Personal Learning Network

Part 1: Reflection

In my professional practice I usually learn about new ideas, developments and opportunities through my coworkers or our administration who share resources with us regularly. Our school provides in house speakers on topics such as Dyslexia, ADHD, anti-bullying campaigns and First Nations content and experiences. I work at an independent school in B.C. so we are also part of the ISABC (Independent Schools Association of British Columbia), which shares resources and professional development with its members. ISABC also has groups that regularly meet and collaborate with one another to keep the flow of information moving. I have also attended a professional development conference with Learning and the Brain in Boston. Here I learned valuable information about how the brain works and tools and strategies to use with neurodivergent students. My personal learning network also includes social media and websites such as Pinterest, Facebook, Tik Tok and Teachers Pay Teachers. The final way I continue my learning is by completing this Professional Masters of Education program. The last 2 years have given me a wealth of knowledge, skills and practices that I will use in professional practice as well as a network of educators that I can connect with in the future. 

Within my work place we share and collaborate on lessons, assessments and ideas using Google Drive and shared folders. All teachers of that subject have access to material for a variety of grades and all resources that have been made by current and past teachers. As someone who has worked at the school for 10 plus years, I am constantly sharing resources with my coworkers. Since starting the PME program I also find myself sharing my new found knowledge with my colleagues. I really enjoy the discussion posts and conversations I have with my classmates and I find it's a great way to add to my PLN. I will definitely miss the connection with everyone once I have completed all the courses. 

Part 2: Resources & Connections

1. Teachers Pay Teachers (https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/)

This company is a website where teachers can share their resources with one another (some are free and others cost money). I added this resource to my PLN because it is a tool I use regularly in my everyday planning. The vast amount of resources that you can find on this website is amazing and I have always found excellent resources that I can use straight away or alter to fit my needs. I really like that the resources are made by teachers, so the lessons feel personalized and authentic. My hope and goal for this resource is that I will be able to add my own resources, so that others can enjoy and use some of the lessons I have created over the years.  

2. Safer Schools Together (https://saferschoolstogether.com/)

This is an organization that serves North American schools with violence & bullying behavior prevention and intervention strategies. I added this resource to my PLN because I have worked with them in several capacities as a student in the online threat assessment classes as well as inviting them into our school to teach our students about digital literacy and safety. They send out monthly emails to their members inviting them to take courses and giving the latest information on protecting ourselves in the digital world. My hope is that this organization will continue to serve me and my students in ensuring that we are safe in our online and real world environments, as well as educating us on ways to treat people with kindness and respect. 

3. ADHD Rocks (https://www.adhdkidsrock.com/)

This is a website that was created by my cousin Jeff Rasmussen created in 2016 when he was diagnosed with ADHD in school. This was his way of spreading awareness and offering tools for educators as well as others with ADHD. I have added this to my PLN for several reasons, one of which being that I had the opportunity to create a blog post on the site with my tools and strategies for supporting my students with ADHD. While the website is not as active anymore I think it is a valuable tool for educators to learn more about ADHD from the perspective of someone who has it and a way for students to connect with other ADHD children. This website will continue to serve me as I reflect on the tools and strategies I am using in the classroom to create a safe and successful environment for all my students to learn. 

4. BCTF (British Columbia Teachers Federation): (https://www.bctf.ca/homepage)

This is a website for BC teachers that contains news and updates and resources on several topics including Aboriginal Resources, benefits, social justice, wellness and professional development. The reason I added this to PLN is because when I came across the website I didn’t realize how fruitful the resources actually were. It is important that I stay connected and up to date with my local and provincial organizations, so I am best serving my students. I will be subscribing to the teacher magazine they produce in hopes that it will offer me resources that are useful and up to date. 

5. International Dyslexia Association (https://dyslexiaida.org/)

I chose this organization as a resource for my PLN because the association has done so much for me as an educator over the last 10 years and I am proud to be connected with them. When I first started at my school, I had no idea what dyslexia really was and how diverse it can present itself. The IDA website is a great tool for educators and families to gain knowledge, resources and training to better serve their students and children with dyslexia. I receive newsletters via email on a regular basis from the organization, so I decided to take a closer look at the website and I am excited to utilize some of the resources I found, including a digital library, to better serve my dyslexic students. 

