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Hi Molly, This article gave a helpful overview of learning communities. I specifically found value in the section focusing on collective responsibility. Participation is key in learning communities and includes feedback, clear communication, collaboration, trust, shared focus, and accountability. Educators need to invest in their learning community and teach students how to utilize technologies in order to do so. Thanks for sharing, Hanna

Hi Molly - Another part that plays into the development of learning communities is the creation of policies to set formal accountability for student learning. This was the first resource that I have come across that mentions about policies, visions, and goals - you almost forget that still needs to be in place!

This article talks shares some history on the Personal Learning Network (PLN) and how the term came to be and how technology use impacts the PLN. It also highlights some of the different definitions for it. One thing that stood out for me was the point that they are dependent on the reciprocity and trust of members, as well as the literacy level and drive of the members.

Our everyday life is revolved on some type of social networking (i.e. cellphones, email, social media, etc.). Through networking, we build a personal learning network (PLN). As we continue to use networking, as users, we need to be able to find out how we learn best and then seek out for networks that fulfill our learning needs.

Melissa, thank you for sharing. I had a hard time differing from the two. This is a great resource that really helps the viewers understand why each is important and yet a little different!

Although many organizations create groups that include people of varying specialties to complete specific problems, people are organizing themselves into communities of practice, informal groups who share "expertise and passion" for a common interest. These communities are new to the business world because their spontaneous, informal nature makes them difficult to supervise. Managers cannot mandate communities of practice, they can only create a supportive environment. Members self select based on common interests and perceived advantage. The authors provide examples from Hill's Pet Nutrition and Hewlett-Packard. While communities should not be forced into creation, managers can cultivate them by identifying potential CoPs that will benefit the company's "strategic capabilities", provide infrastructure to them, and assess their value to the business through "nontraditional methods." Business managers need to realize the wealth of potential available to them through communities of practice.

Prior to my studies in the Educational Technology program, I had never heard of the term Communities of Practice. Until I read this article, I have only seen research about CoP in education. This article begins by discussing CoP in business, and how long CoP has been around as well its benefits for businesses. I was really surprised to hear how long CoP has been around, you would think more businesses would invest the time to develop them. A couple examples mentioned show that it can take up to a year or more before change is implemented, but the long term benefits are worth it. Also, I noticed that another article broke down information in a table, much like the "Snapshot Comparison" section in this article. This is a nice way to compare things in an easy to read and understandable format.

This article, while a bit longer, introduces and explains communities of practice in an in depth and thorough fashion. I enjoyed the comparison to real-life companies organization and the history coming all the way from Ancient Greece. Two of my favorite comments states that communities offer "creative ways that foster new approaches to problems" and "they give you both the golden eggs and golden goose that lays them". It makes me realize how essential deeper understanding and knowledge can be developed within these types of communities. The article also develops an understanding of a comparison chart of different types of work groups to show when using communities of learners are most effective.

I liked this blog post for two reasons. One, it gets you thinking about how you can use twitter in your everyday class. How will my students use this tool/app. Two, it can be used for formal assessing different concepts to see if your students are understanding. It's simple, short, and to the point in answering questions. Teachers can get a quick glance at what students know and what needs to be retaught.

It amazes me how vast the uses for Twitter are. The more I read about how it can be used for PD and broadening my own scope of learning, the more impressed I am. So many students already use it for social/personal reasons, why not tap into the source and reach the kids where they are? I noticed at Open House for my high school son last night that many teachers are using Twitter to keep the parents in the loop, but to also share resources with the students instead of maintaining formal, dated teacher websites.

This article discusses the pedagogy and theory that is the foundation of connectivism. Discussed in detail is how connectivism impacts education in a 21sr century learning environment.

Interesting article by I. Bessenyie if for no other reason than it was originally written in Hungarian and translated. But it does show that the idea of connectivism is making waves in educational communities around the globe and not just in the United States. This article also tackles some of the more specific elements of connectivism as related to Web 2.0 & E-learning.

This article is a discussion of how network participation is making shared learning possible and the role of the traditional educational institutions.

Thanks for including this article...I got confused for a second seeing the foreign language. Since connectivism seems to espouse the belief that students lead the learning, and should all be learning different things, would it mean the end of the traditional education system as we see it? Do you think connectivism sees any future for mainstream education?

I posted a comment a few minutes ago, went away from the page, and when I came back my comment was gone. I haven't found diigo to be too comfortable to use yet. My main question was...connectivism preaches that students should be learning different things and leading their own learning experience. Does connectivism leave any room for a traditional education system?

