Today will be my first posting in my blog in a while. I have a readings course at the University of Northern Iowa. For this course I had the opportunity to select a topic and find as much media on it as possible to learn more about it. Therefore, this posting and several other postings in this series will be related to the topic of Personal Learning Networks (PLN). The goal of my postings is to discuss PLN and its relation to the PK-12 environments.
The article I read for this posting is Grow Your Personal Learning Network by David Warlick.
Since this is my first posting about PLN it does not make much since to talk about it without first what a PLN is. Warlick (2009) says that PLN is not anything new. In fact the only thing that is new with it is the name that is coined to it. The key to it all is how can one use what is around them to help in the support their learning or knowledge. Originally, as Warlick states, “learning comes from, friends, families, colleagues, reference books, textbooks, television, radio, professional and personal periodicals, and many web-based applications like Twitter, Skype, and Second Life.” (Warlick, 2009, p.13). The reason as to why PLN stands out because no longer is the learner hindered in their learning because of the unavailability of resources, the resources are all around them.
Warlick also describes 3 types of PLN. (2009)
• Personally maintained synchronous connections
• Personally and socially maintained semisynchronous connections
• Dynamically maintained asynchronous connections
Personally maintained synchronous connections encompass the majority of the digital immigrant population (typically those born before 1980. They tend to use the PLN that they are comfortable using like colleagues and friends. Other uses of PLN for this type would incorporate technology including Skype and Second Life.
Personally and socially maintained semisynchronous connections begin to encompass digital native population. Learners in this type are those ones that can multitask while learning. Also includes the use of social networking sites, a viable opportunity to consult subject matter experts on questions that you may have. I see my professors doing this a lot of time using Twitter. If they have a question about something related to technology or education they have a group of friends that they direct their questions to.
Dynamically maintained asynchronous connections is a bit different from the first two discussed. Instead of being connected to people you are instead connected to sources. (Warlick, 2009) Warlick (2009) explained it best with the use of a RSS aggregator or social bookmarking websites. These allow you to subscribe to certain websites for information they you deem important or want to be updated on.
In the end of the article Warlick discusses the component that the PLN is centered around. The component is actually you, the learner. He refers to the fact that as the learner is using someone in their PLN someone is actually using you as well in their PLN.
My take is PLN is a vital term used in this dynamic world of learning, technology, and resources. Not only does it take in to account the world around your but your responsibility as a learner because someone probably references you in his or her PLN as well.
Warlick, D. (2009). Grow your personal learning network. Learning & Leading with Technology, 36(6), 12-17.
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Monday, March 9, 2009
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Thursday, October 23, 2008
State of the Union
I fell that I am a little over due to add a rant to my blog. So I think it is time to add a new one.
I recently learned that a good friend of mine husband was recently fired from his job. You may ask what is different about that? People get fired everyday. Well before you decide to stop reading this posting let me provide you with a background about the person that got fired and how the company decided to handle the firing.
Background
To keep names confidential I will just call my good friend’s husband named Jim. The company Jim worked for was a newspaper company that provides the news for several of the cities and towns in and around my location. This newspaper company is by no means a New York Times, or a Atlanta Journal Constitution. But they tend to do a good job, and besides I do not live in a huge metropolitan area that the NYT or AJC have behind them.
Now Jim has been associated with this organization for not 10, 15, or 20 years. He has been working for this organization for 35 years. 35 straight years. I have to say it one more time 35 YEARS. Than why did he get fired?
Well he must have done something terribly wrong. Maybe he had a sexual harassment case brought up against. Or maybe he was embezzling money from the job. Or, I got it, after 35 years he was sick and tired of getting up everyday and going to work, and was often times showing up late or not coming at all. Well rest assured it was none of the above. Jim simply got fired because he just so happened to fall into the group that got fired this time.
Over the years this newspaper company would gather a bunch of the workers together and fire them. The company may include a reason why or it may no. Jim has made it through this entire time without getting fired. Maybe I need to do some more investigating because I just do not understand.
How it happened
Jim’s superior one day last week called a meeting. Jim and 49 others were to be present at this meeting. Then the news was broke to them. But the most disturbing part was how it the news was giving to them and the subsequent events.
Jim was fired with 49 others without given a reason. After 35 years of loyal, dependable, hard work to this company he gets fired for no rhyme or reason. Next the company brought in local law enforcement to keep the peace. Each of the 49 people was supervised by the police as they gathered their belongings and was walked off the premises. Jim had some of the perks provided to him from the company which included a cell phone that had to be turned in as well.
Now
I don’t really understand the firing and how the company decided to handle it. Quite frankly it may not be any of my business. But I wonder if it is a result of now. Or current state of the economy may be the reason for it. I just read the other day that the National Basketball Association had to lay off 20 (not sure if that is correct number because 40 keeps popping in my head) people because of economic concerns. I don’t know…But as one human being to another, Jim deserved a reason. Even if Jim did not care to here it after 35 years it deserved that much than to be escorted of the premises by the police.
