I’ve been keen to do the 23 Things programme for some time now. I’ve always been attracted to opportunities for practical professional development. Although I am familiar with some of the things of the 23 Things List (e.g. Twitter, Facebook), but unfamiliar with a lot of other things (e.g. Copyright, Augmented & Virtual Reality, Wikimedia). I’ve been thinking a lot about using social media and digital tools more mindfully and with intention, so I saw this self-directed course as an opportunity to provide myself with a weekly time to dedicate to review, reflect and experiment with different tools. I am also doing the programme alongside a set of other PhD students, which I think will be invaluable to the experience–both in that we are having a shared experience, but also providing one another with diverse perspectives and interpretations of how a tool is beneficial (or not) for our personal workflow. Lastly, I’ve been trying to get into a blogging and into a weekly writing habit for a long time, so I see this course as an opportunity to develop that habit.

B) were you aware of the University’s Social Media Guidelines for Staff and Researchers or the student Social Media Student Handbook? What do you think of the guidelines/handbook?

I am not affiliated with University of Edinburgh, but I did have a read through the document. I appreciate that there is some formal procedures to consider, though nothing jumped out at me that was particularly alarming. I’m based at the University of Melbourne, so I did some poking around there and came across this: https://students.unimelb.edu.au/explore/appropriate-behaviour/social-media I have seen a lot of professional development upskilling workshops at the Uni aroun social media, but none have explored any guidelines with much depth. I am a frequent user of Twitter and recently came to manage my Centre’s social media platforms, so when I have some time later this week, I think it is worth looking into more closely, to make sure I don’t get myself into any trouble. At the very least, I can use the University of Edinburgh’s guidelines as a template for my behaviour and code of conduct when using social media!

Ciao for now–I’ll check in within the week to update any additional guidelines or knowledge I find from UniMelb re: social media policy!

m.