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iNACOL just released this new report as a guide for K-12 districts. The report outlines best practices in collaborative content development for online courses and resources, and then making those resources available to all other districts. The idea behind open educational resources is to create a community that shares ideas and builds upon the work of each other.

I appreciate the example that John Brown lays out in his paper "Growing Up Digital". He speaks about the Xerox company sending in anthropologists to study how tech reps fix broken machines. They learned it is all about the communication and storytelling, never do reps use the manual. After developing an online presence for tech reps (CoP) to communicate, Xerox saves $100 million a year while the learning curve of the reps has grown by 300%. This is a great case study to get a better understanding of a CoP analyzed and at work today.

This article explains how Online Multiplayer Games are the new model for communities of practice and how we as teachers should incorporate technology into our classrooms to utilize this networking capability.

MMOGs are a very interesting phenomenon to me. I took Dr. Haskell's GameBased learning course last semester. What a great way to engage students within COP and PLN.

This article describes a PLN and focuses on the lifelong learning aspect that a PLN creates. It also lists 10 awesome benefits that participating in a PLN can provide.

This article explains how PLN's foster lifelong learning. It explains how learning via PLN's is more motivating than the standard methods of professional development.

In this article, the author explains what a PLN is, how to develop a PLN and the gains of a PLN. Novak states that PLNs are one of the best resources to motivate lifelong learners. Educators can connect with other learners and better themselves. They can communicate and collaborate in the sharing and exchanging of new ideas and information. There are several benefits of PLNS including learning anything, anytime, anywhere, and with anybody.

This article from Sh!ft Learning explains the differences between Personal Learning Networks, PLCs, CoPs, and PLEs. Anyone unfamiliar to the terms/acronyms would find this article useful in discerning the differences. The article also gives several reasons for why PLNs are needed, and ways they can help educators grows personally and professionally.

Gutierrez defines what a PLN is, what does a PLN do, and what a PLN is not. Lastly, Gutierrez explains why building a PLN is increasingly important. A PLN is where educators can gather, collaborate, communicate, and share information anywhere or anytime. PLNs are formed through social media and across the world. They serve three purposes including connection building, connection maintenance, and connection activation. A PLN is not a CoP or PLE. A Community of Practice is with people that have the same profession, vs PLN connections are more informal. A Personal Learning Environment is much broader than a PLN. A PLN is within the PLE. PLNs help professional development, expanding your thinking, find answers and advice quickly, and stay up to date.

The business blog post defines and contrasts PLNs, CoPs, and PLEs. It discusses the importance of building a PLN. The post points out that connections in a PLN are intentional with the purpose of learning from the other person rather than just meeting by chance. Several good references are provided. Included is a nice illustration showing the relationships between PLNs and PLEs and Personal Web Tools.

Summary: Educators from Australia uncovered that the most useful collaboration taken from a course was student-led and student generation conversations. The users were able to exponentially grow professionally with the help of their peers through social media. The collaboration in this case was not mandated by the professor, but merely a suggestion. It was the desire to learn from others that sparked the community created digitally. It was through the social media that the learners were able to share ideas, questions in a way that was organized and beneficial to all.

Very interesting article. I always sign up for MOOCs and find I always take away something but have never had that social connection experience in the course as they did in this article; maybe it was the instructor(s) and their encouragement to connect outside of the MOOC. I am going to pay more attention in the future to see if I see connectivism, PLN, and communities of practice.

Great article. I wanted to dive deeper into the MOOC's but just did not have the time. I am so glad you found and posted this article. I would really like to find a MOOC with the social interaction described in this article. I think that would be a very valuable learning opportunity.

Interesting read on how to use Social Media to advance online training programs. Excellent resources on how to improve training systems through social media.

Very cool! I never thought of this as a community of practice. I use this everyday for conferencing with my colleges. We come together through this technology to share resources, plan and organize, and to develop strategies. So, of course this is a great example. Thank you for sharing!

Kop and Hill ask how existing learning theories meet the needs of today's learners and further question whether connectivisim is a learning theory. They do a very thorough study of learning theories to determine that "it does not seem that connectivism's contributions to the new paradigm warrant it being treated as a separate learning theory" (p. 11) even though it is important to the the development of new learning pedagogies.

Here Nop & Hill talk about how as information is constantly changing, its validity and accuracy may change over time. In addition to this information is constantly being added, deleted, and modified based upon the world around us. By extension, one's understanding of a subject, one's ability to learn about the subject in question, will also change over time and this information can be adapted and morphed through online educational networks. "Connectivism stresses that two important skills that contribute to learning are the ability to seek out current information, and the ability to filter secondary and extraneous information." Simply put, "The capacity to know is more critical than what is actually known". People begin to know and learn through these online networks where information can be openly shared, resourced, vetted, and attained.

This is a break down of connectivism. It looks at all parts of the theory and how it all works the in the learning environment. In the article, you will find the reasons why it's important, the founders of the theory, and why it's relevant in learning.

