EDUC W200 Week 11

PART I: PERSONAL LEARNING NETWORKS• http://onceateacher.wordpress.com/2009/05/05/pln-your-personal-learning-

network-made-easy/• http://edupln.ning.com/

EDUC W200 Week 11

PLN: WHAT IS A PLN?

• PLN is either a Personal/Professional Learning Network

• Function of a PLNo Allows teachers to personalize

their own learning

EDUC W200 Week 11

WHAT CAN TEACHERS’ USE PLN’S FOR?

• Gather resources for your classroom• Locate free resources for your classroom • Websites | Software | Grants • Lesson plan ideas from master teachers 

• Learn new information• Connect with content-area experts

• Keep up-to-date and current• Learn about new technology and how to integrate it into

your teaching • Find interesting links to education news• What are the best practices for your classroom?

EDUC W200 Week 11

WHAT CAN BE INCLUDED IN A PLN?

• Casts (Podcasts, Screencasts, Vidcasts)• Social Networks • Blogs, Microblogs, and Aggregator

EDUC W200 Week 11

AN EXAMPLE OF A REGIONAL PLN FOR TEACHERS

• In April of 2012, TEDxNYED was held in NY to examine the role of new media and technology in shaping the future of education. (See TEDxNYED 2011 Videos)

• In addition to viewing the archived TEDxNYED talks, educators are now connecting through media such as:• TEDx's YouTube Channel.• TEDxNYED Reflections wiki• Facebook fan page• Follow TEDxNYED on Twitter 

EDUC W200 Week 11

VIDCASTS ARE ANOTHER METHOD FOR PARTICIPATING OR ADDING TO TEACHERS PLNS• K12 Online Conference • School Tube• Various Webinars

o Blackboard Collaborateo PBS Teachers Onlineo Classroom 2.0o ISTE Webinars

EDUC W200 Week 11

SOCIAL NETWORKS (USING THE NING PLATFORM) ARE POPULAR FOR TEACHERS’ PLNS• Art Education 2.0

o http://arted20.ning.com/

• Language Learners o http://edupln.ning.com/group/languagelearners

• Math Teacherso http://edupln.ning.com/group/mathteachers

• Special Education o http://tech-in-sped.ning.com/

• Social Studies o http://vermontsocialstudies.ning.com/

• Elementary Educationo http://edupln.ning.com/group/elementaryeducators

o http://elementaryteachersnetwork.ning.com/

EDUC W200 Week 11

HERE ARE SOME OTHER EXAMPLES OF PLACES TO ADD RESOURCES TO TEACHER PLNS o http://community.discoveryeducation.com/o http://www.google.com/educators/index.htmlo http://us.partnersinlearningnetwork.com/Pages/default.as

pxo http://www.pbs.org/teachers/o https://twitter.com/UNESCOICTs

EDUC W200 Week 11

HERE ARE SOME METHODS FOR EXPANDING /ADDING TO YOUR PLN

• View education feeds o http://education.alltop.co

m/

• Education related groupso Global Education Conferen

ceo Classroom 2.0o Library 2.0

• Attend K-12 conferenceo K-12 Online Conference

• Set-up an aggregatoro iGoogleo Google Readero Netvibeso Feedly

• Blogs– Find a teacher who blogs in

your subject area and follow him/her

– School Related Blogs• Diigo

• Cool tools from educators • Podcasts

• iTunes K-12

EDUC W200 Week 11

There are also communities you can join to further your professional growth.• TeacherShare

o Connect with other teachers as you share lesson plans online

• Teachers Connectingo This allows you to collaborate with other educators around

the globe for project-based activities

• PBS Teachers o Includes discussion boards, resource sharing, professional

development and communication with other teachers

EDUC W200 Week 11

A PLN IS NOT JUST LIMITED TO THIS

• You can also use:o Facebook (social networking)

• W200 Facebook Group

o Twitter (microblogging)• W200 Twitter

o Netvibe (or RSS)

• Any place people meet and ideas or resources are shared has the potential to become a PLN

• It is not about the tool – it is about the purpose