How To Create a PLE to Stay Relevant in 2013 “Our understanding of learning has expanded at a rate that has far outpaced our conceptions of teaching. A growing appreciation for the porous boundaries between the classroom and life experience…has created not only promising changes but also disruptive moments in teaching.” EDUCAUSE Review, 2012 This quote from Disrupting Ourselves: The Problem of Learning in Higher Education (Bass, 2012), gives a good a reason as any for educators to develop a Personal learning Environment [PLE]; a space where we can keep up with the experimental modes of learning, instruction, changing pedagogy and instructional methods that surfaced in 2012. In a previous post I introduced the concept of PLEs and touched on why educators may want to consider developing a PLE for 2013. In this post I’ll outline how educators can develop their own PLE, where to start, and I’ll provide specific action steps, and what tools to use. We need to disrupt ourselves: The model of higher education is at a turning point.
Personalized Learning - K-12 Education When learning is personalized, teachers help students find what they like and want to learn about and what their strengths and needs are. Then, the teacher sets up projects that are in line with the students’ interest and with academic standards. This growing movement is focused on changing the learning environment so students can take more ownership of their learning and teachers can work with them to discover their passions and interests. The breakthrough idea in personalized learning is the striking shift in the teacher-student team. In personalized learning, the teacher-student bond doesn’t matter less; it matters more. In November 2014, the Foundation released an interim report from the RAND Corporation—the first in what will be a series of research reports based on an ongoing long-term study of foundation-funded schools that are using a variety of approaches to personalized learning. Continued Progress: Promising Evidence on Personalized Learning (2015) >
personal-learning-environments - home 10 Little Known Social Media Tools You Should Be Using -- Now Editor's note: A version of this article previously appeared at KISSmetrics.com. Social media is everywhere. It's in our homes, places of worship, schools and, of course, our businesses. And as the number of social networking sites grows, so does the number of services that are created to measure, track and monitor those services. To help you cut through the clutter, here are the 10 must-use social media tools that can not only help you make sense of your social media efforts but make them more effective. 1. With it, you can get a snapshot of your month-to-month content with the calendar feature. Who should use it and why: Any business owner who manages a multi-author website should give EditFlow a look. 2. Who should use it and why: From a social media manager to a small-business owner, basically anybody who is interested in finding out how effective his or her tweets are based upon the number of people they touch should consider using TweetReach. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.
PLE : iTeachU Information Fluency provides a model for educational activities; the Personal Learning Environment (PLE) is the place where those activities happen. Just as learning activities and their products map to the three areas that comprise Information Fluency, those activities and their products can be mapped to different tools and resources. About the “PLE” Personal The PLE is personal because the people, applications, tools, resources, and services are chosen to match our individual, idiosyncratic needs. Each is adopted and discarded according to our needs and whims. Learning Many have given up on the call to rename the PLE to the Personal Living Environment. Environment In practice, the PLE is an environment, not a network. Visualizing the PLE Visualizing the PLE has become something of a pastime for education technology geeks. Similarly, Martin Weller clusters tools and services around himself, clustered by (primary) function: Parts of the PLE (for me) Connect Collect Reflect Share The PLE is People!
Competency-Based Learning or Personalized Learning Transitioning away from seat time, in favor of a structure that creates flexibility, allows students to progress as they demonstrate mastery of academic content, regardless of time, place, or pace of learning. Competency-based strategies provide flexibility in the way that credit can be earned or awarded, and provide students with personalized learning opportunities. These strategies include online and blended learning, dual enrollment and early college high schools, project-based and community-based learning, and credit recovery, among others. This type of learning leads to better student engagement because the content is relevant to each student and tailored to their unique needs. By enabling students to master skills at their own pace, competency-based learning systems help to save both time and money. The links on this page are provided for users convenience and are not an endorsement. State efforts District efforts Alternative/credit recovery schools and programs
Developing a PLE Using Web 2.0 Tools Continuing my search to find out more about new techniques for eLearning has brought the PLE, the Personal Learning Environment, to my attention (see previous posts on PLEs ). In short the PLE seems to be an update to the VLE, but with a greater emphasis placed on the student and the learning materials, and less on the Institution ‘structure’ and management needs. Read this: What is a PLE? Much searching brought me to this presentation by Sarah Guth where she uses Web 2.0 tools (wiki, blog, podcast, etc) to encourage the students to self-develop their own PLE. Although this is based around a PLE for a language learning course, the principles can be applied to any kind of online activity/course. Developing a PLE (Personal Learning Environment) for Language Learning Using Web 2.0 Tools This work, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License . Learning Tools: what do you use? PLE … what is it?
32 Tips For Using Google+ Hangouts In The Classroom Google Plus’s Hangout feature, launched in late 2011, has fast become an essential tool in a wide range of fields, from business to technology, and especially in education. Integrated scratchpads, screen sharing, instant uploads, chat services, and direct links to nearly all of Google’s other services make Hangouts the perfect tool for teachers who want to reach out to students outside of the classroom, making it simple to connect, share, and learn as a group. While much of the Hangout system is fairly intuitive, there are things that educators need to know before diving in to ensure that the experience is both fun and productive for all involved. The following can act as a great primer for Hangouts newbies, offering up tips that address everything from tech problems to proper Hangouts preparation. CHOOSE A TITLE THAT LETS STUDENTS KNOW WHAT THE HANGOUT WILL BE ABOUT.Students shouldn’t head to a Hangout with little idea of what will be discussed or addressed.