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Twitter for Teachers and a New Milken Educator

“Twitter has been the best professional development I've ever had! Research and best practices at your fingertips. It has also helped me create a PLN (Professional Learning Network).”

— Yanaiza Gallant (RI ’12)

Dear Champions of Education,

In the “digital age” of education, educators have seemingly endless tools and options to make them more productive and more efficient. Add in prevalent platforms that were not designed for education and it can be a full-time job just keeping up with it. So how do you know which tools are worth investing your limited time to learn? We decided to make it easier by doing some of the homework for you, reaching out to Milken Educators who are making the most of a platform or toolset and sharing their insights so you can make your decision and hit the ground running. And we’re starting with Twitter.

Here are just some of the things that our “Twitteratti” Milken Educators achieve through Twitter:

1. Connect on the topics they're interested in
2. Exchange ideas
3. Find tips and resources
4. Start collaborative projects
5. Augment in-class learning for students
6. Amplify their own voice
7. Get their (and their students') work published
8. Appear in a major Hollywood blockbuster (really!)

If you’ve been reluctant to try Twitter, dipped your toe in the water or are at full sail, this article will help you know what’s possible and give you some tips and tools to get you there sooner.

Read “#twitter for @teachers: How Twitter Can Take Your Teaching to the Next Level — from seven Milken Educators who have done it” now.   And if you like, it, please share it!

If the benefits that our educators listed in the article aren’t enough, how about a free pizza? That’s precisely what our newest Milken Educator got, just for being an Italian teacher on Twitter (winning a Milken Educator Award helped)!

Andrew Cook (NM ’13) is an Italian and Spanish teacher at Manzano High School in Albuquerque, New Mexico. A former student at the very same school, Andy is also the modern and classical languages department chair. He often mixes media, art and technology, using project-based learning like making short films in Spanish to bring his lessons to life. Of course, you can see photos, the surprise reaction video and find out more about Andy on his profile (where he lists his twitter handle, should you want to follow up with him). Several of the attendees at Andy’s notification (along with @Milken, of course) tweeted out congratulations to this Italian (language) teacher, which caught the attention of a local Italian restaurant and…this happened:

How has technology impacted your teaching career? Leave a comment under the new article, or send us an email telling us about another area you’d like us to cover in the future.

Sincerely,
Boris Kievsky
Newsletter Editor
Manager, Online Communications and Engagement
Milken Family Foundation