If you look at my timeline, undoubtedly you would make assumptions about me and my interests and me as a person and me as an educator/teacher. This is inevitable and there is no way to avoid these inherent assumptions (other than to completely disengage with Twitter and the world of blogging), which I’m not willing to do at the moment. The sum of the whole is not however the whole, this is not the whole picture and the tweets and blogs I submit are only a glimpse into what I want people to know or indeed how I want to be perceived. I’m conscious that the perception I give will be interpreted by others in different ways and that not everyone will always agree with what I say or indeed be interested in what I have to say and again this is fine.
I have been thinking hard about how twitter is a divisive for me and perhaps for many people on it. On the one hand, I love the discussion, debates (mostly), reading other people’s ideas, being inspired and reading the blogs too. On the other hand, it can be a time vacuum and it can mean that my attention is divided between what I am doing at the time and what notification has just popped up on my phone. While I am better at putting the phone to one side and concentrating on what I am doing at the time if a notification appears it is very tempting to read what it says and then before I know it I have responded and engaged in a lengthy discussion.
What does my timeline say about me?
I’m going to explore a few things that I think my timeline tells others about me as it is an interesting process to think about and reflect on.
I’m slightly obsessive about my subject.
How do I come to that conclusion?
I do feel like I go on about teaching English a lot and I enjoy getting involved in the #Engchatuk conversations every Monday – in fact I purposely work on a Monday night in order to include the half hour chat into my working evening. I can do this and feel no guilt at being ‘on Twitter’ as it is exclusively a work-related topic chat. Also, my blog is mainly related to all things English.
Is it a bad thing?
Possibly, it could be, if I let it become the only interest I have and if I don’t do anything else. However, I do have a family, friends and a life that doesn’t involve twitter or education at all and this helps me to keep perspective on whether I am being sucked too far into a virtual world.
I tweet a lot
How do I come to that conclusion?
My tweet numbers have skyrocketed on my profile page. At the time of writing I have tweeted 11K times, which may seem excessive, although I enjoy the discursive nature of twitter and will often tweet to say thank you for people sharing something I have written.
Is it a bad thing?
It depends how you look at it. A tweet only takes a few seconds, but the knock-on effect is sometimes much wider, as again it can become a longer more detailed conversation or discussion. Then, before I know it I’ve been in a time zone that excludes all else!
I try to be kind to other people.
How do I come to that conclusion?
I try to do this in real life and in my interactions with people on Twitter. If I wouldn’t like it done to me or said to me then I try not to do or say it. I’m careful of the tone that I use and hopefully that comes across in my tweets. I think of my twitter persona as an extension of how I am in real life but just with more opportunity to give my opinion on all things education related (which often in the daily flow isn’t real life conversations that me or my colleagues have time to have).
Is it a bad thing?
I don’t think kindness is ever a bad thing and I do believe in doing unto others as you would have done unto yourself (even though I’m not religious in the traditional sense). However, it could be misconstrued as sitting on the fence or as disingenuous and if that is the case then I’d be upset about that.
I don’t have a life outside of teaching
How do I come to that conclusion?
Although I do share snippets of what I am doing externally to thinking about education, as a general rule I am just on Twitter from a professional point of view and my timeline (in the whole) reflects this, which must make me look like it is all I do and think about. Just to reassure you all – it isn’t.
Is this a bad thing?
Yes, probably as it is a one-dimensional reflection of what and who I am and everything that I do externally to my professional life. I walk, read vicariously, meet friends, have an active social life and enjoy cooking, baking, spending time watching box sets to the point of an unhealthy obsession and that doesn’t always come across.
I sound like a know it all
How do I come to that conclusion?
I offer opinions and ideas a lot and I have written a lot of blogs about English teaching. I don’t think I am an expert and I am always putting across my opinions based on my own experience and context, but this may make me sound like I think I know it all. It is something I have struggled with when blogging as I value others input and experience but when blogging sharing ideas, I try to credit others for the work I have been influenced by and who I have had conversations with, but in the end I am telling people what I think and why and this may seem like I’m a know it all.
Is this a bad thing?
Yes and no. I have a lot of experience that is valid and which if it helps people is great. However, I also recognise that the way I portray myself may be too much for others and they may find my advice unwanted.
On balance there are many other things my timeline will say about me and I am sure that people create their own impressions of me, based on what they read and how I portray myself in the internet world. All I am saying is that I recognise that I am putting myself out there for critique and that sometimes this whole Twitter/blogging landscape is confusing, as well as exhilarating, but it is important to remember that it is only one portrayal and hopefully a non-offensive and useful one.
I had a long conversation with a respected colleague about this issue and said that I hope that the professional me and the twitter me align fairly neatly and that I come across on Twitter as I would want to in life. This is a bit of an introspective blog for me, but it has been playing on my mind and I feel better for getting it off my chest.
I also recognise that this topic has been covered before, but an interesting question I’d like to ask is:
What does your timeline say about you?
susansenglish 