Twitter

Twitter is a social website dedicated to terse, rapid updates. Twitter limits the number of characters in a post to 140 characters--which has caused the user-base to find creative ways to convey their thoughts. The applications of Twitter are fairly limitless--what the user uses it for is open ended. Some applications of twitter are simple--fan pages, basic social media, etc. Twitter can also be used for productive reasons. Some companies use Twitter for promotion or public relations. Educators can also utilize Twitter. Posts made in Twitter are called "Tweets."

Twitter is able to be used for any activity the user wants, and there is no real format the user has to fit other than the 140 character limit. By limiting the amount of characters, users and developers have created innovative methods of communication. There are several ways to use Twitter: The basic tweet (a single post about something); the re-tweet (re-posting someone else's content to one's own feed and friends); the direct message (sending a message to someone else privately) and the reply (designated by the @ sign, used when replying to someone else's tweet). The hash tag (#) is also a common feature found on Twitter. Twitter encourages abbreviations, acronyms, and the use of single-character emoticons called "emoji."

Applications of Twitter
Most people use Twitter for basic social media purposes. That is to say, Twitter is used to update others on the user's life, and to "micro-blog" about events occuring in the user's life. This has led to an ad-hoc news culture on Twitter, where events are reported in real-time to users interested in these events. They are categorized by "hash-tags;" pound signs (#) that are used to designate a Tweet in a larger group of related tweets. Sports media has found a special home in twitter, due to the fact that all perspectives about a sporting event can be read and investigated at one time.

Educators can also utilize Twitter in a number of ways. Teachers can "re-tweet" tweets that are relevant to their class. They can also utilize Twitter to educate their students about current events. Educators can have students tweet in the voice of a character in their story, or present research they have found in the form of tweets. Twitter is, largely, a method of communication. If educators use it as such, they are able to utilize Twitter in almost any communicative way imaginable. The possibilities for education (at basically any level) are endless.

Dangers and Prevention
Twitter, like most forms of social media, has some amount of risk involved with it. Users can follow--or be followed--by almost anyone. Twitter is mostly anonymous--anyone can register with it. Bullying is a concern with Twitter. Inappropriate communication can also be an issue. If one wishes to use Twitter in an educational setting, some amount of safety should be utilized.

Prevention can come in several forms. First, the students should be educated in what online etiquette entails. The educator should instruct the students not only on their own behavior online, but about the potential dangerous behavior of others. Students should utilize a private Twitter for educational purposes so as to avoid interactions with the riskier problems that Twitter poses. Finally, the educator should monitor the feeds carefully--if bullying begins, action can be taken. If the educator takes time and care teaching the students about Internet safety, the excercise will prove both fruitful and useful--as this etiquette can be used elsewhere on the Internet.