Dave

This is MY wiki.

My PLN at the start of class - very limited web tools - face to face PLNs are compartmentalized

My PLN at the end of class - lots of integrated web tools - need to build online relationship and combine digital tools with face to face networks


 * MEDU 603 Reflection – Developing a PLN **


 * ** What did I do? **

My goal at the start of the class was to learn how to use web tools to build online networks and enhance my teaching and learning. As a result of the course, I learned how to collect, organize, curate, and share data using social media.


 * ** What was important about what I did? Did I meet my goals? Do I understand the tools? Do I see how they fit into a PLN? **

I think that our work during the class was a very important process because it combined online sharing with a local face to face group so we could talk directly about our experiences. It was a big lesson for me to appreciate the value of combining face to face and online relationships. Before this, I automatically assumed that these would always be distinct relationships. In this regard, Edmodo was more useful than I thought it would be at first. As a class we found and shared some great data. However, I don’t think that we crossed the line into true collaboration. Everyone posted useful links, but we were all focused on our own projects. However, I do think that we became a lot more collaborative in person as a result. Again, I did not expect that to happen. I think this demonstrates the power of being able to build and maintain a relationship 24/7. Building relationships still takes a lot of time. We can’t speed up the process by making it take less total time, but we can speed up the process by increasing our opportunities for interaction.

I think that I met my goal to learn how to build online networks. I have begun to build a personalized PLN, but I am still mostly in a “lurker” phase. My biggest contributions so far have been to curate content to present on Twitter, Scoop.it, Edmodo and my wiki. I will need to increase my presence and participation if I hope to build a collaborative PLN. For example, I look at the broader Edmodo community or participate actively in some other established network. Also, maybe I should pick my top 5 blogs and try to contribute actively in the comments section.

Although I found a lot of useful content on enhancing my instruction, it is definitely more technological-pedagogical knowledge. I have not yet focused on content specific applications of technology because I don’t know which content area I will be teaching next year. So I feel as though my philosophy on teaching has been significantly transformed by the power of social media, but I need to do more work to before I am ready to bring it to my classroom.

I can use my PLN to enhance my existing face to face networks as well as build new online professional relationships. I think that I have already started the process. For example, I have shared useful links with my work colleagues. But that has mostly been a non-interactive process. I send the link. They say thanks. To go to the next level, I could try to really engage them on the contents of a specific blog or the usefulness of a certain application. Even if this is just over email, it can still be a collaborative and participatory process.
 * ** Where could I use my PLN? Do I see connections in content, product or process of the PLN with what I do by day? Where could I use what I did in my life - personal or professional? **

A lot of my professional colleagues have limited digital literacy, and are not comfortable or familiar with working online collaboratively. To bring my face to face networks in the realm of social media, the first that probably needs to happen is for me to show them how.

On a side note, I have learned to appreciate the difference between social and professional interactions online, and that both have intrinsic value. For example, without intending to, I have started to participate more regularly on Facebook with casual social interactions.


 * ** Do I see any patterns or relationships in what I did? Were the strategies, skills and procedures I used effective? Do I see any patterns in how I approached my work? What were the results of the approach I used? Was it efficient, or could I have eliminated or reorganized steps? Did any concepts/strategies in the // Net Smart //text assist me? **

I really like to learn about new applications and I love to see how things can interconnect. But I need to avoid hoarder tendencies. For example, it is very easy to link blogs to my RSS feed, but at a certain point, it turns back into static rather than serving as a tuned channel. Also, it is counterproductive to join every established PLN network that I can find, because I cannot possibly be an active participant in all of them.

Net Smart strategies of attention and critical consumption have been my primary literacies so far. For example, I need to build a fine-tuned curation process that allows me to be efficient and not get overwhelmed. It has been very useful to “kick the tires” on different applications, but eventually I have to pick the ones that serve my needs, and accept that there are always going to be other competing possibilities. Of course I can change which apps I use over time, but it should be a deliberate process based on cost/benefit analysis.


 * ** How well did I do? What worked? What do I need to improve? How is what we are learning important to me? What have I learned about my strengths and areas in need of improvement? How am I progressing as a learner? **

I feel that I have created a good process using Twitter, RSS, and Scoop.it to curate content. This has really helped me to focus on Attention and Crap Detection, and is laying the foundation to move into Participation, Collaboration, and Networking because it give me a method to find people AND provides the means for me to be an //__informed__// participant and collaborator.


 * My strengths ** – I think that I have good organization and planning skills. I can see how these different applications can fit together into a useful whole, and I can evaluate the strengths and weakness of each in terms of the larger process. For example, the fundamental principal of social media is that most of the apps can serve multiple functions (collect, organize, share, etc.), but some are better for one thing than another. Twitter is fantastic for finding and sharing content, but for me, it isn’t yet a useful platform for collaboration. RSS can be the primary means of finding content, but it also can be a great tool to add participation by helping me to keep track of multiple comments sections on different blogs. Facebook CAN be used for professional networking, but I really only want to use it for “hanging out”. And so on.


