networks

Can teachers stand idle any longer?

9
4 months ago
by tombarrett in , , ,

In last Friday’s Times Educational Supplement an article I had written was published about the use of social networking in schools.

It seems to me that we are getting to a point where children in schools are experiencing a hidden social curriculum that we are no longer part of, this is especially the case for their use of social networking.

In my own words:

Social networking should be taught more widely and in more depth in schools. No longer are we able to stick our heads in the sand about these communication tools. Nor should educators distance themselves from using them.

The paragraphs that were missing from the piece went as follows:

This is not simply about how much time students spend learning about social networking in GCSE ICT. This is an issue for every subject and teacher, a system wide issue, a social issue that needs the whole school to act, and it won’t just take the one or two teachers who use Twitter or write a blog to do it.

 

 

Those of us who are willing should take steps to develop a more supportive and positive ethos around the role of social networking in learning, school and society. Those who are unwilling need to get out of the way, because where we continue to remain idle we further disadvantage our students.

“Teach it, don’t fight it” was published in the TES magazine on 16 September, 2011 

10 Steps to Kick Start Your Twitter Network

14
6 months ago
by tombarrett in ,

When you join Twitter it can seem a strange little place, with it’s own rules and secret ways. Having helped many people make a start I wanted to share some of the key things to help you early on so you can tap into the huge potential a Twitter network has. Here are my 10 steps:


  1. Profile
    This is about setting out your stall and saying to the world what you are about. Personally I look for involvement with education in some form or reference to other stuff I am interested in. Make sure that your profile, including a picture, is well updated as it helps others who might be looking to connect with you decide to follow you or not. Add a link to your blog, if you have one, so we can read a little more about you.
  2. Jump IN!
    Profile sorted, now just get started. Most people will look at your profile alongside what you have tweeted about recently. Write about how your lessons have gone, a great website you have used today (add the link, everyone loves looking at new web resources), a good digital camera you have in school, problems with your network, revelations from your pupils. Anything really, just make a start!
  3. Follow people
    For me Twitter is all about making connections with fellow, often like-minded, professionals, so find someone you know or whose blog you may have enjoyed reading for a while and explore who they follow and who follows them. Then explore someone else’s follower list etc etc. When you look at someone’s Twitter profile you will be able to see the people they follow and those who follow them, with a few clicks your network will grow.
  4. Piggyback
    Give your network a kickstart by asking someone with a whole heap of followers to put in a good word for you. Piggybacking in this way will open up more networks for you to explore and teachers to follow. Just be sure to follow back those that have followed you if you are happy to.
  5. Reply
    Along with putting the word out about yourself, engage with people directly by replying (@ before their username) and direct messaging (D before their username – private). If you can help or offer advice of your own then do so where you can. You might be asking for help in the future.
  6. Where else?
    Remember that Twitter is just one part of a broad online network – make sure you spend time exploring other tools such as blogs (WordPress and Posterous) Google Plus, Plurk etc You will see that these social networks overlap, you will see different types of people and conversations taking place. All good.
  7. Hashtags
    These are little tags we use on Twitter to label different tweets. By adding a hashtag that update is added to a conversation that may be running in real time like #ukedchat or just a topic based tag that is more of a collection of tweets like #classblogs. By using these labels our tweets will be seen by more people, even if our network is small. If I am interested in science and I search on Twitter for #science I will see all of the tweets labeled with that tag. I may or may not have those people in my network but I will see their updates. Hashtags are a way to organise and filter conversations on Twitter and also a good way to discover interesting people to follow.
  8. Blog links
    Explore the blog links people share on their Twitter profiles and see what these people say about their work in more than 140 characters. Also look out for Twitter badges and widgets on blogs you read regularly. They will normally appear in the sidebar saying “follow me” and will lead you to their Twitter account. I think it is equally interesting to see how eloquent bloggers distill their thoughts to 140 characters as it is the other way around. If you have a blog you should think about adding links on your Twitter profile.
  9. Worry less
    Once things are up and running and you have followed a whole bunch of people you may start to worry what you are missing. Well don’t! Many people have described reading Twitter updates like trying to drink from a fire hydrant! Sometimes it can feel like that, you will no doubt adapt and adjust the ways you interact with Twitter as you continue to use it. I see it as a constant stream or flow of information+ideas which I interact with when I am there. When I turn away… c’est la vie.
  10. Perservere
    In the early days of Twitter use it can be very quiet, few replies, not much going on in terms of conversation. Do not be discouraged – try to perservere and stick it out and keep using it, soon enough there will be a “tipping point” when the connections you have make reap a bountiful information harvest.
Twitter is whatever you want it to be – it is a great place to start building a Personal Learning Network but not the only place. It is your personal choice how and if you use it.

