After many years of saying "someday," I'm finally enrolled in an Educational Technology Master's Program. My current course requires me to keep a journal to document "connectedness." Below is my second entry.
Connecting to educators and resources online is very important today as a teacher. I get the most out of connections made with those that are innovators and like to share their passion for education. I also enjoy finding useful lessons and ideas to bring into my classroom. However, using multiple social networks quickly can become overwhelming. Looking through my Pinterest account home page there is everything from ads for posters (ugh) to science project ideas (fun) to a strange plethora of cute cat photos (probably thanks to my daughter using my computer). There is just so much out there! It can quickly become overwhelming.
Additionally, each platform is set up for different purposes and in varying styles. Take Pinterest again. To sift through what is important to me, I look first at the images and titles. I click on those that seem most relevant and read/skim through. If it is indeed useful, I pin it to a certain board. Having boards is critical.
Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter allow for "likes" or "hearts". Using likes to tag useful posts helps one find them later and reference them. On Instagram and Twitter, you can easily access these again through your profile. Instagram also has a bookmarking button to select resources to return to later. Additionally, Facebook and Twitter allow one to re-post. This makes the most meaningful resources show on your own profile page. It's easy to access plus sharing it out to others who might also find it useful. However, if the original poster deletes the post, it is gone.
If something is super important to me and I don't have the time to read it then, I tend to email it to myself. I've also gone into my digital lesson plan notes and hyperlinked the resource so that it is available when most relevant.
As Jennifer Gonzalez (2018) points out there is a big difference between curating information and dumping information. As educators, we can teach our students the difference and practice this ourselves. I've decided to start curating for myself using Symbaloo tool. It'll make my social networks easy to get to while I explore getting more connected. It also allows for separate pages so that resources can be grouped by type or need.
Have any tips for keeping connected as an educator? Do you have Connected Educator resources that I should add to my Symbaloo board? Let me know in the comments below!
No comments:
Post a Comment