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Why be involved in social media for a
conference? Isn’t a conference something that happens over a couple of
days in a specific location? We think social media is part of what can
help us transcend those boundaries. Tri-TESOL, a conference which was
organized and run in October 2015 by BCTEAL (British Columbia), ORTESOL
(Oregon), and WAESOL (Washington state).
Nathan Hall, an EAP instructor for Douglas College here in New
Westminster, British Columbia, Canada and an active member of BC TEAL, has taken on the role of social media coordinator for
Tri-TESOL and is tweeting great ESL content on a near daily basis. He loves conferences and loves connecting with people
face-to-face, even if you "meet" online through Twitter or other
avenues. He loves blogging about what he is learning on his journey as
an English language teaching professional.
According to Nathan, social media has the power to reduce and
even eliminate barriers between people, no matter where they are. At
conferences, he loves to "live tweet" sessions, allowing others to take
part in the session even if they aren't at the conference. As we near
the time of the Tri-TESOL conference, Nathan utilized Instagram as well
as a Twitter. During the Tri-TESOL 2015 conference, he used a twitter
wall projected on the large screen in the main hall. We invited the
publishers to tweet using the tritesol15 hash tag, so that they could
promote publisher-sponsored speakers as well. Laura Sorocco, an
instructor at Green River College and board member of WAESOL, in
Washington state joined forces with Nathan to promote the use of social
media, including having some prizes for best tweet and the
like.
In regards to a social media presence for Tri-TESOL, social media will
be used for much more than simply promoting the conference. The draw of
social media is the interaction among like-minded people. The Tri-TESOL
social media presence will allow others to participate in the sharing.
We can move beyond the walls of the conference buildings and become part
of the conference before we even set foot on campus! A participatory
focus made Tri-TESOL 2015 more than just a couple of days on the
Highline campus in Washington; it became a place to come together
before, during, and after the conference to share in the experience and
to share your own experience.
Follow us on Twitter
WAESOL and TriTESOL are both tweeting on Twitter.
Follow WAESOL on Twitter @WAESOL #waesol
Follow TriTESOL on Twitter @tritesol #TriTESOL
Interested in Facebook?
TriTESOL is there too! Check out
the official Facebook
page of the Tri-TESOL Conference in Des Moines, Washington,
2–3 October 2015, a joint conference of ORTESOL, WAESOL, and BC TEAL.
Join the conversations!
Kimberly Russell is the 2015 president of WAESOL,
the Washington State TESOL affiliate. She has been an ESL instructor for
adults for nearly 30 years. Bringing communities together, and
mentoring new faculty has also been a passion of hers. |
