Just Because You Can Tweet, It Doesn't Mean You Should.

Abstract

This chapter seeks to examine the relationship between teaching, learning and new technology. In recent years there has been a significant increase in the amount of technological tools available to the teacher. These tools have facilitated new practices such as writing wikis, blogs, texting, social networking and now tweeting. These developments have taken place alongside the introduction of virtual learning environments (VLE). VLEs often attempt to replicate aspects of other social media, however it seems that both teachers and learners are supplementing their activities with tools that sit outside of these institutionally sanctioned environments. This chapter will explore a perceived gap in expectation and reality for both teachers and learners. The chapter further proposes to frame a larger debate on deterministic practices in HE with the question: Is there a 'technological push' or 'technological pull' policy being introduced in Higher Education, and what implications does that have for learning?