Twitter was launched in 2006 and allows users to post short messages known as tweets. It has become one of the most popular social media sites, with members able to connect and communicate globally. The author created a Twitter account to develop their professional learning network and support their growth as an educator. They gained followers and connections to other professionals quickly. The author found Twitter useful to stay informed on educational news and topics.

2. Twitter was launched in 2006 and has become one of the
most popular social networking sites on the internet.
Members can create and read posts from others, also
known as “tweets”. This social network is available on
computers or on smartphones as one of the most
downloadable free apps. Twitter is a great social network
to connect and allow communication with others all over
the world.

3. A screenshot of my twitter portfolio is shown above, indicating my
followers and who I am following. My PLN is slowly growing from the
beginning of the semester, indicated by the ratio of followers. I
noticed a drastic amount of followers in the beginning of the term.
Twitter has been great for me to read up on any interesting
educational news on my dashboard during my spare time.

4. I was quickly greeted by other professionals on Twitter once
I started up my account. This helps to show how fast
technology and social networks connect others and how
friendly or helpful people can be. Over a period of time, I
gained a few more followers to my excitement and surprise.

5. Zal Stief is an online educator
and course developer. He
received his M.Ed and has
been a Tech teacher since
1990. Stief is well known for
his aid in developing D2L,
Camtasia, and Articulate.
Zal Stief is an excellent example and choice in supporting my
professional development as an educator as he is a dedicated
online teacher. Stief is constantly replying to other pre-service
teachers and helping them develop their teaching philosophy. It
is also well known that Stief helped to develop D2L, which has
been used in numerous schools--even my own high school! Not
only does he tweet on a regular basis, he is very friendly and
encouraging to his followers. Steif tweets about technology
based education.

6. Alberta Teachers Asn, also known
as ATA, is a professional
organization that is made up of
teachers and directed towards
teachers and future educators. It
is intended to advance public
education.
Alberta Teachers Asn is a great choice to help support and further
my professional development as a educator. They tweet daily and
provide links to news on current Alberta education as well as tweet
strategies and tips to improve your teaching profession in class. ATA
is constantly providing news on school boards in Alberta, as well as
information on your local school’s funds and suggest tools to be
used in your classroom to enhance learning for students.

7. Edutopia is a professional
organization that aims to
inspire and provide
information for what works in
education. This can be
directed towards teachers,
preservice teachers, or
anyone interested in
education. They are located
in California, USA and can be
found on edutopia.org.
Edutopia is another excellent choice to help guide and support my
professional development as a teacher by inspiring me with new
educational information and facts. They are an inspirational group that
provides me with amazing articles, ideas, and videos on education for
my future classroom. They post daily and constantly, always
consuming some of my time and inspiring me on how to become a
better educator for the future.

8. Twitter has provided me with easy interaction with
other professionals in the teaching field. I have
participated through sending tweets after the Edu210
lecture, and have received “favourites” and
“retweets” from other professional teachers
following me. I have used Twitter as my PLN by
participating in another module and stating my
opinions on educational methods of teaching and
learning. My twitter account is directed towards
other professionals in the teaching field, as well as
pre-service teachers or students like me. I usually
tweet #edu210.