Twitter as a Teaching

Tool? Seriously

Dawn Bazely Biology 21 May 2015

#TIFYork2015 #TIF15 #CdnPSE #HigherEd #EdChat

Scientists use Twitter• To follow conferences via the keyword hashtags eg #OnBioSummit

• To find out about what’s going on with scientists: http://www.msnbc.com/craig-melvin/watch/a-twitter-hijack-of-manicuremonday-114901571927

• To discuss science teaching & research

• As a research & teaching tool eg Paige Jarreau (@FromTheLabBench)

• Benefits aren’t specific to #HigherEd #STEM teaching

Whither Twitter?

• https://soundcloud.com/whatstech/what-is-twitter/s-5t87C

General benefits for students

• My experience from my assignment, which is simply, to get students to tweet about ecology, biology & science on course hashtags #Biol4090 #Biol4095:

• Raised awareness about their virtual internet footprint

• Increased general knowledge

• Increased reading

• Improved writing (pardon?)

Scott Library: LB 1044.87 S46 2013

‘Although there are challenges to overcome, the authors of this book see social media as the next logical step in education’s evolution in order to “meet the needs of diverse students in today’s classrooms”’ (p. 188).

Annie Phillips Newton review of Seo (2013) in The Journal of Social Media in Society 1(1):59-62.

Research Literature

• Book: Seo, K. 2012. Using Social Media Effectively in the Classroom. Routledge.

• Articles in Scopus: keyword search & search within the results for Social Media

• Social Media: 85,217 (1901-2015)

• Twitter: 6,853 documents (2007-2015)

• Teaching: 542 documents (2009-2015)

Scopus search for “Social Media”

Scopus: Social Media & Twitter articles

Scopus: Social Media & Twitter & Teaching articles

How many of you have Twitter accounts?

• Time to make one for this session

• If you have an account, please log in.

• If you don’t, please pair up with someone & hit the create account button…

• Which people to follow?

• The university, your academic society, journals, the Pope, me…

Tweetchat

• 1. Ask any question about Twitter #TIF15

• 2. Do you use Social Media in your teaching? #TIF15

• 3. What are you hoping to learn about at #YorkU #TIF15 conference?

• (project tweets on the wall)

Resources: a bunch listed in:http://dawnbazely.lab.yorku.ca/2014/11/why-im-using-twitter-as-a-teaching-tool/

http://dawnbazely.lab.yorku.ca/2013/11/figuring-out-the-link-between-social-media-and-what-i-do-as-a-biology-prof/

Sooo, why is Dawn Bazely presenting at YorkU’s pedagogy conference? I was: Was nominated for the Faculty of Pure & Applied Science Teaching Award 1993 Won the Faculty of Science & Engineering Teaching Award 2004 Was nominated for the University-Wide Senior Teaching Award 2003 (>10 yrs of being a professor) Won the President’s Senior Teaching Award 2013

Coolest thing: each of my award nominations was student led. So, my teaching awards truly are about and from the people who are most affected by my presence in the classroom: students. http://yfile.news.yorku.ca/2013/05/13/four-recipients-of-presidents-university-wide-teaching-awards-embrace-teaching/

Moving on from that, I believe that we (me) should be identifying & celebrating great teaching and learning everywhere. Putting my 💲where my 👄 is, I have also prepared 4 Teaching Award nomination files for colleagues & graduate students: 2 have been successful.