In this series, Nicky Hockly explains aspects of technology which some people may be embarrassed to confess that they don’t really understand. In this article, she explains microblogging.
1 Blogging yes, but ‘micro’? Does this refer to very small blogs?
In a way, yes. Microblogging consists of very short messages (or ‘updates’) you send out via the internet, of no more than 140 characters (not words!). For this reason it is also known as ‘blogging for lazy people’. The content of your microblogging messages is necessarily short (some would say superficial). Probably the bestknown microblogging tool at the moment is Twitter (www.twitter.com).
2 Ah, Twitter! I’ve heard of that. What does that do?
It’s a bit like SMS or text messaging. You send out a short message via your Twitter account, and all of your contacts (or ‘followers’ in Twitter parlance) will be able to read it if they are logged in as well. Here are some examples of messages (known as ‘tweets’) I have sent in the past week:
@harrisonmike BBC has good podcasting sites for Eng lang learners incl lower levels http://bit.ly/IZaLQ Working on final proofs of new book w @lclandfield Teaching Online (due out soon). How many more Ts can I cross before going mad? Social learning? Yes, it exists http://bit.ly/dCiy1d ~ @foxden#Elearning Four ways with webinars http://bit.ly/cl10JN #elearning #edtech Back from 3 days on beach – heaven! Andorra tmrw but slow vodaphone dongle means bad connections & no Twitter 🙁
Tweets are typically a mix of the personal and professional. Twitter requires you to have followers, and you also need to follow people yourself. If you follow someone on Twitter, you will be able to read their tweets, but they will only be able to read your tweets if they follow you. So you could decide to follow someone famous like Barack Obama or Britney Spears, and you will be able to read their tweets. But unless Barack or Britney decide to follow you (which is, let’s face it, unlikely) they won’t be reading your tweets!
Twitter has spawned (sorry, hatched) a whole range of related vocabulary, which you can bandy around if you want to sound like you need to get out more: tweeple (people in your Twitter network), dweet (a tweet sent while under the influence of alcohol), mistweet (a tweet you later regret), twitterati (cool A-list tweeters who have thousands of followers) … You can read more about Twitter in Issue 60 of ETp.
3. Is Twitter the only microblogging tool?
Twitter is certainly the most popular (and therefore best-known) of the microblogging tools, but there are other odd-sounding ones, including Tumblr, Plurk and Jaiku. They all work on the same principle – you send out a short ‘update’ of a maximum of 140 characters, and the people in your microblogging network can read it.
4. How does microblogging relate to the classroom teacher? Can I use it with students?
There is one microblogging tool which is particularly useful for educators. Edmodo (www.edmodo.com) is, in fact, known as ‘Twitter for teachers’. One of the big advantages of Edmodo is that you can very easily set up a closed group for your students, and all they need to join the group is an access key (password). There is none of the hassle involved with following and being followed by others. Edmodo allows you to share files, assignments and videos easily, and to create polls for your students. If your students have laptops or internet-enabled smartphones in the classroom, you can send them handouts, links, embedded videos, and so on, via Edmodo at the precise moment these are needed in class. No more writing long web addresses on the board, or handing out worksheets – all this can be done online in your now-wired classroom. A tool like Edmodo can also be used by the class out of the classroom to chat, share links and resources, send in assignments or do quizzes.
5. What about microblogging and professional development?
If we have Edmodo for students and the classroom, we have Twitter for teachers outside of the classroom. As a far more public forum, Twitter is particularly suited to creating professional networks. There is a large and active English language teaching community in Twitter already, and all you need to do is to join them to be able to tap into a wide network of expertise, sharing and support. Once you are connected to a critical mass of other teachers from around the world in Twitter, you start to see the benefits. Here is how to do it:
- Create your own Twitter account at www.twitter.com.
- Find at least 50 people (teachers) to follow. Do this by following one person already in Twitter, then look at who they are following, and follow the same people! You can use my network – follow me at @theconsultantse.
- It will take you a few weeks to get into the swing of Twitter. Try to allocate, say, 15 minutes twice a day in which to read tweets from your network and to contribute your own ideas, comments and links. For me it has become my most important and up-to-date source of ongoing professional development.
Nicky Hockly has been involved in EFL teaching and teacher training since 1987. She is Director of Pedagogy of The Consultants-E, an online training and development consultancy. She is co-author of Learning English as a Foreign Language for Dummies (John Wiley & Sons) and Teaching Online (Delta Publishing). She maintains a blog at www.emoderationskills.com and you can follow her on Twitter at @theconsultantse.
This article first appeared in English Teaching professional, Issue 70, September 2010