In this scholarly article, Bessenyei discusses the current desire in education to decrease the alienation of traditional schools. He looks at connectivism and network theories as a way to decentralize learning into self-organizing networks. These networks allow information sharing to become more significant as students information sources are varied to include experts as well as other students from multiple institutions.

In this article the author discusses the importance of connectivism that is dependent upon learning in a web 2.0 platform. As the influence of the web has spread so to has the importance the ability to share and distribute information to people all over the world. The premise of this article is that as costs continue to soar in education the connectivism platform offers an alternative way to disseminate learning. The web is now no longer a medium for learning, it is the platform and center for personal learning. One final point that is made is the importance in educating students how to use the available online resources to construct learning for future use because as online resources and CoP's continue to be the primary sources for information it is important to understand how to use and identify these resources for continued learning.

Bessenyei takes an interesting look at the history of elearning as it relates to student learning requirements, societal norms and Connectivism today. The authors perspective on Web 1.0 to Web 2.0 and the policital development of elearning provides the reader with a new lens to look at the variety of social media that is used today.

PLN have been around forever but now we use technology to help increase those who can be involved. Most of the Personal Learning Networks are online and we can communicate with others from around the world. This article gives examples of how to use a PLN and how to build your own.

I liked the video clip that showed how networking can be beneficial. Simple video that explains it for people like me who are new the world of PLN's.

I like the chart of resources. I'm still trying to wrap my brain around all of the social media tools available out there on the Internet, so the chart in this blog post is helpful. Thanks!

An online learning environment based around GBL!

The author suggests that the foundation for connectivity is constructivism. The learner becomes the center of the of the learning process; rather than the dissemination of knowledge. The author further discusses the need for educators to adopt multiple methods of teaching in order to be effective in reaching the most students. Lastly, the author suggests that learning takes place in a collaborative and cooperative environment,

Mimi Ito discusses how children are using digital media and the learning that goes on as they hang around and geek out - informal learning. She explores the role education can play in this and the role of the adult and how to support their engagement. She discusses the difference between friendship driven activities online and interest driven activities and the opportunities for learning in those spaces (personal networks). It looks at ways that these could be linked to school-based activities.

I like the comments made near the start of the video that the digital media and communication in which children are engaging is no different from the personal networks that have been formed in generations past. It serves the same purpose in their development, socially and academically.

Some of my take aways from this video are: "social relations are important for learning." "The mediated environment isn't so different from when we were trying to get our daughter off the phone or our son to come in." "How can we be more active in connecting the informal learning with learning." Let "Sts reflect and not just consume." Ideas are along the same lines as others in this field. As an educator I want to have students participating in student centered learning, but come up against road blocks admin and district don't understand.

I really connect to theory through hearing about practice. In this article by Tom Whitby for Edutopia, he shares 6 different stories from 6 different educators who have begun to engage with online professional learning networks. I connected to this article because I had the same path as many of these educators. Whether it was the teacher who heard someone at a conference or the 29 year veteran who found herself in a 1:1 MacBook class, they all began peripherally and then developed into active participants in their online PLNs. This article is a pretty good setup for our upcoming adventures.

It was interesting to see most of their stories had to do with Twitter. I have resisted Twitter for so long because I do not understand it at all! Guess it's time to learn.

Reading personal stories from teachers really helps me see how educators are using Twitter, and other technologies, in the classroom. I appreciated reading the variety of ways these teachers use Twitter to communicate with students and connect with other educators professionally. I'm beginning to see the value of Twitter as a professional network builder!

The big question presented in this article is, "How do we use technology?" The online environment is present in our daily lives and our participation is key. A PLN is defined as "the people you choose to connect with and learn from." A mutual desire for learning and participation must be present.

Hi Erin! I thought this article was quite interesting. I like how the author pointed out that so many say that the use of technology and media as a way of communicating leaves us disconnected, when really, it's the complete opposite! We are absolutely connected, just not the way we are accustomed to. Thanks for sharing!

PLN: Seaman's article discusses how to use social networking, especially Twitter to develop and maintain personal learning networks. She goes on to discuss that our we feel less lonely when we are connected, even if it is virtually on a tablet, cell phone or computer.

I found this visual to be an interesting model of what happens below the surface in a collaborative setting. Networking and building up a PLN certainly seem to be core activities, but as Berg mentions, it's often not recognized or valued.

I like how this source provided a unique way to look at collaboration. Collaboration is a skill that I am always trying to instill in my students. I also enjoyed that they included the graphic to help the reader understand the concept as well.

Renee, I appreciate you including this blog post with our Diigo collection of resources. This idea of the iceberg makes so much sense. It remembers me a lot of research surrounding language learning as well. There is so much below the surface that is hard to articulate or appreciate. This visual will be very helpful as I work with my teachers and admin next year. It is important that professionals understand that within PLNs there is a lot that happens that cannot be seen, yet it is these powerful connections and interactions that will most effective a teacher's practice

In this article, Hiltz and Wellman explain how personal learning networks through the internet can enhance a sense of community and belonging. While some feel that online learning is cold and detached, they argue that the internet provides a unique opportunity for people to connect in a deeper way.