 * Areas to improve ** – I think that I have developed a strong foundation in social media, and have settled on which tools I want to use for different functions. I need to develop a more deliberate plan if I want to move into active participation (instead of just broadcasting on Twitter and Facebook) and collaboration.


 * ** What should I do next? What is my plan? **

“THE PLAN”…
 * 1) Go through my existing RSS and thoroughly examine my current feed. Is there anything that I want to eliminate? How can I build a better file structure to organize the feed? I don’t feel that I use my RSS feed effectively right now. I like to have it. I add to it and view it once in awhile. But I don’t feel very invested in it, mainly I just sort of scan it once in awhile, but it never feels like a valuable process. Basically, I don’t yet know if I want my RSS to be a sniper rifle or a shotgun for critical consumption.


 * 1) Select ONE existing PLN network and begin to actively participate. I have explored Edmodo and some ning sites like Educators PLN and Class 2.0. I think that I will probably go with Edmodo because it can serve multiple functions like building classes and the interface is cleaner. The ning rings just feel clunky and a bit outdated. There may be a terrific network there, but I worry about my about to efficiently find and collaborate with others on that platform.


 * 1) Integrate my face to face networks with social media. This is actually the focus of my contemporary issues platform for MEDU 504 and my challenge based learning activity for this class. My research and anecdotal experiences have strongly indicated that teachers are not digitally literate. I think that the model of this class is great in that it was hands-on, collaborative, project-based, and reflective. I want to help other teachers develop their digital literacy by forming a local PLN group specifically for that purpose.


 * 1) Figure out how to use digital tools and social media to enhance instruction of specific content. This is on hold at least until I know my teaching assignment next year, and I don’t want to over commit because I have to do my thesis research in the fall.
 * ** How does the development of a PLN alter my conceptualization of teaching and learning? **

I feel like my conceptualization of teaching and learning has been fully transformed. The TPCK and SAMR models were incredibly useful framework to help me understand how technology needs to integrate with education. Before this class, the idea of PLN sounded good, but it never seemed like a truly viable option. Now, I feel very confident that I have the tools and experiences at this point to deliberately work on developing my digital literacies, and can serve as a guide to help others start their own learning process about social media.

I still need to do more work learning how to use technology to deliver specific content, but again, I feel confident now that I have the tools to accomplish that goal.

