Personal Learning Network

Quotes of the week: “Sometimes its not about expanding our PLN as much as it’s about going deeper with those who are in it.” #diglitclass

— Emily (@MissRetchless) February 12, 2018

This week was the first time I had heard about a Personal Learning Network (PLN). After doing some research, I realized that this is a great way to get into contact with other people who do what you want to do, are doing, or are going to do. You can build a PLN around any topic.

For this class, I am going to start by creating my PLN to be centered around the concept of STEM education (science, technology, engineering, mathematics). This is because I am studying to become a middle grades math and science teacher for the rest of my life. (That is the current plan anyway. However, one never knows what the future holds.)

When starting my PLN, I searched Google for some help. I looked up twitter and blog accounts that would be good references for math and science education. I found a list of many different names (more than necessary). This led to me struggling to read through some of the content of each twitter and blog account to see if they were worth following.

If we went by the steps in How to cultivate a personal learning network: Tips from Howard Rheingold, I would definitely say I did them out of order. I have currently done steps one, three, five, and eight. I know I need to continue to work on my PLN by continuing to do steps one, three five, and eight as well as focusing more on steps four six, and seven. I need to find ways to engage those who follow me as well as continue to sift through all of the information for those I follow. By sifting through the information, I will be able to decide if the person is worth following and keeping in my PLN. This will allow me a chance to drop those who I do not think are worth following as well as add others who are worth following.

Overall, I believe Emily’s tweet sums up the continuation of my PLN making. I need to stop searching to add more people to my PLN, and I need to start searching to see if the people I have in my PLN are worth keeping. This is because something is not worth making if you are not going to use it.