Blogging and Twittering

Blogging for Education

I am no stranger to Blogging.  I have used it in many classes that I have instructed over the years to allow students an opportunity to reflect upon their learning experience with multimedia.  The benefit of the blog is that is supports the use of digital media while allowing students to interact over the web.  It typically promotes the very key components of digital media that are listed in the course objectives.

In the past few days, I have increased my knowledge of blogging by learning that it has become far more used in the classroom and through mobile devices such as tablets and smart phones.  As I felt compelled to research and test this out myself, I found the iPad app worked out great for Blogger, other than the fact that is is difficult to make a lengthy blog using a stylus.  On the other hand, the Blogger app for Android was junk.  It would not allow me to enter my UT blog.  It simply kept pushing me to my original blog that I used for work.  I tried to change accounts, but it kept adding new e-mail accounts to my phone.  I deleted the app and don't recommend it.

I am a supporter of the use of blogging in the class for concepts such as reflection, yet I believe that using too many different technologists can overload the student and tend to move away from the course objectives.  This is evident in my next few thoughts.

Twitter for Education

Unlike Blogging, I do not believe Twitter has a place in education.  At first, I was very pessimistic about obtaining a Twitter account.  The videos provided me with little assurance that what is posted can be secure.  Reluctantly, I obtained the account to fulfill this assignment and immediately became frustrated with the beginning process where I was continuously prompted to keep adding people or ideas to follow with no proceed option.  I had to close the browser and return to the site, where I removed many followings.

Next, I was unhappy with the fact that a few of the organizations that I choose to follow turned around and followed me.  I have no desire to share my thoughts with strangers, this is why I am an avid fan of facebook, where I choose who sees what I post.  I don't believe that the band Shinedown needs to see that I am teaching 3d animation today.

So I sucked it up and made an attempt to use the account for what we have discussed - education.  Early one morning this week, I did a poll in class - a simple hands up worked for me.  How many students are on Twitter, and how many of them follow a teacher.  In two classes of 11th graders, a little under half had Twitter accounts, and three followed a math teacher. 

Still trying to become a believer - I released my Twitter information to the students within 3 of my traditional classes.  I have a few followers now, but some I have no idea who they are and where they came from - creepy.  I suppose there are many benefits of using a tool like this, if only it wasn't public.  I also find myself taking time out of my busy schedule to Tweet   - which I'm sure my boss would not be happy about.  For there are many other secure forms of communication that would provide our students with the same information, while avoiding the distraction of all of the other Tweets that they received from various places.

So beyond the scope of this assignment, I have no intention on continuing to follow anyone, however I may continue to post about relevant thoughts within our program.  Our program has a facebook, and to me that is more secure, as well as allows the ability to share work which is what my students do best.