Hey Scott. that's a great question and a certain dilemma when it comes to implementation, For me, the real revaluation was in how I personally am a total connective learner. I access information as needed from multitudes of resources. it has changed what I am willing to embrace or not. From a teacher's perspective, implementing it is a totally different animal & considers much more of a balanced, blended approach. You have to ask the question, at what point is a student self-actualized enough to own their connectivness? it is safe to say that students are connective learners regardless of whether we are involved in that or not. I would love to find a way to harness their personal relevance in the classroom.

This article focuses on elearning 2.0. Talks about how learning has evolved from long ago to today and how we used to learn from our elders and now we learn from "informally"

This article discusses socialization and the accessing of information in the information age. The article claims, "A vast amount of spontaneous knowledge exchange is taking place on the interactive World Wide Web. It is on the basis of this that the theories of eLearning 2.0 and connectivism declare that network participation and access to information and to software that interprets and contextualizes information makes a completely new, cooperative, self-organising form of learning possible."

Deborah, I love the idea of students guiding their own learning. It seems to be a great way to get them involved and motivated instead of just listeners in the classroom they are part of the learning network. Thanks for sharing!

While this site leans towards the how-to aspect of a PLN, I found it illuminating simply for the fact that the students described in this article create a PLN for each project.  It emphasizes the fact that a PLN is personal and not the same for everybody.  PLNs are personal, can be permanent or temporary, and exist for the sake of the person to learn.  

The website title really grabbed my attention and I wanted to find out what it meant. This was very interesting because it discussed netiquette and cyber-bullying as well. It helped to relate real-world with online by explaining how with a virtual locker it would change with what courses the students are taking. This really broke down what PLNs are and how they work. It was one of the better articles I have read. Thank you!

I'm still a little hesitant to assign the term Personal Learning Network to an assembly of RSS feeds as describe din this piece. A great part of it, but only part of it, I think. That feels a little too "one-way" to develop the interactivity that seems to be so indicative of the PLN. An interesting idea that came from this for me was that each time a student started a new project (cyberbullying, understanding the Constitution, cancer treatment research, etc.) they would develop a new PLN. This underscored the idea that a PLN is not stationary, but, rather, a dynamic network that will continue to evolve as long as one is striving to learn. It almost becomes a technological reflection of oneself.

Written by the Cool Cat Teacher, this article states that using PLNs allow her student to connect to informational sources and become self-directed lifelong learners. It moves students into the driver's seat and helps them sort through the plethora of information.

In this post, an educator likens student's personal learning network to virtual lockers where they store what they learn and produce academically and otherwise.

This article explains how students (teens) are using PLNs to organize and share their school work and projects. It also discusses the pros and cons of PLNs.

This is an interesting take on how a PLE can work in a school environment. Students can use their PLN as a collection system for information when they are doing their projects.

I appreciate the fact that they presented both sides to the story here. They discuss the advantages of PLNs but also raise questions on issues educators may be facing with them at this current time. As an educator, I like when others bring up concerns because then it allows me to brainstorm ways to circumvent the issues. It also assures me that I'm not the only educators facing issues implementing PLNs perfectly within my classroom. The authentic touch this article displays is refreshing to me. Don't get me wrong, I really love PLNs, but at the moment, there are kinks that need to be worked out to be fully effective in an elementary classroom setting.

I like how this article focuses on student use of PLNs. I tend to focus on their use for teacher PD, but they are certainly something we should be teaching our students! I also like how the article describes some flaws of PLNs, this will help people think of ways to make PLNs even stronger.

Interesting is that the focus is on RSS feeds and it feels very academic while middle school students are an upcoming demographic on twitter. Their use of twitter is of course social, but I wonder about using twitter as more immediate way to share information.

Wegner talking about CoP. Again, although it is a short summary overview, it makes several key points which help my understanding. Firstly that the challenge which can arise in a CoP can become like a sort of curriculum which is wired on and developed. Learning, sharing happen and even new knowledge creation. As he talks about tools he makes it clear that such online tools are not in themselves CoP bbut the tools which enable them. Interesting and digestible.

I like this overview a lot. Thank you for posting. He makes CoPs sound so helpful and the people that are in them so positive and available. It makes me want to join one right now!

I enjoyed this video quite a bit. He's point at 3:25 regarding the correct usage of tools in CoPs seems obvious, but it emphasizes the need for management and organization in successful CoPs.

I really like that you chose a video. This is a great summary of what a CoP is and what it needs to be successful! Defining a community of practice is not easy but using the correct tools appropriately can make all the difference!

This was refreshing to watch a video instead of reading an article about these topics. I think that it was powerful when he mentioned that it is the learners duty to organize and be in charge of how they would like to learn and what they would like to learn. We interact daily with our coworkers, friends, family, etc. We can and do learn from all of them, it is up to how what we want to learn and to what extent.

