First things first - what's a PLN? PLN stands for personal learning networks. Among teachers, this acronym is very popular in our time. Gone are the days of subscribing to a professional journal to learn new ideas for your classroom or sitting in face to face late night classes towards a degree (or maybe to just learn something new). Teachers now have lifelong learning at their fingertips - it's called the Internet.
I remember when the idea of the Internet started surfacing. I lived in a small town (I think they just got online last year). It took so long for us to hear about the Internet many people had even graduated from car phones in bags to real cell phones! At that time, my Internet use was limited to researching vacation spots. I planned my entire wedding and honeymoon online (it's really not that impressive - I got married in Vegas). But there was no way I was going to book it online. Nope. The only way to handle transactions like that was to go see a travel agent and say, "Here's where I want to go. How much?"
So, what does this have to do with a PLN? Let me help you make the connection. Picture back in the day how new ideas were researched and implemented in classrooms. There were (and still are) lots of resources out there. Regional Professional Development Centers offer face to face workshops. If you were really serious, you actually enrolled in a grad class (or any night class). From my location, this meant you might have to drive an hour or more to get to the nearest university. And let's face it - professional journal articles are just not easy to read. We were much more likely to skim through those magazines that relied on blackline masters and cutesy ideas that were summed up in a paragraph just to add a little spice to our classes. And that's what we did. I can say that I have participated in all of the above.
Enter the Internet. Now I can Google anything! Need a lesson idea? Google can help you find the answer. I can download lessons, search for new ideas, and gather resources much faster than before. But that's still not a PLN.
Type define: network in your Google search engine and here's what you get:
an interconnected system of things or people
a system of intersecting lines or channels
communicate with and within a group
See a common idea? Interconnected. That's a PLN. My very own way to find information, ideas, to learn from a group(s) of educators with similar interests. Now, let's picture this B.I. (before Internet). Party line, anyone? Faculty lounge? All the teachers sitting around the lunch table actually discussing new ways to teach, ideas to try, ways to handle that "one kid?" Maybe. That might even happen in your school right now. If so, you are very blessed to work with such a great group of educators. But then the bell will ring and you'll have to go to recess duty. Maybe you can talk later.
Here's how you can develop your professional learning in a way that will enrich your teaching (and your students' learning) whenever you have time. Maybe it's after you put the kids to bed and you're in your pajamas. Maybe you go to school early to do a little work before everyone else gets there. Maybe you have 5 minutes at lunch or, if you have one of those new, fandangled "smartphones" you are waiting at the DMV to renew your tags (that is, unless you start doing that online, too).
Step 1: Get a Twitter account. I know you've heard about it because even the news stations use it now. In doing so, consider your purpose. You want to learn, right? List your information in your bio so that people understand that. Think about if you need to protect your tweets or not. If not, make sure you monitor your followers daily. (You'll get an email that says when someone is following you).
Who will you follow? Again, use the almighty Google. In searching "educators on Twitter" I received 3,310,000 results. Of course, I'm sure they're not all relevant. But that's a lot! The top hit was a blog linking to a wiki that had educators using Twitter, their purpose in using Twitter, and their username. Second hit - same thing, different wiki. Excellent resource!
Look at your followers closely. If the information they're giving you isn't what you need, see if someone else does provide that information. That's the reason we're doing this.
Reap the benefits of a lifelong learner while implementing new ideas in your classroom. Your kids will do great things!
Step 2: Do you use Facebook? Lots of teachers do, and they do this for their PLN. However, I do need a disconnect between my professional and personal life. Therefore, Facebook is personal, but Twitter and Classroom2.0 are professional. Classroom2.0 is a lot like Facebook and Myspace meshed together. Take a look - it's all teachers. You can follow people if you like, but the benefit of Classroom2.0 in my opinion is the groups. Search the groups that are there and see where common interests lie. You can blog, post to groups for ideas, and even sync it with your Twitter account. Benefit of Classroom2.0 over Twitter? More characters. Developing curriculum with people states (or even countries) away.
Step 3: Make a Del.icio.us account. I have three computers and an iPhone. I can't remember where I save things. I tried using folders for bookmarks, but if I was using another device, I couldn't do anything. If people I worked for asked for a link, I had to search for it and email them. Now, I just say, "It's in my Del.icio.us account. The tag is ____(fill in the blank here)." Now my bookmarks are held online. No worries when the computer crashes or when groups want to work together. We can search each other's resources easily.
These three collaboration tools will greatly benefit your PLN and your students' learning. The best part-they're quick, easy, and continuous. Never the same information. Always the latest news. Just remember - it's a network. Learning from others also means contributing. We're all in this together, right?
