C4T # 2

In Beth Still's blog "Leadership Day 2011: An Appeal to Nebraska Administrators" on September 4, 2011, Beth is asking educators in Nebraska and all over the United States to "dust off your Twitter account and start again." She talks about how she was the only person running a department at her school and she felt lonely and overwhelmed when it came to making decisions in the committee. A friend of hers told her to join Twitter in order to get other educators advice and opinions about things she was trying to make decisions about. Beth did not "get" twitter until one day she wanted to complain about something that was affecting teachers State wide. With the overwhelming response to her tweet she quickly realized what an effective tool Twitter can be to a teacher. Beth has become almost an advocate for Twitter and wants all teachers to get on and start using Twitter for their classroom. Her license plate even spells out Twitter!
I wrote to Beth that I had never used twitter before EDM 310, and I am still learning how to work with it for educational purposes. I am eager to learn and I feel like it is great that we are being taught how to use it in a classroom. I enjoyed reading her enthusiasm about Twitter and hope to read more of her blogs in the future.

In Beth Still blog "Will There Be an ISTE12 Newbie Project?" on September 28, 2011, Beth is talks about a project she started in 2009 called the Newbie Project. This is a project where she used her personal PLN and Twitter to raise money to send an ordinary teacher to NECC to learn all they can about technology in the classroom. In 2009 it was a great success and she decided to do it the following year. This is the third year for the Newbie Project however, she has too much on her personal plate and cannot be the one in charge of the project. This blog is a call for someone to take the reigns and finish what she has started.
I wrote to Ms. Beth and told her how great the Newbie Project was and that I hoped someone would see the vision she had and continue it in the future. It is so important for teachers to be up to date in the latest technology. Going to NECC would be such a great opportunity to learn and share with others how to use technology in the classroom. I truly hope someone steps up and fills her shoes.