Your profile is key as it sets your stall out clearly from the outset, especially if this is to be a professional network. I hope you have enjoyed exploring some of these ideas and they help you make a start!

Good luck and see you on Twitter!

Interesting Ways to Use Google+ to Support Learning

6
6 months ago
by tombarrett in , , ,

Many early users of the latest platform for social networking have begun sharing their ideas about the potential for supporting learning. There is much to be anticipated – I always believed that the community element was missing from the use of Google Apps for Education.

Perhaps Google+ could provide the platform for schools to help positively teach social networking and tie in the use of the different apps more seamlessly together.

Take a look at what educators think so far and feel free to share your own ideas with the Google doc, or leave them in the comments here.

Will Google+ Encourage us to Sidestep Serendipity?

35
6 months ago
by tombarrett in , ,

Since leaving the classroom I have had the opportunity to read more widely then I have done at any point over the last 10 years. The work I am doing now takes me down paths including design thinking, business, social media and of course education. It is the variety of new domains of information and perspectives that I have found so engaging.

Not only have I been able to work with and immerse myself in ideas from outside of education but I have begun to see ways learning can benefit from them.

I have seen Twitter grow and grow into a huge global tool for educators. However those of us using it are still, for the most part, in the minority. However difficult it is to admit it, teachers using any digital tool to connect with fellow teachers are still in the minority. The prospect of a new social tool, such as Google+, was hugely exciting to see. It was great to start in a fresh space with the customary intuitive interface we have come to expect from Google products. So all rosy? Well not quite.

My main concern is a key difference between Twitter and Google+. When Twitter users connect with each other they basically ask themselves is this person interesting or in my line of work? Yes = follow. We all have our different methods but I suspect that covers most people. When I look at those people who have followed me on Twitter recently I can see very quickly (on a single page which I can just scroll up and down) what they do from their profile and just click follow if a) they interest me or b) they are in education. That’s it.

Importantly with Twitter there are no ways to target your messages to groups within those who follow you, it is an “all in” sort of method. My updates go to designers, teachers, classes, professors, executives, artists, whoever makes up your network. Do I think this adds value to the replies and perspectives you gain? Absolutely.

With Google+ Circles are we creating silos of information? By saying to users, “do you only want to share with those that find it 100% relevant?”, are we in fact encouraging a narrowing of perspectives? What about those that might find it 60% relevant? Or whose current project makes it highly relevant to them, but perhaps not at other times. Of course we have the choice to make things public in Google+ and the choice to have different circles, but Twitter’s default broadcast state is always set to public. An open style of sharing is not a choice.

Perhaps targeted sharing, in the style of a Google+ post, will just give me what I always get. The isolation of ideas, fuzzy-warm acceptance but nothing to challenge them. Alternate expertise has no way of peaking in or seeping into the reaction.

Of course this idea of cross-fertilising ideas from different domains has a strong history with, for example, Innovation Time Off or 20% time from Google or bootlegging product development at 3M that led to the early concept of the Post-It note.