I recently learned that a good friend of mine husband was recently fired from his job. You may ask what is different about that? People get fired everyday. Well before you decide to stop reading this posting let me provide you with a background about the person that got fired and how the company decided to handle the firing.
Background
To keep names confidential I will just call my good friend’s husband named Jim. The company Jim worked for was a newspaper company that provides the news for several of the cities and towns in and around my location. This newspaper company is by no means a New York Times, or a Atlanta Journal Constitution. But they tend to do a good job, and besides I do not live in a huge metropolitan area that the NYT or AJC have behind them.
Now Jim has been associated with this organization for not 10, 15, or 20 years. He has been working for this organization for 35 years. 35 straight years. I have to say it one more time 35 YEARS. Than why did he get fired?
Well he must have done something terribly wrong. Maybe he had a sexual harassment case brought up against. Or maybe he was embezzling money from the job. Or, I got it, after 35 years he was sick and tired of getting up everyday and going to work, and was often times showing up late or not coming at all. Well rest assured it was none of the above. Jim simply got fired because he just so happened to fall into the group that got fired this time.
Over the years this newspaper company would gather a bunch of the workers together and fire them. The company may include a reason why or it may no. Jim has made it through this entire time without getting fired. Maybe I need to do some more investigating because I just do not understand.
How it happened
Jim’s superior one day last week called a meeting. Jim and 49 others were to be present at this meeting. Then the news was broke to them. But the most disturbing part was how it the news was giving to them and the subsequent events.
Jim was fired with 49 others without given a reason. After 35 years of loyal, dependable, hard work to this company he gets fired for no rhyme or reason. Next the company brought in local law enforcement to keep the peace. Each of the 49 people was supervised by the police as they gathered their belongings and was walked off the premises. Jim had some of the perks provided to him from the company which included a cell phone that had to be turned in as well.
Now
I don’t really understand the firing and how the company decided to handle it. Quite frankly it may not be any of my business. But I wonder if it is a result of now. Or current state of the economy may be the reason for it. I just read the other day that the National Basketball Association had to lay off 20 (not sure if that is correct number because 40 keeps popping in my head) people because of economic concerns. I don’t know…But as one human being to another, Jim deserved a reason. Even if Jim did not care to here it after 35 years it deserved that much than to be escorted of the premises by the police.
RSS Control Station 4
Overall my experience with the RSS Control Station went well. It is valuable to further my knowledge of all the resources that are available to me through Google.
As I stated in my prior posting, it is nice for Google Reader to do the work for me. Thus far, I have subscribed to 11 different blogs and Google Readers goes to each one of these blogs every time to sign in to check and see if the author(s) of the blog posted something new. I can read each on of the blogs from my reader and even can link directly to the blog if I want to get more information.
There were several different things I could do with my subscriptions in Google Reader. One of these advantages has to deal with organization. I was able to create folders on my Google Reader to help maintain some type of order with the blogs and associate blogs for educational purposes and others for leisure.
Using Google Reader for educational uses would not be difficult at all. In higher education Google Reader could be used for keeping up with campus news, sports, changes to policy, and any other uses a college or university sees fit.
In K-12 Google Reader could be used by each one of your students in a classroom. Especially, useful in Reading classes when the teacher would like to include literature circles. On days when the student has reading to do at home or outside the classroom the student can post his notes on or reflections to their blog. The teacher to subscribe to the blog to see how the student is doing on their readings and also students could subscribe to each others blogs.
iGoogle is a great tool I could use on a personal level. I enjoyed the many features associated with the website. The different gadgets found throughout the website is particularly useful. I find myself going over seas at least once a year and the currency converter is a great tool to use just for that. The podcast player is another great tool because I can use the RSS functions in my podcast player to subscribe to different podcast. iGoogle also provides a direct link to my gmail and twitter accounts through the use of the gadgets that they have.
Overall I just love to use this site. A one stop shop as I called it before.
The RSS Control Station assignment I particularly enjoyed because of the iGoogle page. They have gadgets for just about everything that you could think of.
As I stated in my prior posting, it is nice for Google Reader to do the work for me. Thus far, I have subscribed to 11 different blogs and Google Readers goes to each one of these blogs every time to sign in to check and see if the author(s) of the blog posted something new. I can read each on of the blogs from my reader and even can link directly to the blog if I want to get more information.
There were several different things I could do with my subscriptions in Google Reader. One of these advantages has to deal with organization. I was able to create folders on my Google Reader to help maintain some type of order with the blogs and associate blogs for educational purposes and others for leisure.
Using Google Reader for educational uses would not be difficult at all. In higher education Google Reader could be used for keeping up with campus news, sports, changes to policy, and any other uses a college or university sees fit.
