I recently attended a session on PLN (Personal Learning Networks) at METC. The session was great and I received a lot of valuable resources. I am truly excited about how PLN can be applied in education; however, one problem exsists. Many of the applications that PLN's are built upon are typically blocked in many of the schools that I have visited or worked in. How can we convey to teachers and administrators that PLN's are good things that reinforce collaboration, networking, and assists teachers in finding resources?
Applications that are used to start PLN's are social networking sites like: Facebook, mySpace, ning, twitter, and plurk. Of course don't forget the hundreds of great blogs and wiki's that are out there designed for and by educators. With my PLN I have connections to educators across the country and even internationally that I can ask advice, find resources, or simply discuss trends in education.
When we think of Facebook and mySpace and the connection to education; we typically don't have a very positive outlook. Many of our students have these social networking sites and many of you may have one as well. But using them in an educational setting? What are your thoughts? I have heard many brilliant educators say that we should be teaching our students about Facebook - not necessarily how to add friends and applications, but the outcomes of social networking. We need to teach our students about Digital Citizenship; that what they put on their networking site is something that not only their BFF's see, but future employers and college admissions see as well.
So, what do I use? I have a Facebook page, I use Twitter, and I also use Plurk. I subscribe to blogs and join wikis. As much as I would like to, I can't go to regional and national conferences all of the time - but I can use my network to learn from!
Follow me on twitter or plurk! Just search for mtilley!