I think I will probably not use the Circles feature of Google+ because I think that I will be limiting the reactions I get and actively avoiding the opportunity to connect with other professionals who could add a valuable perspective beyond education. I still prefer a model that is more open by default and puts the responsibility of information filtering on the consumer, not the producer of the information.

//

Pic Back of Beyond by violscraper

The Google+ Project: targeted sharing

47
7 months ago
by tombarrett in ,

Having spent a little bit of time using the Google+ Project I thought I would share some initial thoughts and reactions.

From the very beginning it is all about people, as always with these new network tools it is about adding people into your space to enjoy and share it with. I was immediately impressed with the Circles feature which helps you organise people into different groups. The user interface is really nice and it was easy to grab people and drop them into the right Circle for them.

You can create lots of different circles and name them whatever you like. Once you are using and sharing if there is someone who either adds you to their Circle or you see their name mentioned, all you have to do is roll over their name, then the Circles icon and then tick which they belong to in the pop up window – really easy.

Within Google Apps for Edu I can see each class having a specific Circle with which you can share content.

As many people have said, this level of organisation is much more like real life as we have distinct and sometimes overlapping connections with people. What is currently missing seems to be (amongst other things):

  • to share a whole Circle with others
  • to add inner circles to a group – say for groups within a class
  • build on other social media groups, LinkedIn or Twitter lists

This compartmentalised approach to our social networking behaviour is very much at the core of what the Google+ Project seem to be developing. When you look to share any type of content you can be very refined about who you share it with. As Vincent Mo from Google explains:

On Google+, anyone can add me to their circles, and they never see more than what I share with them. It’s as easy as not adding them to a circle. That means people can add me all they want. If I post something private, I’ll only post it to a circle, and they won’t see it. Go ahead. Add me. I don’t care.

So the focus is on the creation of Circles of connections which then allows you to dictate who you share content with. Vincent Mo says that Google+ is “built around targeted sharing”. Seems obvious – and Google have executed these crucial elements really well.

Even if you have not had the chance to use Google+ I would be interested to hear your thoughts regarding the Circles style of organisation and how it differs to what we are used to.

//

Pic: Flickr’ng lights by josef.stuefer

Infographic on The State of Wikipedia

4
8 months ago
by tombarrett in , ,

The Internet in Society

0
8 months ago
by tombarrett in , ,

After the recent successes in Scotland by the SNP in using social media tools and the internet as part of their historic re-election, this lecture by Evgeny Morozov is an interesting exploration of the wider debate around society and the internet.

Does the internet actually inhibit, not encourage democracy? In this new RSA Animate adapted from a talk given in 2009, Evgeny Morozov presents an alternative take on ‘cyber-utopianism’ – the seductive idea that the internet plays a largely emancipatory role in global politics.

Exposing some idealistic myths about freedom and technology (during Iran’s ‘twitter revolution’ fewer than 20,000 Twitter users actually took part), Evgeny argues for some realism about the actual uses and abuses of the internet.

Morozov refers to the much debated distinction between the digital native and the immigrant, but suggests we should be focusing on the differences between digital renegades and digital captives. This is an interesting point that refers to the filtered and restricted use of digital tools in some countries compared to those more freely using the tools in others.

A healthy reminder of the relative openness we have in our digital lives compared to other parts of the world.

Don’t Just Tweet, Create Something!

2
1 year ago
by tombarrett in , , , ,

I have been fortunate enough to see many resources created by the thousands of willing educators using Twitter. However in my opinion there is a strong case for using hashtagging more systematically, so that we better organise and structure the resources, ideas and thoughts we all have.

A Twitter hashtag uses this symbol # folllowed by a unique word, abbreviation, acronym or phrase that defines the subject or theme of the tweet it is included in. It is a great way to filter and organise tweets so they are easily found by your network.

Simply put, the more we use tagging the easier it will be to find the most relevant tweets that share resources and advice etc.

One example of a resource created using hashtags is the sentence starter tweets I began under the tags #sentstartdecisions and #sentstarttree. I wanted to gather together ideas for sentence starters that can be used in the classroom. Each tag is specific to a topic or theme that gives other teachers a little bit of a focus for their contributions.

