If a picture is worth 1,000 words, a Tweet is worth....
Do you love social media? Do you hate it?
No matter how you feel about it, social media sites like Facebook and Twitter are powerful tools that can bring disparate groups of people together. I have been a Twitter user for nearly a decade and one useful aspect of that platform is knowing what people are thinking. Since 2016 this has proven to be a double edged sword, and Twitter has become even more problematic under it's new ownership. Despite all of those downsides, Twitter is still a powerful platform for education professionals to exchange ideas.
Whom do I follow?
I follow many educational experts and organizations, but one that I find especially helpful is Edutopia. Edutopia was founded back in 1991 by the George Lucas Educational Foundation. The mission of Edutopia is to integrate emerging technologies with educational strategies.
As a long-time follower of Edutopia on Twitter I have read useful articles that have transformed my teaching practice.
What resource has Edutopia provided that has helped me in the classroom?
It's no secret that I love taking students on field trips. The pandemic disrupted so much of our lives. People lost loved ones, students spent a year or more learning from home, and bonds of connection were thrown out of whack. We are now starting to put the pieces back together, and one area that I am happy to say is returning to normal is field trips!
Last year my team and I took our students on nearly half a dozen field trips. We went to:
2. The DuSable Museum of African American History and Culture
4. Governors State University Center for the Performing Arts
6. The Museum of Science and Industry
7. The Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center
I love getting out of the building and allowing students to experience the power of place and have authentic learning experiences. When I reflect on my own career as a student, it is often the field trips that I remember most vividly and fondly. Tip: be sure to ask if there are scholarships available. Several of our trips were completely free, or students only had to pay a small fee for the bus.
Edutopia provided a great resource on how to get the most from a field trip to a museum. I saw this headline and realized this is my bread and butter!
 |
| Image source: Screenshot of the Edutopia article. |
I love this resource because it describes how to make the most of a museum visit. It gives tips on what to do before, during, and after a visit. It also gives suggestions on how to organize your groups. I would not have discovered this resource if not for Twitter!
 |
| Image Source: Screenshot of the tweet that provided this resource. |
Is that all Twitter is good for?
The short is....NO! Reading, retweeting, and commenting on tweets are beneficial. However, Twitter is another powerful tool in creating a Professional Learning Network (PLN). PLNs are networks of people in a similar industry that can share ideas. Twitter chats are a way for people to come together and participate in a Professional Learning Network.
One Twitterchat that I found great joy in is #resiliencechat. This is a group with a Social Emotional Learning (SEL) focus. The moderator began by posting a list of questions, and participants had an opportunity to respond to each question. The power of the chat is that participants can respond and uplift each other. Here is a screenshot of some of my tweets:
 |
| Image Source: Screenshot of Twitterchat with #resiliencechat. |
In this Twitterchat we discussed what advice we might give to students at the end of the year. No matter your subject area or role in education, there is a PLN and a Twitterchat for you!
You can find me on Twitter at @0hijason. Please feel free to follow. I'd love to connect with you!
Comments
Post a Comment