Tool #2: Personal Learning Networks

1. Share you thoughts about building and participating in an online community and participating in a PLN. What points stood out to you from the commenting advice? Were you able to apply any of the advice in your comments? How did you feel about sharing your thoughts publicly? Was it different than when you're sharing your successes/challenges with your teammate?

Building and participating in an online community can be a very valuable tool for educators. We are involved in a profession that requires us to create meaningful connections with our colleagues and students, and in the 21st century, that must involve the use of technology. I decided to visit and comment on five of my colleagues blogs. I made sure to adhere to the commenting advice, especially #9 - "reward" comments. I know that we are all extremely busy, and that makes 11 Tools seem like a burden sometimes. So, I tried to post encouraging comments, which was easy because I was so impressed with everyone's blogs! I had no idea that some of my colleagues were so technologically savvy. I now know who to turn to for help! At this point, I didn't mind sharing my thoughts publicly because they were mostly words of encouragement. The only thing different about it is the delay in a response. I would prefer to discuss successes/challenges with my teammates face-to-face because it is a faster exchange of ideas. 

2. Share the URL or name of a website or social network that you plan to visit in the future. What does that site have to offer?

In the future, I plan to visit Diigo. I am still learning about all that it has to offer, but I think it could be a valuable tool for me and my students to use when researching certain topics. It could help to ensure that students are only accessing information from reputable web pages. It could also be used as a way to teach annotating to my students.