Mission Possible #2: Twitter

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to “Use Twitter to micro-blog the conference as the events unfold.”

Before you shiver at the thought of using another trendy web tool, watch this video first. (We believe it explains Twitter in a way that will make you go “Ah, so that’s why Twitter is so cool!”)

Although the video suggests Twitter as a tool for broadcasting random daily moments (”stuck at the airport”, “running late to my meeting”, etc.), Twitter users have expanded its application to go beyond life-streaming. Teachers use Twitter to connect with their students between class periods. Faculty/staff use Twitter to quickly connect with their colleagues. Organizations use Twitter to get bits of information out to their followers. In fact, MaricopaTech also has a Twitter feed at http://Twitter.com/MaricopaTech where we post mini-updates about the upcoming event, links to our latest blog entries, and fun reminders to partake in these tech-missions.

While Twitter may seem like a fun application, the real question is its relevance to teaching and learning. Below is a slide presentation that highlights how Twitter can be used in the classroom.

Twitter And Other Mobile Izing Tools For Teaching And Learning

View more presentations or upload your own. (tags: twitter teaching)

So, your mission is to create a Twitter account and ‘follow’ the MaricopaTech Twitter feed. Invite at least one friend to do the same. Take the next few weeks to simply post updates, follow other users, and engage in conversation with others in the ‘Twitterverse‘! Most importantly, be patient. Twitter is one of those applications that takes a few weeks before you start recognizing its relevance.

How-to:
1. From the web, go to http://Twitter.com
2. Create an account.
3. Then go to http://Twitter.com/MaricopaTech and hit “follow”
4. (We will get a notification that you have followed us, and we will follow you back!)
5. Begin ‘tweeting’

At the conference, not only will MaricopaTech be using Twitter to send alerts and event information, but some of us will be using it to communicate with our followers (like you!), as well as, document the event itself (”Sitting in session X discussing the benefits of Y, come by” or “Mr. Z’s session is packed, everyone is curious about learning ABC technology” or “Did you know that… ” then insert a tid-bit your learned from the session.) The applications of Twitter can be limitless…

That is your mission. This message will NOT self destruct, instead it will linger forever as a ghost on the web.

January 26, 2009 · Filed Under Missions

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Mission Possible #1: Organize Groups on the Go with TextMarks

textmsgYour mission, should you choose to accept it, is to “Play Trivia with TextMarks.”

We will be using TextMarks during the 2009 Teaching & Learning with Technology conference. Texmarks is a mobile organization tool that helps you manage groups on the go using your cell phone. Everyone has a cell phone, so why not connect your group and make your event more interactive. The way it works is users text a keyword to TextMarks at 41411 to subscribe to the list group. Our keyword is MTECH, short for Maricopatech. Once users are subcribed, it’s now easy to communicate with them. You can provide updates and collect feedback from users. Users save time and money by sending to one number that forwards to the entire group.

Here’s an example of how you could use TextMarks. Set up a TextMark for your class. Have students subscribe to your TextMark. Now you have a list group of all the students in your class. Send a class update (Midterm on Friday. Be sure to study Chap. 1-5) to your TextMark keyword and the whole class will be updated via text message. Then throughout the week you can send practice questions out and allow students to answer. Students can answer by simply replying to your text message with “.” and the answer. You can set it up so only you receive replies or replies go to the whole list.

So, your mission is to subscribe to our TextMark and invite at least one friend to do the same. Once you are subscribed, you will receive a few trivia questions throughout the week. Don’t worry. We won’t overload you with text messages. If you know the answer to the trivia question, reply back with the answer. That’s it. Make sure you have a texting plan on your phone. You don’t want to get charged for the texts. After trivia is over, we send out a few updates from Maricopatech about the upcoming conference in May.

How-to:
  1. From your cell phone, text the word MTECH to 41411.
  2. You’ll get a welcome message in response. After you get the response, you’re all set. You don’t have to do anything else.
  3. Later, you will get a trivia question. If you know the answer, reply back to the message with a single dot (”.”) in place of the keyword, followed by a space and your message. (e.g. “. answer to the trivia question“). Don’t use quotation marks ” “.
  4. All correct answers are winners!

That is your mission. This message will not self destruct, instead it will linger forever as a ghost on the web.

January 13, 2009 · Filed Under Missions, Web 2.0

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Maricopa Tech 2009: Mission Possible

“The illiterate of the twenty-first century will not be those who cannot read and write,
but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.”
–Alvin Toffler

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is play with us!

Various groups like The Partnership for 21st Century Skills repeatedly remind us that students need to be literate in various information, media, and communication technologies. However, don’t forget, as professionals who work with students, we need to model these literate practices.

To help prepare for participating virtually in Maricopa’s annual Teaching and Learning with Technology Conference, come participate in Maricopa Tech’s Mission Possible. Every other week we’ll introduce a technology that we’ll be using at the conference, here at the Maricopa Tech blog. Basically each message will briefly introduce you to the technology, ask you to start an account, and then give you a task or two to practice with it. By the time May arrives you’ll be super-slueths with the various technologies and ready to virtually engage everyone else at the conference. Some of the technologies we’ll be exploring include: Textmarks, Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, LinkedIn, delicious, Diigo, Ning, Utterli, and Slideshare.

This message will not self destruct, instead it will linger forever as a ghost on the web.

This (cc) image is posted @Flickr by CogDogBlog.

January 12, 2009 · Filed Under Conference

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