To Twitter or Not to Twitter

"There is much pleasure to be gained from useless information"
Bertrand Russell, British Author, mathematician, and philosopher
(1872-1970)

At least I know know why the Twits (isn't that what you call one who Twitters?) all appear so giddy about their new favorite past time. As a pure hearted lover of technology I initially welcomed the arrival of Twitter. It swirled in just after blogging and wikis swept us off of our feet (digitally anyway) and I saw it as a new avenue for the creatively concise. My thoughts turned to another young writer whose editor challenged him to write a book with just 400 words. The young man was a talented, ambitious type and did the editor one better by using only 223, and wound up writing one of the greatest children's books in the history of literature. Sad to say, the Twitter invasion has not inspired anything even vaguely similar. Instead it has produced a tidal wave of largely useless information. Thousands of people sit on edge waiting to see what someone else had for lunch or whether a new pair of pants will fit. Take "inane", move 10 paces toward "completely useless", and you are still well short of the airless, mindless nature of the majority of the content of Twitter. What makes it worse is that this haven of vacuous uselessness is being actively used by only a small percentage of folks who even bother to sign up for it. So even I admit it's useless, right? It has no place in the classroom.....

....except......

....there appears to be a growing number of credible educational professional - sane, grown adults, mind you - you are promoting the educational uses of Twitter and as completely and totally as I have been against it, I have to admit as I read what they say, much of it makes sense. Many have taken up the defense of Twitter in the classroom and many are not academic lightweights or children. David Parry is one such person. He is an assistant professor of emerging media and communication at the University of Texas at Dallas and is the creator of a blog called AcademHack. It is dedicated to the appropriate uses of technology in the academic world and he has posted a rousing and very convincing argument for the use of Twitter in the classroom. I began the post looking for reasons to trash it and found myself agreeing with point after point.

I think my eyes have been opened about Twitter. Not a lot - I still think in most cases it is a useless technology and little more than a waste of time. However, I have learned enough to know that before I really pass judgment I must know more. I have spent some time trying to find sites that could give me more information such as a short, easy to understand description of what Twitter is and basic tutorials on how to use it. As I searched, I kept finding people in education who were finding really good and logical uses for Twitter in high schools, libraries, and for college students.

Long story short? After being convinced for all of this time that I had absolutely no use for Twitter, I find myself leaning a bit the other way. I think it is an example of what is going on today. The vast amount of almost daily change is almost overpowering. Our world is changing which means our students are changing and we must change with them. However, we must always retain the sense to understand that not all change is good and the flexibility to change when it is beneficial or needed. Part of both of these is the need to have the patience to really look at new technologies carefully and the open mindedness to not make snap judgments. If we don't have or acquire these traits we will either jump on every technology bandwagon, good or bad, and waste valuable time and money, or pass on technology that will help us teach better and place students in the optimal learning atmosphere.