Month: February 2021

As Jessica Clark and Patricia Aufderheide (2013) talked about public broadcasting, newspapers, magazines, and network newscasts have played a central role in our life. Compare to how we used to get the information in the newspaper or magazines. Nowadays, people switch to the format of getting information online on social media. People can get a lot of information online and it is much more convenient. With the internet has been developed, we have changed our way of getting information and also using various social media online can let us also get connected with each other. “Digital public media will be an essential feature of truly democratic public life from here on in (Clark & Aufderheide,2013)” Social media engage in advocacy communication by using the online community chats to discuss the thoughts with each other. Social media can quickly develop many platforms in advocacy communications.

A hashtag is always used within a post on social media and it can help us if we are interested in a topic and is able to find the posts more quickly. It can also allow what we have written to be indexed by the social media network. Everyone can share their thoughts and opinions on the same topic and people can learn from each other. With the interview of Miller and Simpson, I have a better understanding of how PLN networks can help in our daily life with the online community. Markiel Simpson mentioned that he is using different social media online communities to join the group. It is all-natural for him to join the community. Twitter really helps him with his academic studies and develop his voice. Simpson also uses hashtags to drives other people’s interests. People are always getting different ideas from other people, using Twitter is really a good way to engage in advocacy communications. Major followers of Markiel Simpson are educators, and many people repost his ideas. We can see the impact of social media on communications. However, there are also some risks of social media. It is a public online platform. We need to be careful with the ideas that we post online. Most people will post positive ideas; however, we could not stop people from also post negative ideas that may influence them. This will challenge advocacy communication. Sharing language and tips on the way is always important in social media.

My PLN amplifies the views of others because I always look at other people’s opinions and it really influences my ideas. The most frequent social media that I use is Instagram, I always pay attention to who looked at my ins story and posts. I think better use of social media is to build more connections with others. Including the influencers and commentators. As for me, once I create my PLN, I always build it by adding valuable people. And I also choose a few interesting people from the social media that I choose and follow them. It is really helping because people I follow will also be of interest to me, and follow them to add them to my own PLN.

Clark, J., & Aufderheide, P. (2013). A New Vision for Public Media – Open, Dynamic, and Participatory. In J. Pooley, L. Taub-Pervizpour, & S. C. Jansen (Authors), Media and social justice (pp. 55-67). New York: Palgrave.

Simpson, Markiel. “EDCI 338 – 2021 – 02 – 22 MARKIEL SIMPSON.”  21 Feb. 2021. doi: https://youtu.be/yCSpm1Lx8-A

Weekly Blog Posts 5

• How would you create a PLN prior to engaging a social media campaign on a topic of your choice?

I would create a PLN prior to engaging in a social media campaign by posts my ideas and hearing other’s opinions. The social media that I use the most frequently is Twitter and Instagram. I always post my questions or ideas on social media to expand my PLN. “A PLN is simply an informal group of people who you learn things from on a regular basis ” (Woods, 2013). It is true that because I do get a lot of professional ideas from social media, this is also including academic thoughts. I could see that people recommend books that help our studies. And also exchange ideas on Twitter. #EconTwitter on Twitter gives me many ideas on how to improve my economic studies. “There is no better tool for building your PLN right now than Twitter” (Woods, 2013). According to Woods, when we follow favourite industry experts we can get ideas for other voices to follow. This is my favourite way of creating a PLN prior to engaging a social media.

Woods, Bianca. “Building Your Own PLN: Seeking New Insights and Ideas? Expand Your Personal Learning Network.” T+D (Alexandria, Va.), vol. 67, no. 11, 2013, pp. 70.

• How diverse is your existing PLN?

Personally, I think my PLN is diverse because I do use many different social media. Personal learning networks can help me keep learning and exchange our knowledge. All the social media use on PLN is kind of like self -development tool. It gives us the opportunity to share our information and ideas with each other. The social media I use is Youtube, Facebook and Instagram, these social media help me to develop my personal learning work. Social media connections are very active they can also help to connect between teacher and students. I had a part-time job where all the other people are older than me, we shared different information with each other on social media and also our workgroup. I guess my network is not limited to the group that has the same age as me. As for the course that I take Edci 338, we use Mattermost as a group chat. We all share our ideas and thoughts with each other. It like a community. I believe this is a new path that builds my diversity of my PLN.

• In your PLN, are you learning from a variety of voices or are you the loudest in the room?

In my personal learning network, I think I am not the loudest in the room. I am usually quieter and expected to hear other opinions. I would love to hear from all different kinds of people. Social media also promotes self – learning. Social media can help me to connect with diverse people. People share their life on social media. For example, many people use Instagram and I do get ideas of how other people’s thoughts. And start to build my personal learning network. Another example would be using academic social media such as coursehero. It really helps with my academic learning. I consider this is also a way to learn from others. As for our course group chat, I think it is so important to connect with other students. I need to have more voices in our group chat community.

• Do you participate in a silo of information sharing (similar themes or a wide range of interests)?