In K-12 Google Reader could be used by each one of your students in a classroom. Especially, useful in Reading classes when the teacher would like to include literature circles. On days when the student has reading to do at home or outside the classroom the student can post his notes on or reflections to their blog. The teacher to subscribe to the blog to see how the student is doing on their readings and also students could subscribe to each others blogs.
iGoogle is a great tool I could use on a personal level. I enjoyed the many features associated with the website. The different gadgets found throughout the website is particularly useful. I find myself going over seas at least once a year and the currency converter is a great tool to use just for that. The podcast player is another great tool because I can use the RSS functions in my podcast player to subscribe to different podcast. iGoogle also provides a direct link to my gmail and twitter accounts through the use of the gadgets that they have.
Overall I just love to use this site. A one stop shop as I called it before.
The RSS Control Station assignment I particularly enjoyed because of the iGoogle page. They have gadgets for just about everything that you could think of.
RSS Control Station 3
In my first posting on the RSS Control Station (the original) I discussed iGoogle and Google Reader. Also in the posting I made mention about a posting in edublogs about social networking. It is amazing all the different opportunities technology allows a user to have. In the aspect of social networking a user is able to share, store, and sort diverse forms of media and information through websites, photos, videos, or people.
Steve Hargadon had a really great posting called Moving Toward Web 2.0 in K-12 Education. This posting is really significant because of all this discussion on shifting our educational practices. One change that is frequently discussed is the modification from teacher-centered instruction to student-centered learning. This can be done in various ways including authenticity, engagement, or collaboration. This article makes references to these strategies as well.
Just another reason why I enjoy the components associated with Google Reader. Google Reader will go to the blogs and let me know about the new postings. Saving me time and energy. Oh…and this is all apart of Social Networking as well.
Steve Hargadon had a really great posting called Moving Toward Web 2.0 in K-12 Education. This posting is really significant because of all this discussion on shifting our educational practices. One change that is frequently discussed is the modification from teacher-centered instruction to student-centered learning. This can be done in various ways including authenticity, engagement, or collaboration. This article makes references to these strategies as well.
Just another reason why I enjoy the components associated with Google Reader. Google Reader will go to the blogs and let me know about the new postings. Saving me time and energy. Oh…and this is all apart of Social Networking as well.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
RSS Control Station 2
For a class that I am taking this semester I have to develop a page using the HTML code. This writing is not new to me but I do not have a through background into it either. This iGoogle page I was to create is a great resource. I did a search on HTML in iGoogle and found many different gadgets and resources that I could use to help me write HTML or gain a further understanding into it.
Earlier in the semester I actually signed up for a twitter account. I have known about twitter for well over a year but I am just now starting to adjust to using it. It almost seems that it has evolved because I also finally got into blogging. Well I received the link to download Twitteroo for the PC but the download would not work for me. Well it just so happens that I would able to place a gadget in my iGoogle homepage that provides a direct connection to Twitter. Makes life so much easier.
Gmail is also the email provider that I most widely use. Many of my colleagues, friends, and family members use it as well. iGoogle also has a widget where I can place the gmail chat option on my homepage and allows me to stay in constant contact with everyone.
Earlier in the semester I actually signed up for a twitter account. I have known about twitter for well over a year but I am just now starting to adjust to using it. It almost seems that it has evolved because I also finally got into blogging. Well I received the link to download Twitteroo for the PC but the download would not work for me. Well it just so happens that I would able to place a gadget in my iGoogle homepage that provides a direct connection to Twitter. Makes life so much easier.
Gmail is also the email provider that I most widely use. Many of my colleagues, friends, and family members use it as well. iGoogle also has a widget where I can place the gmail chat option on my homepage and allows me to stay in constant contact with everyone.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
RSS Control Station
In my Emerging Instructional Technology class at the University of Northern, I was tasked to set up an RSS System through the use of Google Reader and iGoogle. Google Reader is an aggregator that I had set up before but needed to subscribe to a few more blogs which include Weblogg-ed by Will Richardson, stevehargadon.com by Steve Hargadon, and Edublogs by Ewan McIntosh.
I must admit I am really satisfied that I did subscribe to a few of these blogs. I could have always gone online and gained information about open office but to just get the facts from someone, as in the case of Steve Hargadon, I could easily do more research from the background that I received in the blog.
Another example presented by Ewan McIntosh had a really great posting called Danah Boyd on Handheld Social Networking. This article was particularly interesting to me because I am currently doing some research on Social Networking and it was nice to get another perspective on the topic.
But back the reason for this posting. Besides Google Reader I also had the opportunity to use iGoogle. I particularly like this site because of the ability to include widgets or gadgets but also add web feeds. On top of that I am a Gmail user and just to come here, a one stop shop if you will, iGoogle homepage provides a direct link to my Gmail account. On this site I added different tabs to help provide some organization to my web feeds and gadgets. Some of these gadgets I included are a currency converter (I seem to make it overseas at least once a year, podcast player with a library of subscriptions to podcast, and RSS feeds to some websites and blogs.
Pretty interesting stuff I had the opportunity to get familiar with.
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