Reflection on Chapters 1 & 2 ~ Personal Learning Network book

I believe the best benefit of a personal learning network is that every individual has the opportunity to have a personal, unique group of connections that engage all involved with meaningful learning experiences.  The possibilities of resources are unlimited with the connections PLNs provide.  With these networks, obtaining lesson plans, multimedia tools, websites, and software are easily accessible to integrate into the classroom.  I find the most important part of making your PLNs valuable for all stakeholders involved is to acquire knowledge through the discussion and sharing of ideas.  This sharing will add to the diversity and quality of the interactions, and is a valuable classroom enrichment tool.   As our book Personal Learning Networks states, “Your network will grow, and your learning will never be the same.” 

The effects of PLNs have the ability to influence your personal and professional learning.  One advantage is that these social networking tools support and facilitate the learning process in a personalized approach. This type of collaborating provides different concepts and resources that you may not have otherwise discovered.  There are countless ways to utilize your own circle of contacts and resources by collaborating and networking with your peers.  Blogs, bookmarks, podcasts, and wikis are just a few examples of the vast technological avenues that are available to educators.

I believe in the whole concept that the first couple of chapters express;

I feel that the following concepts described in the first couple of chapters express the summary of my own beliefs regarding this educational concept:

“Schools have been working hard at making our kids learned because in the past, it was hard for them to do that without the teachers and resources that schools offered.  Not so today.  In the 21^st century, students inhabit a world in which we have the ability to truly make them learners who are able to create and share and participate in these online spaces in ways that will allow them to take advantage of whatever opportunities currently exist and the unimaginable ones that lie just around the corner.  To do that we adults in the room need to be learners in those contexts as well.”  (Richardson & Mancabelli, 2011, p. 20)

 

Richardson, W., & Mancabelli, R. (2011). Personal Learning Networks: Using the power of connections to transform education. Indiana: Solution Tree Press.