So why Twitter?

Because I needed a job!

Moving back to New Zealand I knew the job market would be tough. There were more teachers looking for jobs and less jobs around. But moving to Christchurch where they were still recovering from the 2011 earthquake and Education Minister Hekia Parata announcing school closures meant an even tougher job market.

I took the novel approach of ringing the principals first and asking whether or not they would consider my application. To be honest I didn’t want to spend hours filling out an application form to find out I wouldn’t even be considered for an interview.  Most were brutally honest. As one principal informed me, he had already received over 100 job applications for one position. One criterion was that applicants had sound knowledge of the New Zealand curriculum and could show example of this. Something I couldn’t do.

I got it! I hadn’t taught in New Zealand for over 10+ years, I had no idea about the curriculum at all. But secretly, I thought my experience in behaviour management, leadership, mentoring, and even curriculum development might have counted for something.

But the prospects of no relief work, no job and knowing no one in the teaching field to even help out in their class was beginning to get to me. I had used the internet to read up on Key Competencies, the curriculum, navigated around TKI but memorising what was on websites that everyone else knew inside out wasn’t going to cut it.

So I tried Twitter.

To be honest I wasn’t sure what I expected. I had always thought of Twitter as a place celebrities bragged about themselves or argued with others. I had never thought of it as a PLN (professional learning network).

I was a clumsy Twitter user (and probably still am). I had no clue what anything meant and then suddenly I also had to pick up on the jargon New Zealand teachers loved to you as well!   I will admit it was daunting and at times I did feel a little out of my comfort zones.

 I think SherylNussbaum-Beach’s analogy of Twitter being like a river sums it up. The river keeps flowing but sometimes you might just walk past and have a quick look, sometimes you might hang around and dip your toes in, other times you might spend hours swimming around.

And it is true. The wealth of knowledge I gained in the space of a month was amazing. It linked me to teacher’s blogs, articles, videos and probably the best thing edchatnz. -free professional development! I learnt that in 140 characters you can say and learn a lot.

Once I got over my fear, I stopped lurking and joined in with my first edchatnz and haven’t looked back. To be honest, I am not sure if it did help me get a job but it did other things;

• I connected with others who are moving towards a MLE or who experience/expertise in this.
• New innovated ideas to use in the classroom.
• A wealth of knowledge regarding blogging, QR codes, gamification and that is just for the students!
• Teachers sharing resources and lending quick support to peers with similar interests.

The list could go on!

Most of all, it allowed me to connect with some amazing people (who one day I hope to meet). It has shown me that there are other like-minded people out there and numerous individuals willing to share their knowledge and expertise.  And it is those people who are on Twitter that are making changes in the education system. Challenging the norm and taking risks. So I like the idea that I ‘hang out’ with those kinds of educators!

Having only been on Twitter for over a year I can honestly say it is the best decision I made. Yes, I do try and convince others to join as where else do you learn something new every day?