In my new role here at the University of Wollongong, we’re experimenting with Twitter used in combination with extension Twitwall as a teaching and learning resource.
The “big” subject we’re using it for is a first-year unit called “New Media: Histories, Industries, Practices.” The teaching team here is large, and there are a lot of tutorials, so some deft logistics are needed, especially since a lot of students will be using this platform for the first time.
This means developing appropriate introductory resources for students from a wide range of backgrounds so they can engage with the service. They need to be able to hit the ground running, because they’ll be doing their assessment and some class discussion using this platform. So I’ve written a guide for students that I’ve uploaded here. Feedback welcome.
There has been some discussion among colleagues about using open source alternatives like http://identi.ca I am open to open source, but I don’t see this as a situation where it’s a clear substitution for Twitter. When it come sot social technologies, it’s pretty clear that part of the affordances of the technology are to do with the scale of its uptake.
As I say in the guide:
The reasons that we’re using Twitter are:
1. It’s lightweight and flexible –it allows us to talk to each other during and between classes, to share information easily (while retaining our rights to IP), and used together with Twitwall it allows us to integrate these with a platform that supports longer pieces. We’re hoping that using these together as a technological infrastructure will mean that you’ll learn from each other as well as from us, and that learning won’t just happen in classes but between them, too. Also, compared to other platforms we could have chosen, it’s very easy to learn how to use Twitter.
2. Twitter offers us access to a large and inclusive networked conversation, and we are using it at a key moment, when it is currently undergoing mass uptake. It’s currently frequently in the news, and people often use as it as an example when they’re thinking about the promises and anxieties that attach themselves to social media. We’re hoping that during the course of this subject you’ll learn through doing, and become more critical users of social networking technologies. But also, as you become more integrated into the world of Twitter, you’ll be able to directly access information from debates between significant thinkers in our field of study as they happen. They offer a great way of bringing all of us into contact with a networked information environment.
3. Learning how to use social media is a significant element in contemporary information literacy. You don’t need to come to university in order to use Twitter, but we can help you put it in a longer context, and help you use it in ways that are critical, smart and directed at enhancing course content and objectives.
There is a bit of stuff at the end about privacy. In a teaching context, it’s important to make students aware of how to protect their privacy without overdoing the dangers. I’m sure you’ll let me know if I’ve gotten that balance right.
A little more to do on Twitwall before the guide is complete, but I look forward to your thoughts on this first step.
citizen journalism citizen journalism
Recent Comments