Diverse PLN Benefits: How does having a diverse PLN improve your learning and personal/professional growth? Share any experiences or examples you have.
Having a diverse PLN is valuable for personal and professional growth. A diverse PLN enables users to be exposed to multiple different perspectives, ideas, cultural customs, and experiences that expand users understanding and approaches to whatever they are interested in studying or teaching. Interacting with teachers from different cultural backgrounds on a PLN platform like r/teachers, can allow teachers to learn about new teaching methods, engage with different classroom strategies, and incorporate educational philosophies and course outlines into their own teaching. For example, a teacher from the U.S. could collaborate within the PLN with a teacher from Finland, and they could exchange teaching practices. In Finland, teachers focus more on student autonomy, mental health, and student led projects (Govinside, 2020). Additionally, in Finland, teachers are determined to tackle inequality in classrooms to reduce bullying and mental health issues among students (Govinsider, 2020). After learning about teaching in Finland, the U.S. teacher can apply those diverse strategies to her own classroom to increase student engagement and promote student well-being. In my own experience with studying psychology, I have found that learning from diverse professors and resources has broadened my understanding of mental health in different contexts. It has helped me to understand how different cultures and genders cope with mental health disorders and the different ways of promoting inclusion for these people. Having a diverse PLN promotes empathy and understanding for others who may face more exclusion than we do as privileged Canadian students.
Creating an Inclusive PLN: What steps can you take to ensure your PLN includes various voices and perspectives? Think about actions you can take to promote inclusivity.
When creating a PLN, it is important to create an environment that promotes inclusivity and embraces the various voices and perspectives of diverse individuals. One way you can promote inclusivity within a PLN is to make an effort to follow those within your own field from different cultural and professional backgrounds. For example, if you are a teacher, you can use Twitter to follow educators from different backgrounds to learn about different teaching styles and perspectives that can then be applied in your own classroom. Another way to promote inclusivity is to share diverse content, articles, blogs, and resources created by educators from different backgrounds. For example, sharing a journal with the r/teachers subreddit from another country that focuses on diverse educational perspectives related to inclusion and equality. This will allow other teachers on the platform to read and learn about these diverse perspectives, which they can incorporate into their own classrooms and share with other educators.
Social Media Dynamics: Different social media platforms have unique features and cultures. How do these differences affect how you interact with others in your PLN? Reflect on your behaviour and interactions across platforms.
Different social media platforms have strengths and weaknesses that affect how users interact with others in their PLNs. Social media platforms like LinkedIn are networks designed for professional networking, development, and collaboration. My interactions on Linkden are formal compared to other platforms like Instagram and TikTok. I am often connecting with individuals that are in the psychology field, it allows me to participate in discussions, explore career opportunities, and read articles and research shared by professionals. On the other hand, I use the platform Reddit as a more casual user than a professional. Reddit allows users to stay anonymous, which can encourage open and honest discussions between users. It also allows users to share resources, ask for advice, and participate in discussions. I engage in subreddits such as r/teachers and r/psycholgoy; these communities provide diverse perspectives from users all over the world. These perspectives can help enhance users understanding of different educational and psychological topics. When I engage on Reddit, I prefer to be anonymous to allow for more in depth conversations with other members. I also often ask for advice and read articles within the forums.
Challenges of Inclusivity in Digital Spaces: What difficulties have you faced, or do you think you might face, in making your PLN inclusive? Consider ways to overcome these challenges and build a supportive and inclusive PLN.
A common difficulty faced when making PLN’s inclusive is users different time zones. It can be hard to coordinate meeting times and promote collaboration between users when they are not awake at the same time. A way to overcome this challenge is to promote asynchronous learning and communication tools like forums and discussion pages to ensure all users can participate and engage with content in the PLN regardless of where they are located. Many PLN’s like Reddit include users who speak a different language than English. Learning how to use translation tools and basic phrases in different languages can promote inclusivity and communication within the PLN. Additionally, learners with disabilities may need subtitles for videos and alt text for photos. Including diverse visuals and audios can also help to cater to different learning preferences and styles.
References:
How Finland designed its schools around well-being (govinsider.asia)
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