To better explain where I am now in my Twitter journey, I feel the need to start with where my Twitter experience first began. The next section of this blog is an excerpt from my first Twitter post after learning some of the basics through the Summer Institute of Digital Literacy run by URI.
This brings me to the idea of digital authorship and how I now perceive myself as a digital author. I am an occasional Facebook poster and extremely new to Twitter. Since taking this course, I am now thinking about my own digital authorship via Twitter, a platform I know nothing about and need to be aware of what I am saying and to whom. “We must consider the balance between protection and empowerment and respond seriously to the genuine risks associated with media and digital technology.” (Hobbs, R. Digital and Media Literacy: A Plan of Action. 2010, p. xii). With this in mind, I purposely put a picture of myself that my friends would recognize yet kept me somewhat unrecognizable to strangers. Instead of a photo of my children, I put a photo of my dog, trying to balance my privacy with some human components.
Thinking about all of this led me to more Twitter based questions: Can I decide who can follow me (like on Facebook where I can accept or ignore a friend request)? How do I respond to someone other than to <3 their response? Can I see who gave me a <3? How do I find out more about Twitter? The answers that I found through these questions helped me understand the platform and format of Twitter better. Which then increased my awareness of Facebook and its purpose. Twitter reminded me of a group activity we had done in class Friday afternoon where everyone had to sit silently and not speak while one person shared out. You could only give the speaker a symbol of your understanding through a simple hand motion. I struggled with this game. It was challenging for me to sit quietly without being able to comfort, support, ask clarifying questions or just generally interact with the speaker. Twitter does not allow you to reply to the author other than to <3 their thoughts. This then brought me to the realization that my dyad partner Jenny who had enjoyed this activity, would probably enjoy the platform supported by Twitter more than the one Facebook offers. It would be a place for her to share her voice without having to hear immediate feedback from others. A place where her voice would be uninterrupted and her thoughts would be here own, concise and complete.
Although I initially felt as though Twitter wasn’t the place for me, being a true North, I do enjoy the easy accessibility it offers with the concise posts it offers gearing its audience to information they are interested in researching further. Going through the process of figuring out Twitter led me deeper than just an end product. The process and knowledge gained from what the inquiry led me to and through, is the true product itself.
Fast forward to present day:
I had not gone much further with my tweeting until attending “How can librarians use Twitter?” in East Providence RI on 2/16/17. This extremely informative workshop opened my eyes further to the possibilities that “Tweeting” could offer.
I decided to find out if my K-5 school had an account. I knew my Pre-k-1 school had an account set-up although the followers were less than 100. I also came up with a plan to talk with the “Twitterlicious” Melanie Roy who is one of my Twitter idols!
I went through quite a few steps to find out that our K-5 school did not have an account however, I could start one for the school and all Twitter related items would have to be approved by the school department.
I considered the maintenance and purpose of my interest in creating an account for the school. I realized that I wanted to use Twitter as a platform to share school happenings, media tips, teaching suggestions, etc. I also had to take into account that this is my first year in this role and I have two very different schools to support. I am at each school 2 1/2 days a week which creates another challenge as far as I am not there to see and know everything that is taking place. I spoke with Melanie Roy at the SLRI conference and she suggested me just using my own Twitter account and linking it to my webpage for the families to access. She explained that is how she does it and she finds it to be effective. This way I control what I am sharing to who and when.
At my pre-K-1 school, I created a flyer to send home with each of our students (in English & Spanish) to advertise our current social media pages.
In this way, I can offer suggestions, share current and upcoming happenings and tips on a wide range of levels. My goal is to double our followers and share information with our families to help them become more involved in their child’s digital footprint.
I don’t think this is the end of my Twitter journey. I feel as though these are my Twitter footprints as I find my way through this digital age. I am learning to embrace my role as an information specialist and extending my digital voice through the use of platforms like Twitter.