The World of Twitter and Networking

http://twitter.com

I was first introduced to the social network called Twitter via Facebook. One of my Facebook friends had a status that would always say she was twittering followed by what she was doing at the time. I actually looked up the definition of twittering because it wasn't a word I was real familiar with. Looking it up, I found it didn't really fit the status, but I thought it might have been my friend being silly. However, the next day and every day after that, her status always said she was twittering. During one of my PR classes a couple of weeks ago I became aware that my friend was really a genius, and she was using this funny word twitter as a social network. Someone in the class had actually gotten a job interview because one of her blogs was found with the help of Twitter.

I am still confused about how Twitter exactly works. If someone could give me more information about how it works and how to make the most out of it that would be great!

Networking is an amazing tool that I hadn't thought much about before joining PR. When someone goes into the field of PR, I think the best tool for he or she is networking. I feel like I have not networked enough, and I might be more confident about finding a job after I graduate if I had put more effort into networking. There is still time though and I will probably join Twitter, and I will attend a PRSSA Regional Activity, which the University of Oregon Chapter is hosting, on May 6th in Portland. The Regional Activity is a one-day networking conference for PR students. There will be a Career Fair, mock interviews, lunch with a speaker, and internship and job site tours. There will be PR professionals from Portland and from all over the Northwest attending. If anyone is interested, they should check out the Web site.

http://jcomm.uoregon.edu/~prssa

I would love to hear from other PR students or PR professionals who have advice on networking! The best way to network is to start a conversation.

Students Dropping Out in Higher Rates

The recent Democratic debate was too focused on Patriotism, and it missed out on the debate about education. The questioning of Barack Obama about Patrotism didn't create the type of debate that would help voters.

"Why are students dropping out in higher rates after the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act was established?" This would have been a more appropriate question that could have facilitated a debate about education.

The NCLB Act needs to be a topic of interest for the presidential campaigns of 2008 because it is a law that affects many children and their families. Schools that depend on funding that the NCLB Act provides, have to prepare their students for standardized tests. This preparation can take away from a teacher's freedom to creatively teach a curriculum, and can ignore the different ways students learn.


The 2008 presidential campaigns need to focus on how to improve education, and the American people need to take an interest and start asking questions. The debate about NCLB has been facilitated mostly by teachers, but now is the time for parents, students and our nations leaders to join the debate.