Thing #2.5 Microblogging

I joined Facebook last summer when I worked through the 23 things, and have enjoyed using it to "stalk" my friends. I do enjoy seeing what everyone is up to, although I don't really want to know everything! I have also noticed that some people don't really know where to draw the line in regards to who they are "friends" with. Co-workers, yes, but students? Parents? Adminstrators? I think that the lines are very blurry and who you choose to be friends with really depends on how you use the site. Since I don't post about all of my drunken exploits (or wouldn't if I had any), I don't mind if administrators are my friends. I made a Library2Play2 group,
http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?topic=8624&uid=88014389693#/group.php?gid=88014389693. It might be fun if we all were on and chatting about the "things" we are learning about.

I agree with the article that talked about why educators should "tweet", although I don't know that I think Twitter is the best way for teachers to get feedback and stay connected. Schools do a good job these days of making sure that teachers get out of their rooms and talk to one another. I like meeting with my team, and love our lunch and recess chats, which is where the best idea swapping comes from. I tried a lot of new things this year, and shared a lot with my team. There really is nothing like face to face contact, especially over the sugary rim of a mango margarita! I signed up for some news tweets, because a headline is all I really want to read anyway, and I only had 2 contacts on Twitter anyway.

I do have fourth graders using Facebook, and I don't really see the harm as long as they are monitored. One of my darlings "friended" my Future Teacher, which was awkward for her. There are so many more social protocols now than when I was growing up, and parents need to be vigilant about teaching them at home, as we would do in the classroom. I don't know how I would use microblogging in an elementary setting, although I do like the idea of back-channeling. People interrupt too much with mind-bogglingly ridiculous questions, and it would be nice for them to have the option of not asking the questions out loud and interupting everyone in the audience. I guess it would be most effective in college lectures, since there is usually a TA present that could field the questions. In high school and middle school, the kids could send their questions and the teacher could answer them after they have left, allowing the kids ask before they forget. Teachers probably wouldn't be happy with the fact that they would have to spend more time answering questions after the kids leave (oh some wouldn't mind, but the lounge complainers would moan and moan and moan).

Mostly I just feel that microblogging is for an older crowd, and I although I am trying to keep an open mind I am having a hard time envisioning it in my classroom. All of the ideas I have could also easily be done with my wiki or blog, and would be in a more controlled environment. That way I can do the project, while teaching them cyber-manners, and getting them ready for upper grades. Although...if we did have iphones or ipod touches, there could be some cool discussions that the kids could get in to, and we could get much more input than from just our class. Hmm.