Blog Post #5

Source: Photo by Teachers Using Tech

Personal Learning Networks

A Personal Learning Network (PLN) is "a set of people and tools that you can call upon for help, consultation, collaboration, or other assistance." By building a PLN, we will be able to expand our network and become better teachers. Vicki Davis explains how beneficial a Personal Learning Network is for students in her blog post. She says, "Constructing a PLN is the essential skill that moves my students into the driver's seat of their own learning." Davis also discusses RSS technology (website that puts together information in an easy to read format), which enables her students to create a PLN. We have already began creating our PLN in EDM310 by connecting with students and teachers across the globe and forming relationships with our classmates.

By building a Personal Learning Network, we are able to reach out to people all across the world for new ideas and feedback. Michael Fawcett explains the benefits of a PLN in his blog post. With a PLN, Fawcett is able to discuss ideas, exchange comments, suggest new sites and blogs, and make connections all around the world. He shared an example in his post of how having a PLN helped him solve a problem. A student asked Fawcett a question regarding Neil Armstrong and the moon landing. Fawcett reached out through social media, tweeting the question to his followers. Within 30 minutes, he was given a definitive answer. Because of his PLN, he was able to gain knowledge about a topic of which he was unsure. I think this is a great example of how a PLN will be beneficial for teaching purposes.