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This article talks about the potential that online social networking has beyond just Facebook and Twitter.

I shared all of these resources individually before I realized a list would create less clutter and be easier to share with others. So, sorry for the redundancy -- here is my list. I tried to make sure all resources were available for free and didn't require library login access, though there were some great articles I didn't include for that reason. I'll be interested to see how all of our resources compare.

Gretel, I posted a list first. But upon reading the assignment parameters, we are supposed to post each link individually anyway!

This article discusses social networking theories and how to build effective e-learning practices in your teaching. EDTECH543 Connectivism

In this particular video, Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach is delivering a keynote at ULearn08 in New Zealand. This is a short snippet of that keynote speech. Nussbaum-Beech briefly discusses the primary differences between communities of practice and personal learning networks.

A short, engaging YouTube video on defining Personal Learning Networks.

I really enjoy the simplicity of this video while at the same time the depth of understanding it gives in such a brief period of time. For me this video really drives home the effectiveness technology can have in presenting potentially overwhelming information in a very easy to understand manner.

In my opinion, the key words of this video are "what", because you choose what to share, "where" and "when" to do it. It is brief but powerful. Thanks Melodie for sharing it!

This list provides links to articles and webpages I found on the topics of Connectivism, Communities of Practice, and Personal Learning Environment. Some of the articles require a log-in with the student's Boise State network userid and password.

Personal Learning Network for educators in action. Interesting example of a living, breathing learning network in use today by teachers from the United States to Sri Lanka and Greece, 13,576 members strong.

A great collection of blogs, videos, resource (including an alphabetical list of Twitter Hashtags) for education.

This is a great PLN for educators. I found videos and blog postings that were extremely interesting. What a cool resource!

This article was the study of professional learning networks and the impact they had on teachers. There were anecdotal responses given with teachers identifying specifically what had improved their practice because of the strength of their PLN. The author identified that not only is creating a PLN a skill, but it is also a mentality.

This article looks at the role of social networking and connectivist theory in the learning process. It explains how not only has technology changed, but the learner has changed as well. For example the learner no longer just consumes information, but also produces resources that can be shared in a network of knowledge. The article argues that technological tools, such as social media, will assist the learner in creating and contributing useful material.

This is the government's take on Communities of Practice, and I included it because like it or not, it impacts many of us on so many levels. The National Education Technology Plan asserts that we need PLC's, and if you have never read this document, it is worth the read. It definitely furthered my knowledge when I read it in EDTECH 501. The bottom line is that because so many students have access to mobile technology, they are able to be a part of social networks. The goal is to harness this power and cultivate collaboration and engaging learning experiences. Its premise is student-centered learning where students are able to make decisions and choices that form their own pathway to learning.

Thanks for including this document. I was impressed to see the progressive views outlined with many strong and important points for changing our education culture. One of the main areas included the need to leverage technology to empower students and shift learning responsibility from teacher to learners. In essence we want to strive to create master learners, where students understand how to evaluate and gain the information they need as life-long learners. The section "Measure what Matters" I especially applauded, as I feel our extreme emphasis on testing is misplaced if we don't make sure the tests and measures are appropriate for what students need to know to be life-long learners. Do standardized tests even have a section about locating information and assessing its validity? This report started out with a short list of recommendations that included, "Be clear in outcomes we seek". I think this is an important point as we strive to embrace and utilize the growing potential of connectivness.

Exploration of connectivism and it's connections to other learning theories. Includes the idea that connectivism may be a significantly different kind of learning theory than behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism, and that it might be more of an anthropological learning theory. (Interesting!) Also includes discussion of the role of an educator in an connectivist learning environment, including different metaphors for teaching.

This is a collection of four short essays by Etienne Wenger from April 2009. Here he explores the role of an initiative of the European Social Fund. While many projects and solutions came out of this initiative, he states that it is the invisible scenes behind the projects that may be the biggest accomplishment. Wenger reiterates that more and more people are understanding the power of the learning shift from formal to informal, but more examples need to be studied as well. Interesting read.

This article was originally published in the Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education. It reviews three resources Edmodo, The Educator's PLN and Classroom 2.0. The article begins by describing what a PLN is and talks about the social media connections and the tools that are used to aggregate all the information. It also discusses some of the difficulties associated with PLN's including information overload, figuring out the social norms and learning to use the tools. The article goes on to describe and compare the three PLN platforms. The article even highlights the types of topics that are discussed on PLN's.

The article opens with the idea of teachers being or becoming life long learners to achieve success, satisfaction, and empowerment in their position. This is then promoted by the idea of using PLNs to participate in the role of life long learner. PLNs are then described through a variety of scenarios including a general definition as well as additional adjective descriptions and elaborations such as engaging, exciting, and virtual friendships. How to develop a PLN follows the definition with the gains or benefits of forming PLNs wrapping up this resource. When reading through the gains it is clear that learning is the overall anticipated outcome whether it be: anytime, anywhere, with anyone, self directed, informal, formal, collaborative, or life long.

What is a Personal Learning Network? This is Marc-André Lalande's take on the matter in less than two minutes. It's simple and easy to understand for those that need it simplified.