Which one should I choose, Plurk or Twitter?

As a continuation from my last post on microblogging, I've set out to test out the effectiveness of both tools. My goal is to figure out the best microblogging tool that I can incorporate in my future ESL classroom.

Layout- At first glance, I really like Twitter's simplicity with easy to understand layout. As for Plurk, it took me some time to get used to the timeline and it wasn't until I watched Mr. Peachey's video that I figured out how to drag the timeline and reply to other plurks. I also didn't understand the idea behind 'karma' whereas everything on Twitter was pretty self-explanatory.

Sharing - Unless I've missed something, I've realized that I could not share file, link or video using Twitter. On the other hand, Plurk allow users to share video, link and pictures whenever they're 'plurking' on their own site. What's more, Plurk will automatically changed the video or picture link to a thumbnail size so that other plurkers can have one-click access to them without having to leave the original site.

Privacy - I think both tools offer good privacy setting. Twitter has an option for taking the use off the 'Public Timeline' which basically means only your allowed users see your updates. Similarly, Plurk also allow users to choose who can search for him/her and who can see his/her updates. An additional plus for Plurk is that users can make one or some plurks private without actually changing the privacy setting for the entire profile.

Although I've just getting started with microblogging, I would choose to incorporate both tools in my classroom. I believe Twitter would serve as a great introduction to microblogging but I will slowly ease my students to using Plurk. I think with proper guidance and support, my students will benefit from both tools.


Until next time...

Can microblogging be used for teaching ESL/EFL learners?

While in the midst of trying out my new Twitter and Plurk account, I can't seem to stop thinking about the different ways of utilizing microblogging in a ESL/EFL classroom. Since I am still new to this, I've decided to look for more information online.

While browsing around, I came across a very informational blog post by Mr. Nik Peachey. In his post, Mr. Peachey mentioned that he conducted a Twitter vs. Plurk competition. After 6 weeks of trying out the two microblogging tools, Mr. Peachey went on to crown Plurk as the winner between the two. He also provided a video clip to further explain the reason behind his decision. Additionally, Mr. Peachey suggested ways for ESL/EFL teachers to help their students by using Plurk. Some of the suggestions that I found useful were creating sentences for students to correct, sending out words and asking students for responds, sending images to students for description and also creating a collaborative story with students. I also like the fact that Mr. Peachey included suggestions for students to use Plurk as part of their learning process.

After reading Mr. Peachey's post, I have no doubt in my mind that using microblogging tool such as Plurk can definitely enhanced the language learning process for my ESL/EFL students. However, I think it's important to keep in mind some of the privacy/spam issues that Mr. Peachey's mentioned in his post when using microblogging tool. Nonetheless, I am glad to have read up on some interesting ways on using microblogging with my future ESL students.

Until next time...