Why should teachers use social media for professional development?
‘’Having knowledge but lacking the power to express it clearly is no better than never having any ideas at all’’
– Pericles
Pericles and the rest of the ancient world may not have had the likes of Facebook and Twitter but you can bet if they had done, they would have considered it to be an effective approach to impart learning and convey to one another.
So what makes social media such an effective tool for communication and by extension, professional development !
It’s easy to find and share interesting and valuable content.
You can join in conversations on a global scale and in real-time.
Most social media sites are free.
The larger part of individuals know about social media regardless of the fact that they either don't utilize it or use it practically nothing. Actually, you might just be perusing this post on the grounds that you took after a connection from an online networking stage. Perhaps you got to it by means of one of our official online networking channels or possibly one of your partners or companions shared it on their own systems. In any case, online networking has added to this blog entry being open to a bigger gathering of individuals than I could want to reach something else.
Social media offers us incredible chances to effortlessly get to and offer substance that matters to us and in addition join in discussions that arouse our advantage. Obviously, precisely what that substance is will be distinctive for every individual except as a constant specialized instrument, online networking is really difficult to beat.But what does this mean in the context of education? It means teachers no longer need to feel like they are working alone.
‘’We read to know we are not alone’’
– C.S. Lewis
Instructors from around the globe can correspond specifically and quickly with one another. They can examine educational modules arranging, distinctive showing systems or look for backing from their associates more than ever. The host of stages accessible, a large portion of which are free, additionally make it feasible for those in the training calling to add to a dialog with an individual or a gathering in any piece of the world and at whenever of the day.
In late 2014 Teacher Toolkit compiled a very helpful list of 101 teachers to follow on Twitter which served to highlight the number of highly active education professionals on the site.
David Weston (@Informed_Edu) and Mark Anderson (@ICTEvangelist) are two of my favourites. They provide a constant source of thought-provoking and sharable content designed to inspire and inform. The fact that they have 17.5k and 30.4k followers respectively also speaks for itself.
"We don't have a choice on whether we DO social media, the question is how well we do it."
-Eric Qualman
Twitter isn’t the only helpful social media platform for teachers. Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and many other sites also act as valuable channels for education professionals to share and communicate ideas with each other and with learners. Earlier this year, Edutopia updated their blog post, ‘Social Media for Teachers: Guides, Resources, and Ideas’. This includes a really useful list of ‘how to’ guides and articles, suitable for novice and experienced social media users alike.
Social media is, A technology used to engage three or more people !
Social learning is, participating with each other to make sense of new ideas !
wht's new is, how powerfullly they work together!!!
I'm not saying that social media ought to be your just source with regards to adding to your instructive skill. However with such an abundance of chances to associate with and gain from kindred instructors on stages, for example, Twitter, doubtlessly to bode well to incorporate online networking in your expert improvement toolbox.
"Social media is like a snowball rolling down the hill. it's picking up speed. five years from now, it's going to be the standard."
-Jeff Antaya
