Just call me Smigglezz.

So I think the DIA is missing a valuable piece of art...

Taken from the Community Whiteboard in Friday's Webinar.

During class on Friday, I learned to Tweet. Yes, with a "big" T, not a little one. I already knew how to tweet (LOWER CASE) beforehand. I mean, maybe nobody would've actually mistaken me for a bird, but I sure as heck could articulate the "t" and the "weet" together...

So yeah, Tweeting with the big T. I set up my own professional Twitter account. I then professionally named myself Smigglezz Goop and professionally Tweeted that the Smigglezz had landed. Then I professionally located most of the Twitter accounts of my classmates and professionally followed them. In the second half of class, my classmates and I professionally used our computers to professionally engage in a professional webinar where there were professional technical difficulties that we professionally solved. What a day! Basically, I've got this professional thing in the bag.

I took a lesson out of Friday's class that I wasn't sure was the intended lesson. In the duration of the webinar, I found myself a bit distracted by Twitter. I just had this urge to constantly (and professionally!) refresh my Twitter page every couple of minutes to see if my classmates had posted any new Tweets. My mind just wasn't completely in the webinar, and the distractions only continued as the sound kept failing. Now, I would like to assume that I am more mature than many, if not most, fifteen year olds. Assuming that is true, if the technology surrounding me distracts me from paying attention to what's going on in class, how am I going to expect most fifteen year olds to focus in a class I am teaching if they are surrounded by the same technology? Basically, this class period taught me why it's important to not utilize Twitter in the classroom.

I can understand using Twitter outside the classroom. It can be used as a forum for sharing information. Shy students would probably feel more comfortable asking questions or sharing thoughts that they perhaps were too intimidated to bring up in class. Yes, there are benefits to websites like Twitter, but as for using the site in the classroom while class is going on...I'm going to say no on that one (in the most professional way possible, of course!) If I couldn't concentrate, I doubt the students would.

My favorite part of class was actually our class discussion about the readings. It was pretty incredible watching my fellow MACers take charge of a classroom, just like we'll be doing in the fall. I was just in awe at how comfortable everybody who took charge of the class seemed. Leading a classroom discussion just came so naturally to them. You all intimidate me greatly. Are you sure none of you have ever taught a class before? How am I supposed to be sure that you guys aren't all teachers who've achieved tenure and are sulking about U of M disguised as graduate students? Maybe this whole grad school thing is a joke on me, and you're all going to laugh at me when I'm confused as to why I'm miles behind the rest of you in my teaching skill level. If this is all a joke, you guys are good actors. You should all star in a hit movie. Or a "reality" TV show (those are all staged anyway.) What if this joke on me is actually a reality TV show? HEY, MOMMY, I'M LOOKING FOOLISH ON TV! I told you it would happen some day...