27th March 2013 9:00
By Blue Tutors
The use of social media has increased ten-fold in the past few years with the introduction of Facebook and Twitter to our screens. I for one am no stranger to the news feeds that are updated by the second on these websites, that allow you to connect with friends and debate daily occurrences in our world. But is it possible that Twitter can be used as a new space for teaching, learning and thinking?
At the end of 2011, some geeky Swedish students designed and set up the Swedish Twitter University which was a way in which to bring lectures to a class of around 500 followers through a series of tweets. This was the first time Twittter was used to deliver higher education to the masses and follows recent debates about large open courses available for people online (MOOCs). But can Twitter actually transform the traditional classroom and present us with a new space in which public education can take place?
A test was run last year by professor Andy Miah and senior lecturer Emma Rich in which they set up a seminar through Twitter. The session was a Q&A based one focused around an article written by Andy himself. The students used their various different tweeting devices to watch a livestream of tweets for 40 minutes. The 110 tweets that soared through cyberspace added an additional dimension to what would normally be a stereotypical lecture hall experience.
While this test gave the students a rare opportunity to ask questions and post comments during the lecture, the need to convey messages in 140 characters was undoubtedly challenging and I imagine it lead to complex debates being over-simplified. Although it encouraged reciprocity and instinctive thinking, is it really a method of communication which students are prepared or willing to engage in? Regardless of the pros and cons, this method is undoubtedly a great way to add a new dimension and lease of life to the university lecture.