A few days ago, I sent out a Tweet asking:
I thought of the idea after I saw the “dream team” that is being assembled at various international schools world wide. I noticed that several people I follow and trust as great members of my team have ended up at Korean International School @stevekatz @krea_frobro747 @kurisuteen and @tsbray I was quickly told that @b_roadside is at KIS as well. Last year there was the All-Star team in Bangkok. Are there others?
For those of you familiar with this sports analogy, you will appreciate that teams who want to create a unified team will scour the free agent market and find players who will help deliver them a championship. Is your team looking for a connected team?
I thought about the teachers I know world wide who Tweet and are connected through various modes of networking tools. I thought about where they are placed and whether or not they feel isolated or connected. I was jealous of the people at KIS, because they seem to have a great team who shared similar values regarding pedagogy and technology.
I thought about how I was excited to now be at a school with at least one other person on Twitter @janeinjava, but this constant connection and interaction is not the culture of my school. (Not yet) I am hoping that I too can create an environment where we have a team on Twitter soon, and I am hoping that doesn’t only mean that they randomly tweet now and then, but rather the team reflects a culture of connectivity.
But one can look at KIS now, and see that they value technology and it’s implications in education, based on their recruiting practice. I have a feeling that this team was created partly through luck and happenstance, or is it because they are purposefully recruiting teachers who are connected? You tell me. How many schools during interviewing ask potential teachers whether they are on Twitter, or how they use social networks to stay tuned to the latest professional development?
Most people responded that they did not feel that the number of Tweeting teachers had any correlation to a schools commitment to technology, because many people simply use Twitter to waste time. I thought it was implied in my message that I meant teachers who are part of this burgeoning edtech community.
I am not claiming that a school should be judged solely on the number of tweeting teachers, but I do think that if you are in a school where there is a value placed on your involvement in social networks you should feel lucky.
Where do you teach? Are you looked at like some kind of geek because you Tweet or blog, or is there a culture of these activities at your school? What are some dream teams that you know of?
I like the idea of teachers using twitter. As a parent, it shows me that our teachers are up to date with what is going on. It is almost impossible for our children to make it in the world without technology. Therefore, it would be great to see our teachers twitting. At the school that my children attend, their is nobody that I know of that blogs or tweets. As a future teacher, I embrace this idea and will share it with other students and teachers I come in contact with. Thanks!
As a student, I don’t yet have the opportunity to be able to use any technology at my disposal for interaction in social networking that would help schools and teachers become more technologically literate. However, in sitting through many first days of class and hearing my teachers tell of ways that we can get into contact with them, it has become increasingly evident that they are indeed turning to all forms of social networking, twitter included. I myself do not have a twitter account and to be honest I don’t exactly understand it yet, so I feel like I am unable to fully answer the questions about twitter and its implications on education. I am partial to networks such as email and facebook and teachers these days are able to get their notifications sent straight to their phone from either. So from a student standpoint, I like networking as a way of me being able to interact with my teachers almost any time I need, whether it be late at night while I am studying or early in the morning before class. So I personally wouldn’t look at anyone as a geek but instead commend them for the extra effort in keeping up with their students needs even after class hours.
I personally have not been on twitter since I first created one over a year ago, but I was the same way towards facebook before I became addicted to it and I know that it is the same concept, so I will base my comments on that! As a student I know how important it is to be involved in social networking, especially once you get past the “drama” stage during high school. It’s not only a great way to keep up with friends and family, but it is also very useful in keeping in touch with teachers and classmates. Two personal examples I have are classes having actual facebook groups. One is specifically for a biology class and another is for an education in diverse society class where my group comunicates on a project we must do.
So clearly I can associate to how important social networking is for a student, and I would have to agree/assume that the same goes for tecahers. Not only can they too have contact with many friends and family, which I believe is important no matter who you are, but they can contact other teachers at their school as well as other schools.
I think that the “dream team” is such a cool idea and it without a doubt shows the growth of technology possitively. By no means do I see having a Twitter as being to only judgement for a good tecaher or school, and there is absolutely nothing “geeky” about it!!
Hi @Cody and @Steph,
Thanks for your comments. I know Twitter feels a bit awkward, but I really suggest you give it a try and start building your network. Start by following me, send a few Tweets and I will help you build some teachers you can get in touch with.