Sharing Ideas for #PLUteaching
by Dana Bodewes, Instructional Designer
In the age of information overload, it can be challenging to filter through constant streams of information to find good ideas to take your teaching to the next level. However, that doesn’t mean we should stop looking or sharing ideas when we find them. As an instructional designer, I dedicate time to reading books, articles, and blogs as well as talking with faculty about teaching, learning, and technology. I often stumble upon great ideas that I would love to share with the PLU community. I know many of you also have ideas to share, so I have started a Twitter hashtag to facilitate this process. (Don’t know much about Twitter? Learn the basics here.)
#PLUteaching is a place to share photos, videos, articles, blog posts, insights, and ideas with faculty teaching at our university. The hashtag can be used to highlight some the wonderful things going on in classes across campus (or online!). Tweet a picture of student projects or an instructional video you created for class. It is an opportunity to give colleagues a peek into a world that can sometimes feel solitary. Or, if you find a great resource that your colleagues may benefit from, pass it along using the hashtag. Many online content providers allow readers to easily tweet out a link without leaving their website. Look for the Twitter bird to share your find, but don’t forget to tag it so it will be added to our collection. One way to to grow as professionals is by learning from each other and engaging in pedagogical discussion, so I encourage you to join the conversation!
If you are new to the Twittersphere, I suggest checking out this blog post from The Chronicle of Higher Ed’s ProfHacker for advice on using the social media tool. Even if you have been hesitant to use Twitter in the classroom, consider setting up a personal account to follow peers and leaders in your field of study. I invite you to follow me on Twitter @PLUteaching as well as connect with PLU faculty colleagues. Twitter provides an easy way to foster community and share information about #PLUteaching.