They have proven really successful, with nearly 100 contributions for just these two tags – a great resource for the classroom, to inspire planning and to engage young writers. However the tweets are not that useful as they are – indeed there is also the retweets that use the hashtag, so it is mildly littered with less than useful tweets. I have taken all of the sentence starters and created separate Google Docs presentations with them, a sentence starter per slide. I suspect that in this form it is more useful and accessible to teachers and students.

(Please feel free to edit the above presentations and add your ideas)

In fact by using the Twitter hashtag I have in effect added a step in the process. The Interesting Ways series is so successful because when users contribute they archive and extend a version of the presentation itself – there is no middle man, well there is me and I often add ideas on behalf of people, but there is no middle step, you add your idea and that’s it. Using a hashtag and then having to generate a presentation from that tag before it’s Twitter lifespan runs out is time consuming. (Tweets will eventually not appear in a hashtag search)

On the other hand, adding a sentence starter idea via Twitter is less clicks for a teacher using Twitter – they don’t have to go to Google Docs, add the slide etc. So it is easier to do it there and then and add the hashtag. In fact some school children were contributing with their teachers this week.

I believe it is important we encourage the alacritous members of our network in some form of creation. Whichever way you gather the ideas engage them in creation as much as conversation.

If Fish Were Ideas

1
1 year ago
by tombarrett in , ,

Pete and Chris, an assistant head teacher and a newly qualified teacher, enjoyed sharing ideas for learning with me. But it was when I showed them Twitter and where to find future ideas that they saw the potential of online networks.

Give a teacher an idea and you spark an interest for a week. Lead a teacher to a community and they will have ideas for a lifetime.

Whispering Change

6
1 year ago
by tombarrett in , , , ,

Is the sun beginning to set on a cumbersome educational landscape? One that is too rigid to quickly adjust to what leaners need and what they want from the future. A system that looks on as grass roots spread wider and wider beneath it.

I am in revolutionary mood as I return from some inspiring conversations with people at #BectaX.

Can those of us who recognise the need for change, rise above the cynicism? Rise above the barriers and the blocks. Let us be determined and positive, and make change happen in small ways, where we are, where we can.

Perhaps it is wrong of us to ever have believed this change will occur from policy. I am sure you are like me in that you have never waited for policy to define your practice. Each of us has a certain amount of influence, an ability to change 1 or 5, 30 or even 500 students’ experiences of school. If we believe it should be done, we need to make it happen in every small way we can.

I have stood in a room with hundreds of people whispering. It is very loud.

If we all make a small contribution, a small effort of change – if we all whisper, our voices will be heard. Here are some whispers:

  1. Talk to your students, to your classes about technology. Find out how they use it at home and what they enjoy. Plan to do it again soon.
  2. Take what you find out (formally or informally) to someone else in your institute. Better still get your students to explain it.
  3. Show someone how you use Twitter or other online tools to connect with teachers. Do it as often as you can.
  4. Write a blog post about your ideas. (Or even start a blog for your ideas!) Share your experiences, frustrations, successes and hopes for your work.
  5. Share an interesting blog post you have seen with someone who may never see it.
  6. Ask on your blog or on Twitter for other schools to connect with. Share the process with your class and give them an insight into what is happening at schools in other countries.
  7. Help someone on Twitter by retweeting a request for assistance. You never know where that ripple will stop.
  8. Let your children or students teach you how to use something.
  9. Find ways to help parents better understand what you do in school and how their children are using technology.
  10. Find out what your students think of blocking websites. What do they think is “safe” internet use.
  11. Consider managing your own internet filtering. At least have the conversation.
  12. Ask your local authority to unblock useful websites. Keep asking.

Whatever form your whisper takes, raise your voices. We are louder together.

IMG_9566.JPG by fabola - Attr-NonCom-NoDerivs Lic

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