What I’ve Learned So Far – Assigned Posting 7

The thing that has surprised me most this semester is that very small pieces of information have not just changed, but revolutionized the way that I’ve done my job.  I know this sounds dramatic, but really, they have.  I Tweet for my work with the National Center for Technology Innovation.  Learning how to use Google Reader has saved me hours a week (literally) that I used to spend searching for relevant stories on educational and assistive technology, along with social media applications in the classroom.  I’m finding myself relying less on re-tweets when sending out information to stakeholders and more on original content. I told my brother about Google Reader, and he turned me on to Google Alerts, which  has also been a big time-saver. 

I used Delicious before enrolling in the class, but only to keep track of information online that I identified.  During the search for the field report, I came across bookmarks for Vicki Davis and Tony Karrer.  Both of these Delicious users track online resources that are of interest to me and my project work.  Clicking through their tags provide more relevant results than any EBSCO search I’ve conducted (although the results are not as scholarly).  I  never really thought of one individual’s Delicious bookmarks  as having the potential to benefit a community of users before the field report.  It certainly has changed how I get my information. 

Although the field report and required readings have kept me away from my blog over the past three weeks, I never, ever thought that I’d get in to blogging.  I created my blog, separate from the blog for the assigned postings, shortly after class began and look forward to returning to it when time permits. 

I’ve learned a few things that have been a huge help to me at work.  I may be a bit more anxious to learn more about applied skills than most students because I enrolled in the program just to enhance my skill set for work (the credential won’t really buy me anything with my current position, plus a credential means the end of PD).  I’m hopeful that I’ll learn more strategies for using social media that will enhance my job performance before the end of the semester.