My Thoughts on PLN

"Back in the day" networking with people was usually done through face to face interaction. Things like business conferences, workshops, career fairs and word of mouth were usually the way people met one another, expressed their opinions, shared ideas and became colleagues. Today with the help of the Internet these types of networks are formed without the members even knowing one another or having to meet.

This week's lesson introduced the Personal Learning Network (PLN). PLN was define as a collection of tools, communities, and services that you will collect to direct your learning and to stay informed and in touch with the world. In this blog entry I am going to tell you more about what I think of PLNs as well as  my connections through my own learning network.

As I began thinking about PLNs I realized that I needed to learn a little bit more about them. I googled PLN and found a few YouTube videos on the subject. Below I have embedded a video.

The creator of this video talks about how different people have different views of how a PLN is created. They explain that some "see it as something you build where others see it as something that grows". They finish the video with their own opinion-that a PLN is a mindset that begins with a question-how do my life experiences make me a better teacher? And then they change the question to-how do my life relationships make me a better teacher? I definitely feel that both experiences and relationships  have a factor in the outcome-becoming a better teacher. 

Good Teacher

Bad Teacher

I joined Classroom 2.0 for this assignment and was instantly slammed with emails and message board invitations about various topics. I read over several forums and saw some great ideas. I also have accounts with Google+, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest, tumblr, and Skype. I check most of these daily and enjoy conversing with friends and strangers about thoughts and similar interest. 

But there is still an important question: how much should we rely on these online learning networks? 

I think that PLNs are great resources for finding new ideas, sharing experiences and thoughts, as well as exchanging media (pictures, lesson plans, links, etc.). But the Internet can not always be trusted. 

For example...the YouTube video that Dr. Broussard shared with our class has been terminated and is no longer available. I just watched it on Tuesday! And now it is gone. Who is to say that these forum based websites aren't shut down or the content exchanging option is removed? 

*oops*

The Internet has made things very accessible and convenient but I feel that one on one interactions and communication is still very important. I hope that this type of learning is not lost in a super technology driven society. It is definitely one that I am fond of.

The Fellowship