1.3 Personal Learning Networks

Think about who you learn from on a regular basis. Who do you turn to for resources and recommendations? Who do you learn with? Think beyond your professional life and include those who fit this description in your personal life as well. All of these people are your personal learning network or PLN.

Your PLN likely contains colleagues, friends, family, teachers and even strangers (this might be when you ask a stranger for directions on the street or buy a book after reading online reviews by other shoppers). Digital PLNs have become very popular among educators who build and maintain their PLNs through the use of blogs, Twitter, YouTube, social bookmarking, Skype and other tools that you will learn about in this course.

In the following video, you will learn more about PLNs including their benefits and how to build your own digital PLN. Be sure to complete the discussion forum activity after viewing the video (see below).

Introduction to Personal Learning Networks

Discussion Post

For this discussion, think about the people in your own PLN (you don't need to name them). How do connect with them? What types of things do you learn from them? What do they learn from you? How do you use digital tools to connect and share? How might you use them in the future?

Post a reflection of no more than 250 words about your PLN to the discussion forum "PLNs". Respond to the posts of other participants in this course. Try to keep your responses to under 200 words.