Twitter:
https://twitter.com/
Brief description of what the purpose of the tool is/what it does:
Twitter is a way to for people to connect. I believe it to be the best network to connect with people because almost everyone is using Twitter as there are always interesting things to keep up with or "trending". It doesn't serve the purposes of solely netowkring; but also to follow and keep up with news, famous individuals, things going on in the world, friends, etc.
How can it be used in education?:
Twitter can be used in education very effectively. For students, they can use twitter to connect with other students in different schools. Perhaps, if they are studying the same material, they can connect over this through Twitter by collaborating and sharing ideas.
For teachers, Twitter can be used as a Professional Learning Network, as teachers can collaborate and share ideas with one another.
How can this tool remove or reduce barriers for certain learners?:
I think Twitter can be a way for learners who may consider themselves to be shy; to outreach and connect with other learners through a social networking site. For those students who may not be as strong with conciseness through their writing; Twitter can help with this as you are only permitted 140 characters to Tweet what you want. It can be a source in teaching them how to be direct and to the point within their writing.
Required age of users:
In 2009, Twitter got rid of the age factor for creating an account. Today, anyone and everyone can create a twitter. Prior to 2009; however, you used to have to be 13 to create an account with Twitter.
