The current consensus is that Twitter is for oldies, and that younger people (particularly those under 30) don't tend to use it. Whilst we must avoid sweeping statements, and accept that some young people do actually use Twitter on a regular basis, some recent polls such as the Pearson and Babson Survey have suggested that only 2% of teachers have used it to communicate with their students. The survey, which was conducted in the U.S., says that Facebook and Youtube are the tools of choice for college students. But let's stop one moment and think about this. We need to take care that we don't pigeon hole the use of social media (or any other tool for that matter) within age limits. It's just as rediculous to claim that only old people use wheelchairs. We made this mistake when we swallowed Marc Prensky's digital natives and immigrants theory whole. In hindsight, we now know that age is not a determining factor in whether or not we effectively use digital media. In fact, Dave White's alternative theory - visitors and residents, is a much more appropriate explanatory model in this context. Dave argues that residents are those who habituate themselves within particular media and virtual environments, and therefore have a deeper understanding and appreciation of the nuances and affordances of the tools they are using. On the other hand, visitors tend to know a lot less about the tools they are using if they only use/visit them intermittently. This explains in a more convincing way why some become very skillful in using technologies, whilst others struggle to master them. It may also provide an explanation about how people choose their social media tools - often because of the utility they perceive it can offer them, and in the case of social networking, by whoever else might also be already using the tool.
A recent discussion on Twitter (about the use of Twitter!) resulted in a number of interesting points being made about the way people adopt, exploit and develop their use of social media. There are clearly a number of different reasons why people use social networks, whether socially, professionally and for personal learning development. My suspicion is that people will choose different tools for different purposes, and consider their options based on who else uses the tools in question. There is evidence that several schools are using Twitter and other social media in everyday teaching. Dave Mitchell (Deputy Head Teacher at Heathfield Primary School in Lancashire) uses Twitter with his Year 6 students on a regular basis, and has reported very positive results. Dan Roberts (Deputy Head Teacher at Saltash.Net Secondary School in Cornwall) is also using Twitter and other social media of all types on a regular basis and has reported some very creative and award winning outcomes.
Dan Kennedy (an under-30 teacher at the Grange Secondary School in Dorset) pointed out that the main reason he uses Twitter is because his community - those he wishes to connect with - are best contacted using it. This should give us a clue that the use of Twitter, or any other social media tool, is not about age, but more about community. It's not so much about when you were born, but where you place yourself in the terrain of digital connection. Twitter is also about sharing - emotions, experiences, resources and great ideas. In Why Twitter is so Powerful, I made the following point:
Twitter is not so much about the information and useful links you can gain access to. Twitter is powerful because it allows people to share their emotions - you can gain a window on their everyday experiences, and that often helps you in your own daily struggles. I am often encouraged by people who share snapshots of what is happening in their lives right now. It's an important dimension - I have made many friends on Twitter whom I have later met and strengthened my friendships with. Self disclosure is a risky thing, but others often reciprocate. It can all be summed up by a quote from one of my favourite authors: "Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: What!? You too? I thought I was the only one." - C. S. Lewis
Quote of the day goes to Chris Betcher who tweeted this: "Twitter makes me like people I’ve never met and Facebook makes me hate people I know in real life!”
Image source by Fotopedia
Twitter: it's still about the connections by Steve Wheeler is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
