Students Failing Because of Twitter, Texting

Little or no grammar teaching, cellphone texting, social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter, all are being blamed for an increasingly unacceptable number of post-secondary students who can't write properly. Details from this Canadian Press news story.

Why Teachers (& Districts) Should Try Twitter

In his article in this month's Educational Leadership, educator Bill Ferriter confesses that, until recently, he wasn't convinced that differentiating learning opportunities for students really mattered. What changed his mind? His professional use of Twitter, believe it or not, where he has easy access to a stream of customized information and ideas that motivate him. Ferriter describes how the information and resources he's learned though Twitter have helped refine his practice and convinced him that digital tools can differentiate learning for students, too. Read a related blog post here. Education Week's Digital Directions also chimes in with this story about teachers using Twitter. In a related story, District Administration reports that districts are using social networking Web sites like Twitter and Facebook to tout their accomplishments and communicate with the public.

Why Twitter Will Endure

Culture critic David Carr writes in the New York Times: "...has Twitter turned my brain to mush? No, I’m in narrative on more things in a given moment than I ever thought possible, and instead of spending a half-hour surfing in search of illumination, I get a sense of the day’s news and how people are reacting to it in the time that it takes to wait for coffee at Starbucks. Yes, I worry about my ability to think long thoughts — where was I, anyway? — but the tradeoff has been worth it."

Twitter entries satirize works of literature

From Reuters news service: Deciphering William Shakespeare plays in school essays apparently was not enough for two university students who have written a book of Twitter entries that summarize and satirize works of literature. "Twitterature: The World's Greatest Books Retold Through Twitter," which Penguin releases next month in the United Kingdom, is an irreverent, profane and sometimes brilliant collection of 20 comments on the ideas and themes in 60-some classics.

More teachers use Twitter as a collaborative tool in the classroom

Education Week and Teacher Magazine both feature stories about teachers use of twitter. Education Week reports: Teachers at one private school in Virginia are using the short-form social-networking tool Twitter in the classroom to distribute assignments and to encourage students to work together. Teacher Magazine reports that some educators are finding that helpful ideas and advice can come in 140 characters or fewer.

TWITTER: Telling a story -- in 140 characters or less

Inspired by the micro-blogging service Twitter, a growing number of authors are crafting stories and poems in 140 characters or less, aiming to take advantage of Twitter's potential as a distribution channel for their creative output, Agence France Presse service reports.
In related stories:
- Two young college students write "Twitterature: Classic Literature in Twenty Tweets or Less" to recreate classic literature in a micro-novel format.
- Two "Ulysees" enthusiasts have come up with the idea of recreating a chapter from "Ulysses" on Twitter.
-In this Washington Post story, one professor says that using Twitter in the classroom teaches students to write concisely.

How Twitter Will Change The Way We Live

Steven Johnson's essay in TIME Magazine online: "Put those three elements together - social networks, live searching and link-sharing - and you have a cocktail that poses what may amount to the most interesting alternative to Google's near monopoly in searching." You might also appreciate: 10 Things Teachers Should Know to Get Started with Twitter

How One Teacher Uses Twitter in the Classroom

Teachers are always trying to combat student apathy and University of Texas at Dallas History Professor, Monica Rankin, has found an interesting way to do it using Twitter in the classroom.