Once again, Common Craft explains!
What is Twitter
Wikipedia says, “Twitter is a free social networking and micro-blogging service that allows users to send updates via SMS, instant messaging, email, to the Twitter website, or any one of the multitude of Twitter applications now available”.
Twitter asks the question, “What are you doing?” and allows you to send a small update (limited to just 140 characters) to your followers. The concept is amazingly simple and that is perhaps one of the main reasons why it has caught on like wildfire. The restriction to 140 characters has resulted in Twitter being labeled “micro blogging”. A traditional blog is a log of what somebody is up to, but in a richer, more detailed format. One of the key benefits of Twitter is that you can send and receive updates (also called tweets) via your browser, email , instant messaging clients and SMS so you can keep in touch no matter where you are.
Tweet, Tweet
Each Twitter post is known as a tweet and users 'follow' the tweets of their network. Often the tweet describe what an individual is doing, or working on. However there are many more possibilities, tweets can be responses to other tweets, questions to your twitter network, links to interesting resources. It is really hard to wrap one's head around until you start tweeting and build a personal network. For examples of how this tool may be used in education, take a look at Twitter in the Classroom, part of the Web 2.0 Primer for Newbies site.
Twitter in the Classroom
Twitter is currently finding its place as an educational tool. In fact, many educators are finding Twitter to be an extremely powerful teaching tool.
100 Tips, Apps, and Resources for Teachers on TwitterExplore just how Twitter is becoming the revolutionary new way that communities are being brought together, people are learning from each and keeping up to date with all that is happening.
Twitter in the Classroom
One professor’s tips for using Twitter in the classroom.
The Chronicle of Higher Education According to one university professor on using Twitter to interact with his students, "It was the single thing that changed the classroom dynamics more than anything I’ve ever done teaching,"
polldaddy
Quick and easy polls for Twitter.
I just discovered Edmodo several weeks ago. Like Twitter, Edmodo is a microblogging site, but it builds in significant additional functionality to support classroom interactions. Check it out!
Are you ready to Tweet? If so, join Twitter and follow Digital Campus at Fresno State – DCatCSUF is our username : )