The Power of T.W.I.T.T.E.R.

The other morning I woke up and kept coming across Tweets where people were taking TWITTER and creating an acronym for it based on what they felt Twitter provided, or did.  Naturally I thought of my own.

The
World's
Intellectuals
Taking
Turns (now that I think about it I like "Time" as well)
Exchanging
Resources

It created quite a response.  It was "Retweeted" by 23 people on Twitter (that I know of).  Of those 23 people, there are approximately 28,600 people following them.  That means that there could have been over 28,000 thousand people who saw my original Tweet.  That is the power of Twitter and my PLN.

This of course does not take into account any "Retweets" that did not include @MZimmer557 for purposes of tracking, which could or could not have happened.  So imagine the impact your blog post, or Tweet could have that you share on Twitter.  Imagine the following it could create.  The tweet alone intrigued some people to start following me, as well as discover this blog.  I don't have near the number of followers as others, so I wonder if I had more, how much more exposure the Tweet would have received.

The Acronym itself was purely from thought while waking up Saturday morning.  Teachers are THE intellectuals of the world.  We are the ones who drive students in the younger years to become the doctors, lawyers, politicians, community leaders, etc.  I have always been annoyed by the statement "Those who can, can, and those who can't, teach."

Teaching is one of the few, if not the only profession that REQUIRES constant professional development as well as continuing education...with little compensation.  Most other careers that pursue Master's and Doctorate's are compensated for taking the classes (meaning the classes are paid for AND they get salary increases).  Most teachers are continuing their education well into their 30's and even 40's.

I am by no means the brightest bulb, but I challenge many other professionals to experience the daily grind teachers go through day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year, and continue to do so because of the experience the profession brings motivating younger generations to pursue those other careers.

To this day the greatest joy I have as a teacher is remaining in contact with former students and seeing them become professionals in their own right.  I didn't become an educator because I couldn't make it in the other professions, I became an educator because I didn't WANT any other profession.

The Power of T.W.I.T.T.E.R. and my PLN.

Weekend Extra Part Two - Twitter Tweecap

Another dose of resources shared via Twitter.  My PLN sure was busy Saturday!  Who says educators aren't working on weekends?

5 Apps for the Busy Educator - I am only using one...I guess I am not as busy as I thought!

Glogster Education Resource Library - An very informative and in depth look at Glogster in Education...if you have not seen Glogster, you are missing out on a great tool for your students!

Yodio - Adding Voice to your photos.  You can use your phone to record the narrative...interesting software I found via the EDge21 Blog.

A great Tutorial for Pages 09 on Mac from ILearn Technology.  I don't own a Mac, so I hope this will help you out.

7 Things You Should Know about Clickers - Great read via PDF.

Have a Document Camera?  We are getting quite a few at our school.  Here is a great article about the impact of document cameras are having on motivating students.

BrightStorm - A Math website worth checking out.  My math is quite not up to par to know how useful this site might be....so, help me out and let me know how you have used it!

Blog Post about the National Educational Technology Plan....well worth reading....

An article about the effectiveness of 1:1 programs on student learning.

The Education Party - An interesting take on politics.  The creation of a new political party.  You have to wonder about its success since teachers make up such a large portion of the workforce across the country.  Generally in every county they are in the top 5 of employers in Kentucky.

Could the new Tablet PC'cs be a Game Changer in Education?

From Larry Ferlazzo - A great list of the Best Online Collection of Power Points for Teachers.

5 Inspirational Blogs for Special Education Teachers....

GREAT Blog Post on the impact of Merit pay on teaching, specifically Special Education...a MUST READ!

Online Spell Checker - Not sure why we would need an online Spell Checker, but thought I would share anyway.

Prezi is now offering FREE License for Education....

13 Ways to Drive Blog Readership. - Interesting article.  Definitely worth reading for learning how to increase readership of your blog.