Twitter in the classroom

CNN posted an interesting article today about the use of Twitter in the classroom. Instead of banning the use of cell phones in his classroom, teacher Enrique Legaspi encourages students to use technology to interact with him while in the classroom. Using cell phones, iPads and laptops, students are allowed to make class comments using Twitter. The teacher said that it seems that the shyest students in the class are benefiting the most as they are more comfortable making their thoughts known in the virtual space rather than the physical.

While Mr. Legaspi does concede that his students sometimes make inappropriate remarks on Twiter, he still remains excited that students can provide him with feedback right on the spot and that each student can see what others have shared.

What are your thoughts on this? Are tools like Twitter the future of education or do you think they are only a distraction to classroom learning?