geek.teacher

I had my students write paragraphs about what they are thankful for this year, so I figured I would write along a similar trend.  I am, of course, thankful for many things in this world, not the least of which would be my family and friends.  However, the thing I am most thankful for this year in relation to how it has changed (some might say warped) my thinking would undoubtedly be my Personal Learning Network.

A year ago I didn’t have a PLN.  I took the plunge early this year as I started to check out some more educational blogs and found a lot of good stuff.  Those blogs got me into Twitter.  I had signed up for Twitter back when I first heard about it because it sounded interesting, but, as I would imagine many people do, I hit a brick wall early.  I didn’t know anybody on Twitter, and couldn’t convince anybody to join me.  When I discovered the same people writing the blogs I liked to read also tweeted, I jumped back in, following them.  Then I started following people that they were talking to, so I could understand more.  Things kind of snowballed from there.  

While I still continue to follow blogs, and use diigo groups a little, at the end of the day, Twitter takes the crown as the most important piece of my PLN.  I interact with so many different educators from all around the world, getting links, resources, and advice.  I share my own knowledge as well whenever possible, but I get back so much more than I could possibly give.

Some wonderful things that make Twitter so worth it to me:

• As stated before, talking to educators living quite literally on the other side of the world, like Jeff Utecht in Thailand
• Talking to some great local educators I never would have talked to due to them being in different districts, such as Kristen Hokanson and Diana Laufenberg
• The strange near mind-melds I occasionally get with Damian Bariexca and Chad Brannon
• Talking about students having laptops in the classroom with Jackie Ballarini, Chris Champion, and Karen Janowski.  Should we put them into the IEPs?  Should students bring their own laptops?  Can they check them out?
• Early this morning, thanks to Mr. Tweet, I started following Craig Nansen.  he follows me back, notices I’m asking about DSLRs, and gives me tons of really helpful information as I try to figure out exactly what to ask for on my Christmas list.
• The generally goofy humor that occurs when a bunch of nerdy teachers interact, providing some at times much needed comic relief to my day

So, thank you fellow edutwitters.  You’ve given me so much, and I hope to continue to provide back in kind.  Thanks for giving me new material, for stretching my thinking about a wide variety of topics, and, in essence, helping me to develop into a better, more knowledgeable teacher.  Thank you.

Check out this article about a new study.  It describes teenagers’ social interactions using modern communications tools.  It finds that, amazingly enough, they do not represent the coming of Satan.  In fact:

“It may look as though kids are wasting a lot of time hanging out with new media, whether it’s on MySpace or sending instant messages,” said Mizuko Ito, lead researcher on the study, “Living and Learning With New Media.” “But their participation is giving them the technological skills and literacy they need to succeed in the contemporary world. They’re learning how to get along with others, how to manage a public identity, how to create a home page.”

So can my school district please unblock Twitter now?  That would make me happy.

Ask and ye shall receive!

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While I know a lot of us who like edutech are already on board with the realization that the mobile phone is the computing platform of the future for teens (and us, if the number of new iPhone users on Twitter is any indication =), it now appears that advertisers are more and more looking to get into the game:

Among the predictions: Mobile phones in the United States will surpass the popularity of desktops for teens. Only an estimated 20 percent of teens currently own a smartphone such as the iPhone, but mobile phone and content companies are counting on the idea that smartphone adoption will spread fast among teens in middle America and other areas.

Most schools of course, including mine, ban cell phones right now, but the question will increasingly come up as to whether or not this stance is either feasible or pedagogically sound.  I strongly recommend you check out From Toy to Tool: Cell Phones in Learning, which is a great blog devoted to ways to use cell phones in the classroom.