#LTHEchat is an a collaborative project to discuss learning and teaching in higher education with the wider community using tweetchats.
The steering group for #LTHEchat include:
Chrissi Nerantzi @chrissinerantzi – Manchester Metropolitan University
Sue Beckingham @suebecks – Sheffield Hallam University
David Walker @drdjwalker – University of Sussex
Peter Reed @reedyreedles – University of Liverpool
Further information about #LTHEchat can be found at http://lthechat.com/
2. So what is a Tweetchat?
A Tweetchat is a virtual meeting or gathering on Twitter to
discuss a common topic. The chat usually lasts one hour
and will include questions to stimulate discussion.
3. Tell me more about #LTHEchat
The Learning and Teaching in Higher Education (LTHE)
chat is a collaborative project using tweetchats as a
forum for synchronous discussion. Each will have a
specific focus and it will be up to the community to
decide what comes next. We will be inviting guest chat
facilitators too and hope that you will join us for some
speed CPD linked to learning and teaching in Higher
Education.
http://lthechat.com/
4. How does this work in Twitter?
In order to be able to view tweets relating to the chat, a
pre-agreed hashtag is shared. A hashtag is a word or
series of letters and/or numbers preceded by #
For example: #LTHEchat = Learning and Teaching in
Higher Education Chat
Participants in the tweetchat will include the hashtag in
all tweets.
5. How are Tweetchats organised?
A communication will be sent out by a tweetchat faciltator to say:
• What the chat is about - the topic that week
• What the chosen hashtag is - #LTHEchat
• When the chat will take place including the date and time
(It is useful to state GMT or your own time zone if your chat is open to a wide
and potentially international audience)
Communication about a tweetchat can be sent out as a tweet but may also be
placed on your website or blog and via any other communication channel you wish
to use.
#LTHEchat takes place on every Wednesday 8-9pm GMT
6. How do I find #LTHEchat?
You can view all the tweets containing #LTHEchat by
simply searching for #LTHEchat using the search bar in
Twitter.
Tweets containing this hashtag will then appear in your
timeline below.
7. The format of a tweetchat
Tweetchats often follow the format of a Q&A. The tweetchat facilitator will
prepare a selection of questions prior to the event. To help to highlight the
questions they can be preceded with Q1, Q2, Q3 etc. For example:
Q1 How do engage with CPD to enhance your practice? #LTHEchat
If you wish to respond to a question within your tweet always include the
designated hashtag and precede your tweet with A1, A2, A3 etc. This helps
others reading see which are the questions and which are the corresponding
answers.
A1 I have made new professional connections through LinkedIn and joined a
Discussion Group #LTHEchat
8. Do I have to tweet to take part?
The answer is no. If you just want to ‘listen’ in that is fine and a good way to
dip your toe in the water and get a feel for how tweetchats are run.
You can read the questions raised and answers by those who respond. As
you become more confident you can then contribute to the discussions taking
place.
If you can’t make the time slot then you can still follow the tweetchat later by
searching for the designated hashtag.
It is also possible to use the search facility in Twitter without an account. If
you go to https://twitter.com/search-home you can enter the #LTHEchat (or
any search term) and bring up tweets containing this.
9. Multilingual participation
The #LTHEchat tweetchats encourage parallel conversations in different
languages. This is a great way to help others learn along the way. You can
easily translate by using https://translate.google.co.uk/
10. Useful tools to use in tweetchats
You can follow a tweetchat using your smartphone, tablet,
notebook, laptop or PC via www.twitter.com and on smart
devices download the Twitter app.
Some find it easier to use a laptop or PC to open up two
tabs: one to view the questions and another to watch the
Tweetchat.
There are also other tools you may wish to explore.
11. Tweetchat
Using Tweetchat is a useful tool to view just the tweets for a chosen hashtag
in one space. You can also tweet from here. Here is the #LTHEchat link
12. Dashboards
Dashboards enable you to view different groups of tweets in columns. You can
therefore set up a column for #LTHEchat which then shows just the tweets
containing that hashtag.
Examples of dashboards are:
Hootsuite
Tweetdeck
13. Tagboard
This displays tweets for any hashtag you wish to search for. Whilst you only get
a snapshot of the latest tweets, it does provide a nice view of what is being
discussed.
From the Tagboard you can reply, retweet and favourite the tweets you see (but
you do need to be signed in to Twitter)
The #LTHEchat Tagboard can be found here:
https://tagboard.com/LTHEchat/194468
14. Storify
Storify is a free tool to curate the tweets after a tweetchat. It allows you to
gather the tweets containing your chosen hashtag and then display these within
a storyboard.
The #LTHEchat Storify page can be found here: https://storify.com/LTHEchat
New stories will be added after each #LTHEchat takes place
15. To find out more about #LTHEchat
Follow @LTHEchat on Twitter
Visit the website http://lthechat.com/
Follow #LTHEchat
If you would like to be a Guest Facilitator do get in touch!
16. The #LTHEchat Steering Group
Chrissi Nerantzi @chrissinerantzi – Manchester Metropolitan University
Sue Beckingham @suebecks – Sheffield Hallam University
David Walker @drdjwalker – University of Sussex
Peter Reed @reedyreedles – University of Liverpool