Exploring a New PLN
One of the biggest educational trends right now is the concept of the "Science of Reading." At my school, teachers are dissecting our schools reading instruction and making necessary changes. We are in the process of purchasing new phonics curriculum to add to our reading curriculum. In order to help our administration make an informed decision for what to purchase, I joined an educational Facebook group called "Science of Reading-What I Should Have Learned in College". By joining a professional learning community I am broadening my social and professional circle. Organizational psychologist Tanya Menon discusses the need for broadening your network in her Ted Talk. In a school setting it can be easy to only communicate with teachers in your grade band or even just at your school. Professional learning communities on Facebook, Twitter, or even following educators on Instagram will provide you with new ideas, opportunities, and places of support.
This Facebook group has over 200,000 members which could be very daunting. In order to find exact information I need quickly, I search topics inside the group. I have searched the curriculums we are currently looking to purchase in order to hear real reviews from educators about it. As you can see below, conversations and comments on posts is how people communicate and give feedback. Another way I have been learning is through the educational resources, webinars, and articles teachers have posted.
How I Benefit from Using PLN
When I was exploring the benefits of using a profession learning engagement as a educational resource I found there are four main benefits for teachers:
social, identity, affective, and cognitive. In general I love to collaborate with my colleagues in person in order to benefit socially, affectively, and cognitively. I feel a sense of community with my fellow teachers and look forward to sharing stories, resources, and have a sound board. My presence on my online professional learning networks is based purely on the cognitive benefits I gain from the source. I find myself using this resources to find new activities and lesson ideas from other educators. I think about how they are teaching a skill, think about how I teach that skill, and reflect on how I can improve my practice by incorporating what they are doing with my own practice. I find reflecting to come naturally to me in my personal and professional life. After my lessons I am constantly thinking about how I can do better next time, who was struggling, or who needs enrichment. Finally, I use the resources other educators provide through links to
TeachersPayTeachers,
Youtube, their blogs, and more.
Brittany,
ReplyDeleteI also just joined this Facebook group! I have joined a couple of different Facebook groups over the years and it is a great way to hear from educators all over the country. I enjoy looking at student samples, as well as research based practices and how other educators are tackling new strategies in the classroom.
Hi Brittany,
ReplyDeleteI like this idea, "Science of Reading". I have not heard of it at my school. I will be taking a look into it more for my benefit and maybe even my schools. I think as a teacher it is important to stay informed and be able to help the administration if given the chance. I know my principal is a big propionate of having the teachers solve problems on their own and let him know how we solved them. He does not lead top down, but instead lets the teams in our buildings make decisions that he will most likely support once informed. I, too, use Teachers Pay Teachers and YouTube for teaching resources. When looking for resources, do you tend to go to a certain site first to find what you are looking for?
Hi! I feel like if I am looking for a worksheet I go to Teacher Pay Teachers first. I use Instagram as a casual way to learn new resources but I don't use it to search for a specific resource if that makes sense.
DeleteThis is the perfect example of how you can benefit from a Professional Learning Network! Thanks for walking us through how (and why) you joined this particular group. For as much grief (justified) as Facebook gets, the groups on their can be fantastic resources.
ReplyDeleteHi Brittany,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your post. I too have been doing some research on the Science of Reading as I have seen it come up on my Instagram in the last few months and have heard many positive things. I recently listened to the podcast "Sold a Story" produced by the American Public Media. It really goes into detail about how our current curriculums are not helping most children to read and that schools need to turn to the Science of Reading to help some of our strugglers! I definitely recommend!
I also have not used YouTube as a PLN. I am sure it is a resource I could really benefit from since I use it all the time in my personal life and feel very comfortable on the platform. Do you have any recommendations on teachers to follow? Thank you!
Hi Brittany!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing! I have been a member of the ELA & Writing Curriculum Committee at my school for years now and while I follow educational instagrams and Facebook Pages, I have never made the connection to follow a Curriculum Writing Facebook Group to broaden my PLNs and knowledge towards curriculum writing. I feel like looking for and adding these pages to my knowledge tool box will be helpful for future curriculum writing days. I would have never thought of it or even put two and two together without your post! So thank you!