I tried to approach cautiously, watching a few videos at first and then focusing on the twitter feeds. As the online twitter feed began, it felt like I was entering the Autobahn in Germany with information flying by like a blurred Audi in fifth gear! Twitter feeds coming in so fast I was not able to follow them, let alone make a comment or reply. I felt completely out of my comfort zone. What an overpowering feeling to see such an influx of ideas to click on with threads taking you hours to investigate. Not knowing who these people were and what they were all about, I got pulled into the mad search of wanting to learn more.
Four hours of the night evaporated as I wove and wound through links that connected me to blogs and websites that, in the end, transformed my thinking and planning in my own teaching. Through my search I found Shelly Wright’s blog ( http://shelleywright.wordpress.com ) and Eric Myers’ Photography 2.0 (http://sphsdigital2.blogspot.ca/)site that have directly impacted my blended classroom outlook. It became addictive, this abundance of information right at my fingertips.
I got obsessed and overwhelmed at the same time when following a twitter feed with links pertaining to online teaching. I now try to limit my time for searches to once a week when I know I have a few available hours. Early names at the Ceet Meet are now familiar to me and I follow them on twitter. Terms that were foreign to me are now commonplace. I keep my focus now and try to limit my search for items that have a direct meaning for me and my work.