 · ** What did I do? **  My goal at the start of the class was to learn how to use web tools to build online networks and enhance my teaching and learning. As a result of the course, I learned how to collect, organize, curate, and share data using social media. · ** What was important about what I did? Did I meet my goals? Do I understand the tools? Do I see how they fit into a PLN? **  I think that our work during the class was a very important process because it combined online sharing with a local face to face group so we could talk directly about our experiences. It was a big lesson for me to appreciate the value of combining face to face and online relationships. Before this, I automatically assumed that these would always be distinct relationships. In this regard, Edmodo was more useful than I thought it would be at first. As a class we found and shared some great data. However, I don’t think that we crossed the line into true collaboration. Everyone posted useful links, but we were all focused on our own projects. However, I do think that we became a lot more collaborative in person as a result. Again, I did not expect that to happen. I think this demonstrates the power of being able to build and maintain a relationship 24/7. Building relationships still takes a lot of time. We can’t speed up the process by making it take less total time, but we can speed up the process by increasing our opportunities for interaction. I think that I met my goal to learn how to build online networks. I have begun to build a personalized PLN, but I am still mostly in a “lurker” phase. My biggest contributions so far have been to curate content to present on Twitter, Scoop.it, Edmodo and my wiki. I will need to increase my presence and participation if I hope to build a collaborative PLN. For example, I look at the broader Edmodo community or participate actively in some other established network. Also, maybe I should pick my top 5 blogs and try to contribute actively in the comments section. Although I found a lot of useful content on enhancing my instruction, it is definitely more technological-pedagogical knowledge. I have not yet focused on content specific applications of technology because I don’t know which content area I will be teaching next year. So I feel as though my philosophy on teaching has been significantly transformed by the power of social media, but I need to do more work to before I am ready to bring it to my classroom. · ** Where could I use my PLN? Do I see connections in content, product or process of the PLN with what I do by day? Where could I use what I did in my life - personal or professional? **  I can use my PLN to enhance my existing face to face networks as well as build new online professional relationships. I think that I have already started the process. For example, I have shared useful links with my work colleagues. But that has mostly been a non-interactive process. I send the link. They say thanks. To go to the next level, I could try to really engage them on the contents of a specific blog or the usefulness of a certain application. Even if this is just over email, it can still be a collaborative and participatory process. A lot of my professional colleagues have limited digital literacy, and are not comfortable or familiar with working online collaboratively. To bring my face to face networks in the realm of social media, the first that probably needs to happen is for me to show them how. On a side note, I have learned to appreciate the difference between social and professional interactions online, and that both have intrinsic value. For example, without intending to, I have started to participate more regularly on Facebook with casual social interactions. · ** Do I see any patterns or relationships in what I did? Were the strategies, skills and procedures I used effective? Do I see any patterns in how I approached my work? What were the results of the approach I used? Was it efficient, or could I have eliminated or reorganized steps? Did any concepts/strategies in the // Net Smart //text assist me? **  I really like to learn about new applications and I love to see how things can interconnect. But I need to avoid hoarder tendencies. For example, it is very easy to link blogs to my RSS feed, but at a certain point, it turns back into static rather than serving as a tuned channel. Also, it is counterproductive to join every established PLN network that I can find, because I cannot possibly be an active participant in all of them. Net Smart strategies of attention and critical consumption have been my primary literacies so far. For example, I need to build a fine-tuned curation process that allows me to be efficient and not get overwhelmed. It has been very useful to “kick the tires” on different applications, but eventually I have to pick the ones that serve my needs, and accept that there are always going to be other competing possibilities. Of course I can change which apps I use over time, but it should be a deliberate process based on cost/benefit analysis. · ** How well did I do? What worked? What do I need to improve? How is what we are learning important to me? What have I learned about my strengths and areas in need of improvement? How am I progressing as a learner? **  I feel that I have created a good process using Twitter, RSS, and Scoop.it to curate content. This has really helped me to focus on Attention and Crap Detection, and is laying the foundation to move into Participation, Collaboration, and Networking because it give me a method to find people AND provides the means for me to be an // __informed__ //participant and collaborator. ** My strengths  ** – I think that I have good organization and planning skills. I can see how these different applications can fit together into a useful whole, and I can evaluate the strengths and weakness of each in terms of the larger process. For example, the fundamental principal of social media is that most of the apps can serve multiple functions (collect, organize, share, etc.), but some are better for one thing than another. Twitter is fantastic for finding and sharing content, but for me, it isn’t yet a useful platform for collaboration. RSS can be the primary means of finding content, but it also can be a great tool to add participation by helping me to keep track of multiple comments sections on different blogs. Facebook CAN be used for professional networking, but I really only want to use it for “hanging out”. And so on. ** Areas to improve  ** – I think that I have developed a strong foundation in social media, and have settled on which tools I want to use for different functions. I need to develop a more deliberate plan if I want to move into active participation (instead of just broadcasting on Twitter and Facebook) and collaboration. · ** What should I do next? What is my plan? **  “THE PLAN”… 1. Go through my existing RSS and thoroughly examine my current feed. Is there anything that I want to eliminate? How can I build a better file structure to organize the feed? I don’t feel that I use my RSS feed effectively right now. I like to have it. I add to it and view it once in awhile. But I don’t feel very invested in it, mainly I just sort of scan it once in awhile, but it never feels like a valuable process. Basically, I don’t yet know if I want my RSS to be a sniper rifle or a shotgun for critical consumption. 2. Select ONE existing PLN network and begin to actively participate. I have explored Edmodo and some ning sites like Educators PLN and Class 2.0. I think that I will probably go with Edmodo because it can serve multiple functions like building classes and the interface is cleaner. The ning rings just feel clunky and a bit outdated. There may be a terrific network there, but I worry about my about to efficiently find and collaborate with others on that platform. 3. Integrate my face to face networks with social media. This is actually the focus of my contemporary issues platform for MEDU 504 and my challenge based learning activity for this class. My research and anecdotal experiences have strongly indicated that teachers are not digitally literate. I think that the model of this class is great in that it was hands-on, collaborative, project-based, and reflective. I want to help other teachers develop their digital literacy by forming a local PLN group specifically for that purpose. 4. Figure out how to use digital tools and social media to enhance instruction of specific content. This is on hold at least until I know my teaching assignment next year, and I don’t want to over commit because I have to do my thesis research in the fall. · ** How does the development of a PLN alter my conceptualization of teaching and learning? **  I feel like my conceptualization of teaching and learning has been fully transformed. The TPCK and SAMR models were incredibly useful framework to help me understand how technology needs to integrate with education. Before this class, the idea of PLN sounded good, but it never seemed like a truly viable option. Now, I feel very confident that I have the tools and experiences at this point to deliberately work on developing my digital literacies, and can serve as a guide to help others start their own learning process about social media. I still need to do more work learning how to use technology to deliver specific content, but again, I feel confident now that I have the tools to accomplish that goal.
 * MEDU 603 Reflection – Developing a PLN **