Get Organized!: CLAS 2012 and Twitter

Friday, June 29, 2012

CLAS 2012 and Twitter

Twitter is great. Twitter is dumb.
Twitter helps me stay on top of what's happening in my field. Twitter is just about who is eating what.
I've been using Twitter for several years. I just don't get Twitter.

Where do you stand in the Twitter spectrum?

I spent most of this week at the Council for Leaders in Alabama Schools (CLAS) annual conference. CLAS is the umbrella organization for all who work in school administration. My role at this event was to serve as the official "Social Media Correspondent" and help CLAS's effort to promote the use of Twitter during the conference.

I don't know who may have created a Twitter account as a result of the attention it received at the conference. I don't know how many blew the dust off of an account they created once upon a time but never used. What I do know is that many participated in the conversation.

Reading the Twitter feed is no substitute for attending the conference, to say the least. But when it comes to having to choose between two good sessions, getting the scoop on the one you missed can happen through Twitter.

For example, I attended an outstanding session on the Students First Act, a piece of legislation that has totally revamped tenure for teachers and support staff in Alabama. Those who missed the session but read my tweets are able to download a PowerPoint deck which outlines the legislation clearly. Readers can also download a thorough document which even includes sample letters for all points along the process towards tenure or non-renewal.

If you are a CLAS member and couldn't attend the conference, go to Twitter and search the hashtag #CLAS2012. If you are not a Twitter user, there is no better time than now to create an account. Some of the people who you see Tweeting at CLAS may be people you know and would like to begin following.

To get started on Twitter, here is a video aimed at the beginning. You can get up and running in a few minutes.

Twitter: Miss Brodie's Adventures in Twitterland! (Part 1) from Scottish Book Trust on Vimeo.

Tune in next week as we look at Part 2 and Part 3 of Miss Brodie's Adventures in Twitterland.

Twitter can be a waste of time, or it can be a way to help you stay on top of a changing world. It's all in the way you use it.

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Comments from Workshops

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