I'd have to sit through a whole episode until Chris Mortenson or John Clayton came on to fill us in.

Then the internet hit and you could go right to the NFL free agency tracker on the ESPN website and stay up to date.  But I still had to wait for a source to tell a writer what was going on and then I'd have to wait for the writer to post the update on the website.

That is all gone thanks to Twitter.

Just now, I'm following Chris Mortenson and Adam Schefter (both ESPN reporters) who also Tweet.  As soon as they hear something (such as Carson Palmer being retired or where Reggie Bush will sign), they Tweet it.  I don't have to wait for their segment on Sports Center or for it to appear on the website.  And because I have the Twitter app on my BlackBerry, I get instant notification wherever I am.

But there's one more step.  Sometimes, the players themselves (like Ochocinco mentioned earlier) are dedicated Tweeters and totally cut out the reporters and news agencies.  They can get the stories right to the fans without the middle man.  This is dangerous since the NFL Network exists as that middle man.  And that is one reason Roger Goodell forbids players from Tweeting certain things at certain times (they cannot Tweet from the locker room.  They have to talk to the reporters first.  Nor can they Tweet from sidelines during games).  Just imagine how that would change the game!  You could be watching the Super Bowl and suddenly a Tweet would appear on your phone or the TV screen from Peyton Manning or Drew Brees telling you about the touchdown they just threw.  Talk about immediate feedback!

So Adam Schefter just reported that the Boston College DE/OLD Mark Herlich has signed with the Giants.  But as it happens Herzlich Tweets.  So Schefter's report is simply "Herzlich tweets that he has signed with the Giants."  Right here Herzlich is cutting out all the middle men.  If I followed him on Twitter, I'd know immediately where he was going to sign.  I'd know the same time as the big reporters for all the networks.

When in the history of reporting was that ever possible?

I don't even bother watching Sports Center anymore.  Even checking on a website is a pain.  Twitter is the way to go.

What's next?  ESP perhaps?

Who knows but it's an exciting time to live and engage with others.

Of course, the possibilities for education and teaching are incredible.

Imagine following an author who tweets periodically as he writers.  What a superb window into the writing process.  Or imagine taking part in a twitter discussion with a student in NW MN, a student in California, a student in India and another student in China.  It could happen very easily using Twitter.  Just imagine the possibilities for discussions and learning that could happen.

It's a wonderful tool in my classroom too.  When my College Comp II class is reading Sir Ken Robinson's "The Element," we can follow him on Twitter and they can send him questions.  They can go to the links he Tweets and further expand their knowledge.  We can also read his book and tweet key ideas or passages that we like.  I can also tell them to search the internet and tweet links to stories that have to do with the author, any of the people featured in the book, or reviews of the book.  Just look at the knowledge base we are building.

All this talk of education and technology (and football finally) has me fired up for school again.  Only 41 days left until the first day!