From Research to Retweets—Exploring the Role of Educational Twitter (X) Communities in Promoting Science Communication and Evidence-Based Teaching
Twitter has evolved from its initial purpose as a microblogging social network to a pivotal platform for science communication. Equally, it has gained significant popularity among teachers who utilize communities like the German #twitterlehrerzimmer (TWLZ; Twitter teachers’ lounge) as a digital prof...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2024-02-01
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| Series: | Education Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7102/14/2/196 |
| _version_ | 1797298391159406592 |
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| author | Monica Déchène Kaley Lesperance Lisa Ziernwald Doris Holzberger |
| author_facet | Monica Déchène Kaley Lesperance Lisa Ziernwald Doris Holzberger |
| author_sort | Monica Déchène |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Twitter has evolved from its initial purpose as a microblogging social network to a pivotal platform for science communication. Equally, it has gained significant popularity among teachers who utilize communities like the German #twitterlehrerzimmer (TWLZ; Twitter teachers’ lounge) as a digital professional learning network. (1) Background: To date, no studies examine how science communication is conducted on Twitter specifically tailored to teachers’ needs and whether this facilitates evidence-based teaching. (2) Methods: Answering the three research questions involved a comprehensive mixed methods approach comprising an online teacher survey, utility analysis using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) models, and machine learning-assisted tweet analyses. (3) Results: Teachers implement research findings from the TWLZ in their teaching about twice a month. They prefer interactive tweets with specific content-related, communicative, and interactive tweet features. Science communication in the TWLZ differs from everyday communication but notably emphasizes the relevance of transfer events for educational practice. (4) Conclusions: Findings highlight that dialogue is essential for successful science communication. Practical implications arise from new guidelines on how research findings should be communicated and encourage teachers to reflect on their Twitter usage and attitude toward evidence-based teaching. Recommendations for further research in this emerging field are also discussed. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T22:34:11Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-08374ee74a95484c815cfc5ce758293b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2227-7102 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T22:34:11Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Education Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-08374ee74a95484c815cfc5ce758293b2024-02-23T15:14:32ZengMDPI AGEducation Sciences2227-71022024-02-0114219610.3390/educsci14020196From Research to Retweets—Exploring the Role of Educational Twitter (X) Communities in Promoting Science Communication and Evidence-Based TeachingMonica Déchène0Kaley Lesperance1Lisa Ziernwald2Doris Holzberger3Centre for International Student Assessment (ZIB), TUM School of Social Sciences and Technology, Department of Educational Sciences, Technical University of Munich, 80335 Munich, GermanyCentre for International Student Assessment (ZIB), TUM School of Social Sciences and Technology, Department of Educational Sciences, Technical University of Munich, 80335 Munich, GermanyCentre for International Student Assessment (ZIB), TUM School of Social Sciences and Technology, Department of Educational Sciences, Technical University of Munich, 80335 Munich, GermanyCentre for International Student Assessment (ZIB), TUM School of Social Sciences and Technology, Department of Educational Sciences, Technical University of Munich, 80335 Munich, GermanyTwitter has evolved from its initial purpose as a microblogging social network to a pivotal platform for science communication. Equally, it has gained significant popularity among teachers who utilize communities like the German #twitterlehrerzimmer (TWLZ; Twitter teachers’ lounge) as a digital professional learning network. (1) Background: To date, no studies examine how science communication is conducted on Twitter specifically tailored to teachers’ needs and whether this facilitates evidence-based teaching. (2) Methods: Answering the three research questions involved a comprehensive mixed methods approach comprising an online teacher survey, utility analysis using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) models, and machine learning-assisted tweet analyses. (3) Results: Teachers implement research findings from the TWLZ in their teaching about twice a month. They prefer interactive tweets with specific content-related, communicative, and interactive tweet features. Science communication in the TWLZ differs from everyday communication but notably emphasizes the relevance of transfer events for educational practice. (4) Conclusions: Findings highlight that dialogue is essential for successful science communication. Practical implications arise from new guidelines on how research findings should be communicated and encourage teachers to reflect on their Twitter usage and attitude toward evidence-based teaching. Recommendations for further research in this emerging field are also discussed.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7102/14/2/196social mediatwitter (X)teacher professional developmentscience communicationresearcher–practitioner gapevidence-based teaching |
| spellingShingle | Monica Déchène Kaley Lesperance Lisa Ziernwald Doris Holzberger From Research to Retweets—Exploring the Role of Educational Twitter (X) Communities in Promoting Science Communication and Evidence-Based Teaching Education Sciences social media twitter (X) teacher professional development science communication researcher–practitioner gap evidence-based teaching |
| title | From Research to Retweets—Exploring the Role of Educational Twitter (X) Communities in Promoting Science Communication and Evidence-Based Teaching |
| title_full | From Research to Retweets—Exploring the Role of Educational Twitter (X) Communities in Promoting Science Communication and Evidence-Based Teaching |
| title_fullStr | From Research to Retweets—Exploring the Role of Educational Twitter (X) Communities in Promoting Science Communication and Evidence-Based Teaching |
| title_full_unstemmed | From Research to Retweets—Exploring the Role of Educational Twitter (X) Communities in Promoting Science Communication and Evidence-Based Teaching |
| title_short | From Research to Retweets—Exploring the Role of Educational Twitter (X) Communities in Promoting Science Communication and Evidence-Based Teaching |
| title_sort | from research to retweets exploring the role of educational twitter x communities in promoting science communication and evidence based teaching |
| topic | social media twitter (X) teacher professional development science communication researcher–practitioner gap evidence-based teaching |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7102/14/2/196 |
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