Personally, I like to discuss various ideas within my group and also other people. “Silo of information sharing” means to share information only in the group or we need to exchange though information. I probably will participate in a silo of information sharing because I think my interest is really wide. It is always good to exchange information with others as we can always learning something new. Different people have different ideas, I believe in this way I can learn more from other people in the group. And connect the information with other people. This really helps to expand my personal learning network.

• How can you use a diverse PLN to broaden your views of inclusion?

A diverse personal learning network can help us share more information with each other. It is a very useful way to connect with people who share the same interest as you. One way that I use diverse PLN to broaden my views of inclusion is to share my ideas firsts. I found that one social media when you share your ideas first. People tend to comment more on your posts. This way the information that I shared is connected with others. Social media are very wide, people with different gender, the background can both share their own opinions. We will learn from different people and my PLN is likely to be more diverse.

• In your professional setting of choice, do you think inclusion is actively embraced?

As for my professional setting of choice, I think inclusion is actively embraced. The major that I choose is economic, although it is more likely to interact with mathematics. It is still important to talk to various people to gain experience with them. Everything that we learn are end up with interact with people, the benefits of inclusion are numerous. It is used for people with special needs. I believe inclusion can help with diversity and provides a range of skills. As for my major economics, I think it will also booster the business in the future.

•   What is the learning outcome of your PLN and how are you ensuring your exposure to diversity and inclusion?

My learning outcome of my PLN is coming from my classmates, people around me, and also people who I talk to on social media. With all the diversity of people, I can learn different ideas on the same topic. I ensure my exposure to diversity and inclusion by hearing more about other people’s ideas. Different people have different backgrounds can let me learn many different experiences.

• How has your thinking about inclusion and PLN evolved after reviewing the videos and readings?

After reviewing the videos and readings, I understand more about how inclusion and PLN are related to each other. And the article also tells that “Inclusion is not just about students with special needs” It actually means everyone. The diversity of ability and all the diversities need to be considered. It is for all the students. It is important to learn from other people without bias. Inclusion is so important when added to my PLN.

Moore, S., Miller, J. (2021, February 07). EDCI 338 A01 Week 5 A Conversation with Shelley Moore. February 14, 2021, YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGx0ejnMLVc&feature=youtu.be

Moore, Shelley. One Without the Other: Stories of Unity Through Diversity and Inclusion, Portage & Main Press, 2017. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy.library.uvic.ca/lib/uvic/detail.action? docID=4832579.

• What digital platforms are students currently using to develop their professional network?

They are many digital platforms that student using to develop their professional network. For example Facebook, Instagram is very popular for students to expand their personal learning networks. Students can get professional information and news. Another digital platform that students might use is LinkedIn, students can also use Facebook to sign up for an account for LinkedIn. What I can see here, all the information online is connected. I don’t use LinkedIn as I don’t have a lot of work experience yet. But I do use Instagram to develop my professional network. We can also set up a business account for the Instagram account. As for me, I set up another Instagram account for my dog and share pictures with others. However, I do see other people set up their pets’ accounts as a business account. Because they take professional pets pictures. When other people see it, they might need professional pictures for their pets as well. In this case, we can see how the business account working on Instagram.

• What can you (as a student) consider to expand your professional learning network?

When I consider expanding my professional learning network, LinkedIn comes up to my mind. And I notice that this is a very good way to start to expand my professional learning network. So I created an account right away. LinkedIn can not only put down our Institution information but also can write down our work experience. This is a connection between our school life to our work in the future. As for a student right now, we are all taking online courses. We can see the importance of using digital platforms right now. Another thing that I consider to expand my professional learning network is to join an online community. I believe our class chat on Mattermost can be considered as an online community. We all share information and thoughts on there. It provides professional development resources, and it is a great place to start networking.

• In your network, how can you create a digital identity/reputation?

As for my network. I create my digital identity by the posts or pictures that I post on my personal account. I allowed other people to comment on the posts. I am always using Instagram to create my digital identity online. Because I usually post pictures on Instagram to share my daily life. For example, I post the beautiful places that I have been to and also the food that I would like to share with other people. One of the tools that I use to build my digital identity is e-mail. I use e-mail every day and it is very convenient to discuss something with other people. This is also considered as a professional way of networking. The social networks also help me to build my digital identity, and I believe Instagram is an excellent place to show my digital identity.

• Consider what a local employer would do if you applied for a job with them – can they search the content, is it of benefit to the career path, does it hinder the opportunity of employment?

I  think a local employer might search for my information online when I applied for a job with them. I believe the first result that comes up is LinkedIn. As the details of the past work experience will come up and also the previous school information. I believe this is what they looking for to hire an employee. My Instagram account is also public as it connected with my other social media as well. Many pictures will also come up if they search for my information online. I think it will benefit my career path because all the information and pictures give them a better understanding of me. Many employers will also look at the employee’s personality. With the pictures on Instagram, I think the employer might know me better compared to the resume. I don’t see that it hinders the opportunity of employment.