Journal Response--D

In the article I read for this week, the author wrote about five specific ways texting can be valuable for educators. The article was written in response to the New York Department of Education's decision to deactivate texting on employer-issued phones. The reasoning for doing so was because texting seemed to be used by most educators for personal use only. However, the author of this article listed just a few very positive, professional uses for texting.

The first reason to keep texting on employer-issued cell phones is obvious: it is an extremely efficient and effective method of communication. Teachers can quickly send short messages to their colleagues with ease, and texting can be used when phone conversations are impossible or inappropriate. Also, all cell phones, no matter what brand, speak the same language. Whether coworkers have the same type of phone or not, they would be able to effectively talk with one another.

The second reason the author wanted to keep cell phones around was because the use of texting could improve the communication between parents and teachers. Teachers can talk to parents easily or quickly notify parents of certain situations using texting. Also, during meetings, workshops, or classrooms, not all participants will have laptops with them. However, most will have cell phones.

Poll Everywhere was the third use the author mentioned for texting. Poll Everywhere is a tool that can be used by anyone. After an account is set up, all participants can text message their opinions to a certain number in order to vote or give instant feedback to what is being discussed. That way, when a meeting is being conducted, instructors can instantly become aware of how the rest of the people are feeling about the present issue.

The fourth use of texting for an educator was the ability to twitter directly from a cell phone. No downloading or special software required, all users need to do is set up an account. Through twitter, educators are easily able to communicate with each other about certain issues.

The last use the author mentioned was the ability to aquire endless information from Google directly from a cell phone. In order to do so, all users must do is text certain codes to g-o-o-g-l-e, or 466453. Texters can see a complete demonstration of how this works at www.google.com/mobile/default/sms.htm.

In conclusion, there are many ways that texting can be used in the professional world, especially when it comes to educators. While the author of this article only wrote about five of them, the opportunities and benefits of text messaging are endless.

Educator, I. (2009). The innovative educator. Five ways innovative educators can use sms texting to enhance their work. Retrieved March 8, 2010, from http://theinnovativeeducator.blogspot.com/2009/10/case-for-funding-innovative-educators.html

(Do not know the author's real name. In the article it only said that it was posted by a user going by the name of "The Innovative Educator.")