PLN4Ed revised

Last week I participated in the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) conference in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was a great opportunity to learn from luminaries and practitioners from around the globe.

Kudos to Buffy J. Hamilton and Alice Yucht, who created a wonderful venue called the Bloggers Cafe, an open mic concept conference within a conference. I signed up for a presentation time slot on Saturday morning to present the rough framework of PLN4Ed to my colleagues in search of feedback as to the relevance and usefulness of such a site.

A handful of interested souls attended and graciously shared their thoughts, opinions and practical advice about the structure and content of the PLN4Ed blog and companion wiki. I have integrated their ideas into the PLN4Ed wiki. And so the process of growing a personal learning network begins, as we embark on a journey of collaboration with experts and novices sharing and growing together.

Thanks to all of my thoughtful, reflective colleagues!

Donna

Personal Learning Networks for Life-long Learning

"If we teach today as we taught yesterday, then we rob our children of tomorrow."

—John Dewey

PLN4Ed will provide users with an online forum for the development of their own personal learning networks through contact with practicing K-12 professionals and access to a wide variety of existing and emerging technology resources.

The focus of PLN4ED is to:

• support members as they learn the basic how-to's of technology applications and resources use
• explore meaningful applications of technology to support teaching and learning

Unfamiliar with Personal Learning Networks (PLNs)?

In a nutshell, a personal learning network is a network of people that an individual develops as they search for knowledge. This network is developed online using social networking/Web 2.0 tools and is accessible 24/7. Personal learning networks are customized by the individual with a specific area of focus that leads to access of like minded people around the globe who are willing to share their expertise, thoughts, and resources.

This blog will act as the homepage and portal for the PLN4Ed personal learning network, which all library media specialists, classroom teachers, technology specialists and instructional leaders are invited to join.

The PLN4Ed Wiki
This wiki, to be developed by our members, is the collaborative space that will contain detailed information regarding resources, implementation and reflection of new and emerging technology to support teaching and learning across curriculum areas, K-12.

Wiki posts will include the following information:

1. Links, Annotations (summary of what will be found on the page), and Ideas for use.
2. After implementation, please post learning objectives, curriculum information, project or product examples, and links to actual projects when possible.
3. Also include a reflection of what worked or didn't work well, components to change, areas for future development and questions that encourage discussion from PLN members.

If you are not ready to contribute to the wiki, you are welcome to explore the resources posted on it. Follow this link to access the PLN4Ed wiki: http://pln4ed.wikispaces.com/

Questions? Comments? Please begin the discussion by posting in the comment box!

I look forward to meeting you online soon!
Donna