6. TED Talks Education (https://www.ted.com/about/programs-initiatives/ted-talks-education)

7. ISABC website (https://www.isabc.ca/)

8. NILD-National Institute for Learning Development (https://nild.org/)

9. CAIS (Canadian Accredited Independent Schools) (https://www.cais.ca/)

10. Pinterest & Tik Tok: While I don’t follow specific people or groups on these sites, I do find the content presented to me has been very helpful and tailored to my educational environment. 

Part 3: PLN & Analysis

My PLN web strengths are technology, teaching styles and curriculum websites, as well as organizations that support learning differences. I have spent 10 years building up resources that directly reflect my current job and I have made connections with people and experts in these various organizations. I am updated weekly and monthly on the latest innovations, ideas and research on such things as ADHD, Dyslexia, Language Arts resources and language remediation. I also access the lessons and activity websites on a regular basis to get ideas and free resources to support the learning in my classroom. Cathy Green states that creating a PLN is a way to have,  “a vehicle for lifelong learning for both personal and professional development by enabling individuals to remain relevant in a world of rapidly changing information” (Green 2020). I believe that I have done this by making personal connections and becoming members of these organizations.

Areas I need to further develop would be to add more personal style blogs and twitter feeds to my PLN so I can connect with other educators who are also working with similar students. I realized that a lot of my resources are larger organizations or companies and I feel like I need to connect with other educators on a more personal level. I would like to further my reach and explore areas of education that are not necessarily in my wheelhouse. In the article by Jane Bozarth she states that searching outside your areas of interest “stretches you and helps you avoid the insularity that can come from too much time spent in your own box with only those who share your own particular interests” (Bozarth). I would like to become a more active member and part of these networks by commenting on, communicating with and contributing to the many websites and communities I regularly use. 

Part 4: End of Assignment Reflection

Creating the personal learning network was an eye opening experience for me that not only made me realize I have a solid network in place, but also has motivated me to stretch my network further. I was worried at first that I would struggle to find 10 resources that I use or would use that could serve me and my students. I began by searching my emails and quickly realized that I already had 4 or 5 organizations that I access regularly to get updates on educational innovations and resources. The deeper I looked into my files and resources I realized I had so many connections right at my fingertips that I haven’t been accessing on a regular basis. The International Dyslexia Association website was one of those resources where I blindly consume the regular emails that are sent, but had not really taken the opportunity to explore and interact with the robust website full of resources and connections available. This has motivated me to spend the time to interact with these websites on a deeper level and more frequently in order to access the fruitful resources and connections.

Another interesting experience I had while creating my PLN was the conversations I had with my coworkers surrounding their own PLNs and how they access new information and make professional connections. I realized that we rely on each other a lot at work and we are actively collaborating on a regular basis and drawing from each other's experiences and knowledge in a variety of areas. David Kelly speaks about accessing your PLN versus a straight google search and he states, by connecting with people in his PLN he “attained more useful information and references from [his] network than from the associated internet search” (Kelly, 2011).  Overall this experience was very successful for me and I am excited to continue building my PLN!

Bozarth, J. (n.d.). Nuts and bolts: Building A Personal Learning Network (PLN) : Learning solutions. The Learning Guild. https://www.learningguild.com/articles/659/nuts-and-bolts-building-a-personal-learning-network--pln/?rd=1

Green, C. L. (2020, August 28). Personal learning networks: Defining and building a PLN. Learning in the Digital Age. https://open.library.okstate.edu/learninginthedigitalage/chapter/personal-learning-networks_defining-and-building-a-pln/

Kelly, D. (2011, September 26). Your Most Powerful Search Engine is Your Personal Learning Network (PLN). David Kelly. https://davidkelly.me/2011/09/your-most-powerful-serach-engine-is/