Facebook and Twitter in the Classroom

It was fitting that in the week of Twitter’s 5^th Birthday the NIedchat community were asking whether or not schools could ignore Social Networking sites for much longer.

It was plainly evident that the vast majority of the teachers who took part in the discussion felt that schools should be trying to utilise the huge potential of social media – probably not surprising since the participants are all avid users of social media – however here was a belief that social networking sites have become uch an integral part of the world we live in now that it does not make sense to exclude them form the classroom.

A number of teachers shared how they were using Twitter.

https://twitter.com/#!/Hotspurclass12 via @simcloughlin

https://twitter.com/#!/MrsBellsClass via @7MJ

This idea came from Trevor Connolly. He is using Twitter as part of a literacy initiative. His students are sharing articles they are reading using the hashtag #read1thing (http://chirpstory.com/li/5462)

Trevor has share the instruction document below.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OiY0zVrOCJ_S_-qL1wpScG7VQBXQD2hLMXdzIFci-Hk/edit

The poll this week threw up some interesting results. Of the participants who responded most stared that their schools do not use Social Networking sites in an official capacity. Also, the poll suggests that teachers would like to use Twitter in the classroom but are less sure about using facebook. You can view the poll results by clicking on the link below.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewanalytics?formkey=dE5TeU9rWFNpcXdMUm9TQWUxc2poVUE6MQ

Selected Tweets

If we're not meeting our students at least halfway in the world they live in, the world they communicate in -then we

may give up. @dmurray742

syded0

Schools should have an official FB & TW account because if they don't, students might do it themselves @johnmayo

Other Links

Using Facebook in Education - via @dmchugh675

http://www.facebook.com/education?sk=app_4949752878

An alternative to Twitter suggest by @AnGaeilgeoir1 via @mapsman

http://todaysmeet.com/

Teaching with Twitter - via @catherinecronin

http://steve-wheeler.blogspot.co.nz/2009/01/teaching-with-twitter.html

http://blog.reyjunco.com/twitter-101-best-practices-in-using-twitter-in-the-classroom-infographic

Interesting ways to use Twitter in the Classroom

https://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dhn2vcv5_118cfb8msf8

Tweet of the Week

To ignore Twitter & Facebook gives students the impression that what happens in schools does not happen in real life.

@mynameisdermot