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First published online February 28, 2012

Twitter as a teaching practice to enhance active and informal learning in higher education: The case of sustainable tweets

Abstract

With the rise of Web 2.0, a multitude of new possibilities on how to use these online technologies for active learning has intrigued researchers. While most instructors have used Twitter for in-class discussions, this study explores the teaching practice of Twitter as an active, informal, outside-of-class learning tool. Through a comparative experiment in a small classroom setting, this study asks whether the use of Twitter aids students in learning of a particular subject matter. And if so, in which learning contexts Twitter offers advantages over more traditional teaching methods. This exploratory study showed potential opportunities and pitfalls that Twitter could bring to the e-learning community in higher education.

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Published In

Article first published online: February 28, 2012
Issue published: March 2012

Keywords

  1. active learning
  2. informal learning
  3. sustainability
  4. teaching practice
  5. Twitter
  6. Web 2.0

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Authors

Affiliations

Eva Kassens-Noor
Michigan State University, USA

Notes

Eva Kassens-Noor, School of Planning Design and Construction, Michigan State University, 201E Human Ecology, East Lansing, Michigan 48823, USA Email: [email protected]
Eva Kassens-Noor is an Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, holding a joint appointment in the School of Planning, Design and Construction and the Global Urban Studies Program. Her work primarily focuses on sustainability and urban planning. She received both her PhD (Department of Urban Studies and Planning) and her SM (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering), from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She completed her Dipl.-Ing. degree at the University of Karlsruhe Fridericiana in Germany. Address: School of Planning Design and Construction, Michigan State University, 201E Human Ecology, East Lansing, Michigan 48823, USA. [email: [email protected]]

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