Before this course my Personal Learning Network has consisted of my Richmond Library Discussion group (which is quite amazing with lots of links and posts that librarians share) and few bookmarked websites/blogs.
Now, I have a blog, and twitter on the go. I have to admit, I have been ignoring twitter…. As Janine posted 5 stages of twitter, I have been in the denial stage and slowly moving towards curiosity.
Hopefully by the end of this course, I will have explored twitter more and feel more confident on it.
I have discovered a couple other really interesting sites, which encourages the development and use of a PLN.
Digital Bytes is a website where you can explore and influence the digital world.
You click a preference, to explore, create, do something, think, ect.... then you get offered two questions, and choose one.
video appears, you watch the video, then have the opportunity to discuss, engage and then share your thinking and video with other people. It even has a vocabulary link on the left, which would be great for ELL students.
Here is a Video Tutorial!
Another thought that popped into my head, was perhaps making a library blog for my school library and try to engage students in conversations about books. Books, they liked, would recommend...
The thought is a little different, then sharing professional resources, but I find I learn a lot about books from my students, it could be interesting if they had a space to share their thinking with me and each other on books. ( sure would help with more accurate purchasing). However, I would need to play around with the idea a bit more, if I went that route.
In my research, I have come across a lot of information and links, about having digital foot print and about digital citizenship, which encourages me to keep thinking, how do I want to look online. If a parent googled me, what would they see, what image would they have, same with a student.. what does the internet say about me....
I realize, there is not a lot on myself, so it would be neat if they did google, and found a professional, with links, and thoughts around education.
But for now, I think for my PLN, I going to start with engaging in twitter more, and learning that.. one step at a time.
This was a good start to your personal reflection about your ICT Skills. I think twitter is a great place to start, but there is much more out there available for you to work on and continue to develop with in regards to your ICT skills and pedagogy. Starting a blog, no matter what the content, is also a great way to refine your publishing skills. Other social networks can also be a place for ongoing professional development (Google Plus, Pinterest, Social Bookmarking, etc). Also, seeking out and creating new communities for learning among your school, your district and your provincial level is an excellent way to connect and share your new skills and learn from others. Good use of media and good tagging.
ReplyDeleteI, too, have been a Twitter side-stepper, but there is no avoiding it now. Part of that for me was changing my thinking about Twitter. I always felt it was a time-waster-- somewhere to get lost online. Now that I know it can be used as an educational tool, I am trying to learn more.
ReplyDeleteCheers,