There are lots of different of categories of "teachers", and I reckon every category is probably on twitter.
There is no set rule for what you can use Twitter for. Its my experience that who you are irl (in real life) is probably who you will be on Twitter. I'm not the kind of person who is a huge extrovert with natural networking skills in real life, & turns out that I'm not that type when I'm on Twitter. I'm more of a listener and some-time engager.
4 types of teachers who tweet (a work-in-progress)
1) Teachers who use twitter as part of their teaching strategy
Slowly, there will be more and more teachers who work out ways of using Twitter as part of their teaching/classroom activity. All universities currently use education/learning management software such as Blackboard. But there are limitations on these. If your students are already using Digg, Twitter, or Facebook - it seems reasonable to engage with them there.
A couple of academics using Twitter as part of their teaching strategy include:
- @jason_a_w is using Twitter in his teaching in Digital Communications at the University of Wollongong;
- @dannmallet is using Twitter as a communication tool with his mathematics students at Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane; and
- @julie_posetti is another university academic using Twitter (with her Journalism students) within the teaching context.
2) Teachers who support teachers
Used in conjunction with blogs, Twitter is an excellent networking tool for those teachers who professionally support other teachers.
3) Technology mavens
There are a number of teachers on Twitter who are simply natural mavens with an interest in digital technology.
Examples of this edu-tech maven are
4) Private Sector Teachers
Of course, not all teachers are in schools. Private sector teachers/education providers find a natural home/space in Twitter.
- A Brisbane-based company, Edgeware, offer a range of courses in social-entrepreneurship education for young people, teachers and adults. They use Twitter (@UPLOADQLD & @e_d_g_e_w_a_r_e) for networking amongst their "alumni" (aka Edgies) and resource sharing
There are many more than these four types of teachers - the list will grow as more and more teachers engage with Twitter (and other social networking tools).
For teachers of young people it is particularly important - how can we properly prepare them for challenges of adult-hood if we ourselves are unaware of the social forces & still prepare them for life.
If you're not sure of what Twitter is & how you can use it as a teacher, I invite you to have a look at these professional users & read the articles linked in other posts. (Don't just follow @oprah & other celebs as they do not always use Twitter in the way it is intended - ie. a meaningful communication tool).
I look foward to your feedback.
