Me and Twitter: Our New Relationship

I have never been very involved in social media.  If you saw an Instagram post from me once a month it would be a miracle.  I simply did not like the idea of sharing my life with the masses and having them form opinions that were not theirs to form.  You can imagine my shock when I found out I would have to use a platform daily for a college class on technology in education.  I had never used Twitter or even downloaded it onto my phone.  Needless to say, I had my reservations going into this experience.  

 

After I had downloaded Twitter, I went through a learning curve full of YouTube videos and tutorials.  There were so many ways to connect with the platform.  I learned about hashtags, chats, and adding new people so that we could see each other’s posts.  This was like an alien planet for me.  I felt so out of my comfort zone.

 

My first few posts were rudimentary.  I was not sure what I wanted to share or what would benefit the people who were looking at my posts.  I started with posts about my homework, memes, and my dog.  Looking back at these posts, I literally cringe.  They really did not start improving till I participated in my first Twitter chat.  The chat I decided to join was #lrnchat which you can visit here.  I was hesitant to join one of these chats because they seemed so intimidating.  All of the other users that were commenting where older than me and had years of experience.  We all had to state our current positions as a way of introduction, and I was the only student.  The other participants had long time teaching jobs or were high up in administration.  There was even a principle in the chat.  I almost quit, but then something amazing happened.  They started to welcome me into their group and ask me about my life at Trinity Christian College.  I received inquiries about my courses, the projects I was working on, and the future I hoped to have.  It was so interesting to learn about their lives as well and how they were interacting with their students during this time of COVID-19.  I was on the chat for over an hour and learned so many useful tricks for Zoom classes and ways of getting everyone involved in group projects.  It was an amazing experience, and I gained several followers as well.  I can now talk to their new friends about their ongoing projects and get their opinions and ideas on mine.  

 

The Twitter chat created a spark in me, and I started engaging with Twitter much more actively.  I stumbled across accounts about young adult books (one of my passions) and began posting about what I was currently reading, both in school and for my own pleasure.  The book accounts gave me wonderful ideas for new reads and encouraged me to try books outside my comfort zone.  I even read a graphic novel! 

 

Another subject area that caught my attention was politics.  I had never realized that school and education was so connected to the world of laws and politicians.  I researched articles about unions, world problems, and indoctrination.  Indoctrination really interested me.  I was not aware of the aware of all the opinions that are put into educational curriculums that teach more about what to think than how to think.  This opened my eye to the world beyond school and a classroom.  

 

Overall, my Twitter experience has been challenging but rewarding.  It was hard to understand the platform at first, but once I was established, I enjoyed interacting with other teachers and gaining insight from their experience.  New worlds of books and politics have been opened and I am ready to explore.  Social media as become less of a nuisance and more of a tool for me and my future career.               

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