7_2 Twitter as a PLN

The Pros and Cons of Twitter:

Pros:

• Less than a minute to send
• Concise information is posted since you have limited characters
• You can use lists to group users and create a sort of mini news-feed for those users
• Hashtags can draw awareness
• Quickly gather feedback

Cons:

• Easy to get too many accounts to follow which leads to an enormous amount of unorganized information
• Can’t believe everything tweeted
• Limited number of characters
• A lot of ads unless you pay to have them removed
• Inefficient messaging system…only message one user at a time.

Ideal for microlearning

Twitter can be an extremely useful tool for growing your professional network and collaborating with other teachers/trainers. Being able to find and share information and resources in an easy manner makes it ideal for teachers to use it for growth for themselves as well as their students. It can open a teacher up to new ideas and content that was previously unknown. I had a twitter account years ago for another class and thought I had cancelled it….until I tried to sign up this week and found out it still existed! It has changed and come so far since then! Just by following a few people/groups, you can receive quite a bit of information in such a short time. There are links to blogs, articles, research, other pages, etc. Not only does it help to provide content for use in teaching, it gives teachers a support system with millions of other teachers (and their ideas) at their fingertips.