Group items tagged

This is one article in a series geared toward teacher librarians. This article is short and deals with both the "why" and "hows" to PLEs. (Although the term Personal Learning Environment is used instead of PLN, I felt it could still be helpful.) The article sets up the need for PLEs by recognizing the vast amount of information available to us today. It follows by breaking down Personal, Learning, and Environment in a concise form. The second half of the article focuses on the "hows." I have included the reference only because I had some difficulty retrieving some of my previously bookmarked pages from Ebscohost. "Personal Learning Environments in the Learning Commons. By: LOERTSCHER, DAVID V., KOECHLIN, CAROL, Teacher Librarian, 14811782, Dec2011, Vol. 39, Issue 2"

This short article is written for school administrators to convince the audience of the power the PLN can bring to their work. The article recognizes apprehensions to use twitter, defines a PLN, and finally explains how it can connect the reader to a valuable group of fellow professionals. If ebscohost doesn't work, this is the link through BSU's Library search results: b. http://boisestate.worldcat.org/oclc/4595249723&referer=brief_results

This article focuses on the role of personal learning environments in higher education. I particularly appreciated the description of the PLE in the article. Pointing out what it offers that Learning Management Systems do not, the PLE is explained as the future of education where the student takes control and responsibility from the reigns of the institution. It also suggests that PLEs have staying power in education due to the fact that they are not wrapped up with a specific technology, rather they have the ability to adapt and change as technology around us continues to do so. The author discusses how students should be given challenging situations rather than ridged assignments. The article finishes with an example where this idea was implemented in an online learning environment. Väljataga, T. (2010). Learner control and personal learning environment: a challenge for instructional design. Interactive Learning Environments, 18(3), 277-291.

This article was a study of novice music teachers' experience using an online community for one year using wikispace. A community of practice was formed in this wikispace and findings found that teachers' emotional needs were supported in this community regardless of grade level taught and music specialty taught. Knowing that other teachers were going through similar things gave teachers a feeling of support.

This article was accessed via login at Boise State Library. The research article is a survey of a small sample of graduate students who indicate that many students are used to using facebook in informal ways, but perceive the potential for acceptable grading and learning outcomes through a facebook format.

This article was accessed bia Boise State Library login. This article reveiws a survey of students in a case study where facebook was used as an LMS. The findings are that it can be used to supplement, or substitute an LMS; and that it is most appropriate for younger students. Privacy was an important concern.

This article reports a study of a community of practice that was focused on...developing communities of practice! Excellent exploration of the factors that influenced participation levels in this CoP, including: emotion, technology, and connectivity. The authors conclude that online learning communities succeed on the basis of the level of investment of the members.

This article reports a study of a community of practice that was focused on...developing communities of practice! Excellent exploration of the factors that influenced participation levels in this CoP, including: emotion, technology, and connectivity. The authors conclude that online learning communities succeed on the basis of the level of investment of the members.

This article is from Ebscohost and does require users to log into Albertson's Library before accessing. This paper looks at shared social capital and what it means for teachers. It also looks at the difference and the benefits for teachers using online vs offline professional development resources as it relates to Facebook.

This article was found through Ebscohost in Albertson's library and requires you log into your MyBoiseState account to access. This article is a brief history of the rise of PLN's and talks about how they are created, why they have been successful and gives some examples of how schools are using them. it also discusses the benefits of PLN's. This article is an easy read and not particularly scholarly

This article was found through Ebscohost in Albertson's Library and will require you to login with your MyBoiseState account to read. While this article is directed at school librarians the information applies to anyone that is interested in expanding their PLN. The article is written in an easy to follow format and has great graphics throughout. It discusses why you should develop your PLN and provides management tips on how to make your PLN effective.

This article examines how communities of practice can enhance research in higher education. They seek to gain greater understanding of what individuals gain from their membership, how CoP enhance personal research, and how CoP can be integrated into higher education.

This article examines two communities of practice within a post-secondary online course. One CoP was an on-campus cohort formed by the instructors and instructional designers, the other was an online cohort in which the CoPs were selected by students in the program. This explored the role of teacher leadership in the "school ecology".

This article reviews three PLN platforms: Edmodo, Classroom 2.0, and The Educator's PLN. They describe how teachers use the PLNs for learning, sharing, and communicating.

The purpose of this study is to explore the experiences of students in post-secondary online courses through the lens of connectivism. This mixed methods study was framed around Downes' four properties of connectivism. The results showed that the principles of connectivism encouraged positive online learning experiences.

The following peer-reviewed article notes the expectation of professional development in the workplace. Individuals and cohorts in all professions may receive training and PD that only goes so far. It's critical for all individuals to continue to develop and strengthen their skills, attitudes, and knowledge through the use of Personal Learning Networks. This article highlights the pros and cons of a Twitterstorm, but ultimately captivates the need to seek-out other professional beyond your institution.

In this article, Warlick explains how to grow your personal learning network in order to avoid information overload. He gives great tips on how to aggregate information that comes to you, instead of spending all of your time trying to find information. He also gives tips on how to cultivate your network.

This article follows the progression of a group of doctoral students in their journey to become scholars. Students were to use Communities of Practice in their studies, ultimately trying to see if this will allow them to emerge from the program with a stronger self-identities as scholars. Students had to learn to rely on one another while also providing for one another. Using COP, students were guided to not sit back and take the role of the student, but to get involved in their own learning to reach the role of scholar.

This article explains the theories behind the connections between massive open online courses and connectivism. It is described that connectivism is the pedagogical approach behind MOOCs, but something is missing. The author goes on the explain how cultural psychology is the factor that makes up for the missing basis for learning that connectivism fails to explain.

Retirees maintain personal interests---just as commonly as non-retirees. The love of learning and being a part of community does not disappear once one has retired. In fact, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, people 65 and older spend at least 2 hours per day undertaking leisure activities. This article explores the idea of shifting from professional communities of interest to personal communities of interest in retirement and discusses PLNs in retirement that usually consist of friends and family members. The author focuses on the usage of social media for retirees to keep connected with one another.

This article shows the results of a mega-blogging experiment called a Tweetstorm. The authors wanted to see a Personal Learning Network come to life in a brainstorming and identification session. It got results similar to concept mapping: general thoughts that were fine-tuned and eventually became written by experts.