Building my PLN isn't as easy as I first thought it was going to be! At first I thought all I would have to do is find a few web sites that I found interesting and informational and VIOLA! PLN constructed! There so many blogs, resources, and groups on the web that, at first glance, look like they are informational. But after further review, they are advertisements for services, phishing for information that leaves us open to identity theft, or just not maintained. Due diligence is definitely required while searching for resources.
The Linkedin group I chose to join is Andragogy, which can be accessed at www.linkedin.com/groups/Andragogy-1848366?none=&gid+1848366 . Andragogy is a network for people who are committed to continuing education. I chose this group because I think everyone should be dedicated to some kind of continuing education, whether it be for career advancement or personal enrichment. This group is also an open group, meaning, you do not have to be a member of an association to join this group. I found several groups I would have liked to join, but they were closed groups. This group will connect me with others who feel the same way. As I was looking through the information posted to this group, I came across an article that caught my eye because it is something I hadn't really gave much consideration to. The Hidden Cost of Unsolicited Textbooks - A View from the Mail Room, by Robert Talbert, discusses why the distribution of unsolicited textbooks is unnecessary. Dealing with these textbooks places unnecessary costs on the university which is passed on to students through tuition.
One person I chose to follow outside of class on Twitter is Steven W. Anderson, who can be found @web20classroom. I chose him because as I was browsing through education themed search results, his header photo caught my eye! It is a photo of a blackboard that says "Be Awesome Today!" As I was reading through some of his Tweets, I discovered he is very high-spirited and RT's a lot of information. He is also a motivational speaker. The two people I chose to follow from his list are Micheal, @Micheal_eSM, and PicardTips, @PicardTips. I chose to follow Micheal because he is an Associate Editor for Online and Social Media for @eschoolnews and @ecampusnews. He tweets education technology news. I found an article, on his feed, pondering the advantage of Microsoft Surface 3 as opposed to an iPad for use by faculty in higher education settings. I chose to follow PicardTips because of the inspirational sayings that are tweeted! I enjoy the types of inspirational sayings found there! I think Steven W. Anderson followed these people for the same reason I did.
Ed, I can relate to your chosen group- the Androgogy because I am also in the field of education and would like to continue my studies in the near future to a higher level. I like the concept of your chosen group because most of students can relate to it especially those who would pursue continuing education. As I am looking over at the group you have chosen, I think that you got the right choice of group and if given the chance, I would also pick that group in LinkedIn. On your twitter, you have chosen powerful individuals and I consider them all useful and influential. Steven Anderson looks like the one you could be inspired of and I would agree on every description you have written.
ReplyDeleteAndragogy sounds like an interesting network that help people and interest them to continue their education. I never thought that there's something that could encourage you to keep on educating. However, I know what you mean when you talked about Steven W. Anderson, because most of the people I'm following on twitter I don't know them but I liked their profile or some of their tweets. I believe that people are represented by the things they say not anything else.
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