When used appropriately, as Superintendent of Schools Dr Lorrie Rodrigue said recently, social media can impact education and communication in a positive way.@RodrigueLorrie. She thanked the community "for supporting students and passing the 2018-19 budget."@principaluberti, also shared a tweet reacting to the same news: "Thanks to everyone who got out to vote today. The 18-19 Newtown Public School Budget has passed."@hawley_school Twitter account with his own message from a car wash hosted by the Hawley Fathers Club on April 28. The photos showed smiling students and cars covered in suds.@cmoretti66.NHS Facebook page is also a spot for the school to make announcements like the May 1 post that shared, "Parents and students: You are cordially invited to attend the Junior/Senior Project presentations in the Lecture Hall at Newtown High School. Presentations will be from 5 pm to 7 pm on Thursday, May 31."Sharing Through Tweets@coachroach51, said he uses the social media platform to read about trending information and to spread information about NHS. Overall, he said his school community still mainly uses Facebook for conversations and sharing comments.@BarbaraG_HOM@RIS_TWEETS, was created.@ChrissiePierce; and reading teacher Lisa Nobes, ; school counselor Lisa Kilcourse, @Lisa_Kilcourse@LisaNReads, for their noteworthy Twitter endeavors. Ms Pierce has tweeted about students being engaged in science, Ms Nobes has tweeted about literacy activities, and Ms Kilcourse has shared newsletters for the elementary counselors, inspirational messages, and information about events happening at the school.The Newtown Bee also shares news updates through its Twitter account, @TheNewtownBee., and Education Reporter Eliza Hallabeck shares education related news through her account, @ehallabeck

After Newtown's referendum results were announced on April 24, Dr Rodrigue shared a message for the community using her Twitter account,

Reed Intermediate School Principal Anne Uberti,

Beyond sharing comments with the community, a number of Newtown's administrators also use their Twitter accounts to highlight messages for or about Newtown schools, like Hawley Elementary School Principal Christopher Moretti, who tweeted photos originally shared on the school's

"Thank you Fathers Club, those that came for a wash, and to the kids for working hard and having good old fashion fun!" Mr Moretti shared from his Twitter account, 

Some schools or PTAs also use Facebook accounts to connect with students and parents. Newtown High School shares the text of morning announcements that are read for students over the loudspeaker each weekday on its Facebook page. The

Dr Rodrigue shared recently that she has been using Twitter for between five to six years. In that time she also served as the principal at NHS.

"I have used a variety of social media, such as Facebook and LinkedIn, but Twitter is an easy venue for communicating with staff, students, and families in a timely manner," Dr Rodrigue said in an e-mail on April 19.

Twitter, she continued, is a fast way to communicate with district stakeholders.

"For the most part, when there is an event to celebrate or a current issue to discuss, these can be posted immediately," said Dr Rodrigue. "Additionally, these tweets are shared with others and this brings even more 'followers.' If I want to share something with followers quickly, this is the perfect medium to accomplish that. I continue to provide my twitter handle with community members to increase the number of followers.

"... It can support the building of a strong climate and culture, since many of the tweets focus on celebratory events that occur at schools within the district and special community events," said Dr Rodrigue. "In other cases, Twitter can be used to share reminders regarding early dismissals for professional development or potential weather issues. Educationally, Twitter can be used to send simple reminders about tests or projects, or even to remind followers of upcoming school events."

Feedback from community members can also be communicated quickly thanks to the social media platform, thanks to "likes" or "retweets" on Twitter, according to Dr Rodrigue.

"The communication continues to be sent and resent with new followers being added," Dr Rodrigue said. "Each day, I receive new followers from students, staff, and community members. This is highly satisfying when you know that more and more stakeholders are interested enough to want to be connected in this way and to want to be able to access information that will be shared in the future."

NHS Interim Principal David Roach, who uses the Twitter handle

"My tweets are my tweets," said Mr Roach. "I personally post to share information about my interests, including family and work." Mr Roach also likes to see NHS department chairs tweet updates from "exciting things happening in classrooms."

Along with a place to share information about the school and community, Mr Moretti said he sees Twitter as a way to host nationwide "chats" on specific topics or interests. At first, Mr Moretti said he found Twitter overwhelming, but eventually he found it to be "very helpful."

When asked how the social media platform impacts education, Mr Moretti said, it, "widens your reach for ideas, resources, and discussions; increases your connections to a large number of people; tells your school's story; [and] connects to home."

, said her experience from the last two-and-a-half years of using Twitter has been positive.Parents, Mr Moretti said, have responded positively to seeing pictures. Staff tend to share more ideas, things they have learned, or benefits for professional development through the platform, he added. Head O' Meadow Elementary School Principal Barbara Gasparine, who tweets as

"Besides being able to communicate information about daily and special events at HOM with followers, I can get an early morning weather report and traffic conditions prior to heading out. World news is readily available," said Ms Gasparine in an e-mail. Later she added, "It allows me to see what is going on in other schools and districts, and to hear from experts in education who recommend books or articles to read."

Her staff, she said, have expressed appreciation for being recognized for their work with students either through special projects or events through her Twitter account.

Ms Uberti said she spent time learning how to use Twitter before she began to use it. After that, she said she encouraged her staff to use it, and the school's account,

"The use of Twitter has shaped my opinions on the role of schools in educating students on not only appropriate use of social media, but on the importance developing a powerful and positive digital footprint that will follow them for life," said Ms Uberti in an e-mail. "It has been difficult for educators to keep up with all the changes in technology and the explosion of social media, particularly in the last decade. I think we are at a point where educators have to fully understand and embrace these platforms that are used daily by a majority of our students by the time they reach middle school. Without such understanding, we are missing out on helping our students capitalize on incredible, albeit non-traditional, learning opportunities."

Through her Twitter account, Ms Uberti said she follows hundreds of educators from around the country and world "to expand my learning on educational and leadership matters." She also frequently participates in Twitter "chats" with colleagues to share ideas.

"I think the best use of Twitter by the educators in my school is communication with our parent base, our community, and depending on their followers-the nation," said Ms Gasparine. "They can tweet out information about their work, the work of their students, activities at HOM, or best practices."

Ms Gasparine also highlighted Head O' Meadow math/science specialist Chrissie Pierce,

Reed Intermediate School began the 2017-18 school year with a challenge, according to Ms Uberti. It was a Twitter Challenge to encourage staff to learn and to use Twitter over the first few weeks of school.

"Since then, many have truly embraced it and, in some ways, I think it has actually brought our staff closer together," said Ms Uberti. "It is an easy way for the staff to share a valuable read or a successful lesson with their colleagues. I think having schools announcements on Twitter provides another way for parents to get school news, and that is always a positive thing."

Twitter is only one venue for communicating, though. Dr Rodrigue also pointed out the district uses the online SchoolMessenger program, e-mail, phone calls, open discussions and forums, and other social media platforms to create communication opportunities with the community.

"As long as districts offer a variety of opportunities for families and staff to access information effectively and efficiently, then this continues to build a strong, consistent, and positive educational culture," Dr Rodrigue said.