I really enjoyed watching this video. I had searched for some videos on Communities of Practice, but this is clearly the best one I have seen. It provides a clear explanation of CoP's and even some information on what it takes in order to be successful.This is important because it shows what a successful CoP should look like.

This resource is a great one to have access to. It explains what a PLN is in layman's terms down to what is "personal" what is "learning" and what is "network". It also has some helpful media to better solidify the concept. Thank you for posting. #EdTechSN

Another great resource alexisseidl. This resource does a fantastic explaining PLN's in very simple terms and does a great job of incorporating media to enhance the learning experience.

This article begins with a very simple explanation of what a PLN is. It breaks down each letter and describes it in detail. It also provides some great multimedia tools including a pair of videos about being a connected learner and a description of a PLN. There is also a voicethread about why you should have a PLN. It even provides you with a challenge to develop your own PLN.

This source offers a plethora of modalities to explain what exactly a personal learning network is. It can mostly simply be defined by the three parts in the name of a PLN: personal, building relationships to fit the individual; learning, the professional development aspect of collaborating and sharing resources; network, the platform that forms the means for building connections. The source offers a short video, a VoiceThread presentation, examples and personal testimonials to prove the power of PLNs.

This is website breaks down the basic idea of a PLN. It also has a step by step guide to set up a PLN. There is a short video that is very clear and easy to understand that explains a PLN and how it benefits the participants.

I enjoyed reviewing this resource. The details are plainly laid out and easy to follow. Really helps to explain all there is to know about PLNs.

While this is a blog post, it is one by teachers for teachers, and it really does a good job to explain what a personal learning network (PLN) is piece by piece. There are great videos and visuals within the post that also provided insight into a PLN and why it's a valuable part of being a professional, especially in education. I love that we are encompassing that in this course too!

This site contains a professional learning series on building a personal learning network.The what and the why. It is complete with multiple videos and infographics to aid understanding.

I really like the breakdown of PLN on this page. The collection of resources really allows for an easy to understand experience!

Learning is the process of participation and does not just have a beginning and an end. Learning is ongoing and must be collective within communities. Learning is not just a form of knowledge but is co-participation and social relationships.

This gives the Department of Education's take on communities of practice.  It describes their efforts and projects that support this form of learning in educational settings.  Links to these projects are provided.

This link is to a DoE posting encouraging the use of communities of practice. The specific domain for this page is to encourage k-12 education to use CoPs with a particular target of ones offered by the DoE: Investing in Innovation, Promise Neighborhoods, and Race to the Top. It is encouraging to see the DoE support these efforts.

It is encouraging to see how the Dept of Edu, through the use of CoPs hopes to decrease the achievement gap. It is a worthy notion to hope that through collaboration, sharing and research across a vast diverse audience, a solution could be found.

I really like how the article points out that "A great part of the answer lies not only in the types of tools, programs, and strategies used to close the achievement gap, but also in how education researchers and practitioners share information with each other." Whether this is in person with our co-workers or via some PLN, this sharing of information is vital for success!

This article discusses the National Educatioal Technology Plan and references where it calls for teacher to become connected. It asks them to become part of learning communities both locally and other wise using communities of practice.

This is an awesome article about the utilization of PLNs. I love that the fact that it shows that teachers are still learning and evolving with the students and information. We as instructors must adapt to new information and not be passive in our learning, if we are passive the information will change and the students will have access to it, which we will lose credibility. This active teaching and learning model is key for the modern world of education.

I appreciate this blog post pointing out the need and helpfulness of PLN for educators. In the past teaching has been a very isolating experience where everything learned and gained from teaching experiences was kept within a teacher's own development and classroom. Also, the climate for sharing was not always encouraged within the school and between teachers. By actively taking part in a PLN, teachers have the advantage of sharing, learning, and growing with other educators and researchers. I wish the article would have gone into more depth with some examples, as I found I wanted to read more specifically about this impact in action.

I like the idea of PLNs rather than PLCs. The school divisions I have worked for have used PLCs for teachers to avoid that isolated feeling. They work great for teachers who are in a building with more than one teacher in their content area or grade level. They do not work well at all if the teacher has to work with someone that does not teach the same grade level or content. I can see how this would be great for teachers in a rural school, where access to other teachers is limited. Another benefit for teachers who use social networks (ie. blogs, wikispace, facebook) for their PLN is that they may be more inclined to be active participants. These social networks can be less threatening to a teacher who may be shy or hesitant to speak up face to face.

I enjoyed reading this article. It would be a great resource to help get schools involved in PLNs. There were many benefits for teachers that are in PLNs. I would enjoy having the benefits of resources from other professionals in my field. Collaboration is a great resource to help you become a better teacher.