How Social Media has aided my Professional Teacher Development
For all teachers, professional development is an integral and increasingly mandatory part of the job. Attending seminars, conferences and professional development sessions are among the ways which this has traditionally occurred. The use of social media such as Twitter and Facebook, as well as online communities such as Google+ is another avenue of professional development and discussion which is rapidly gaining popularity. The ability to converse with educators the world over on any teaching-related topic is one which many teachers are finding invaluable. Through blogging, podcasting, forums and more, a wide variety of opinions, perspectives, experiences and knowledge can be easily expressed, published and shown to fellow educators.
Though not everyone may agree, I have personally found social media, particularly Twitter to be an invaluable tool in my development as a teacher, for several reasons. One of these reasons is that it is a veritable treasure trove of resources, if one knows where to look. Being able to connect to teachers, education researchers, policymakers and other stakeholders from around the world has been extremely useful in helping to develop and refine my thoughts about teaching. Being able to read, discuss and learn from experienced, accomplished and credentialed educators from around the world has helped my professional development professionally. It has not only helped me learn about teaching and to clarify my thinking, it has also helped me to consider teaching strategies, perspectives and opportunities not possible through my university course, teaching placements and local professional network alone. In particular, my learning about topics such as classroom and behaviour management, topics which receive relatively little attention in university courses, has occurred primarily through articles, research papers and discussions which I have found mainly through Twitter. These resources, which I would never have found out about had I not been an active social media user, have given me a great deal of confidence leading into placements and arguably an advantage over my fellow pre-service teachers. For the teacher with initiative and drive, social media can make a huge difference in developing as a teacher.
Among the most important of these connections I have made has been with VoicEd Canada, an online radio station based in Canada dedicated to discussing teaching in its many facets. Connecting with VoicEd Canada through live web chats and podcasting, something which would have been almost impossible only a few years ago, has opened many possibilities in terms of professional development. Being able to expand my professional network to include teachers from the other side of the world has been immensely rewarding and beneficial for my development as a pre-service teacher. Most importantly, talking to educators on VoicEd about problems which all pre-service teachers face, such as lesson planning, classroom management and managing time and the stresses of the profession has helped my development greatly.
Naturally, social media is not without its issues. Too often, debate and discussion on education-related issues can break down into tribalism and personal abuse, as is often the case on any topic. Poor standards of behaviour and communication which would never occur or be tolerated in a classroom or school setting are often accepted online. Debates on critical issues such as curriculum, classroom management and education policy suffer as a result. For social media to remain a useful tool for professional development, it is incumbent on us as teachers to remain civil, professional and courteous online as we are offline.
