EdTech PLN Popplet

PLNs—Professional (Personal) Learning Networks catalyze broader development, education, and growth in all aspects of society. Whether personal or professional, developing a set of thoughts and skills in a community allows for more faster developments and breakthroughs in research, growth, and practice.

Before the digital age, people would either learn in isolation—recreating the wheel as it were. Or they would be part of a physical community that mastered a particular set of skills and knowledge that would be developed through apprenticeship.

Now that we are in the age of internet adolescence, those physical barriers have broken down. People need no longer be physically in the space of those from whom teach and influence. The digital age means both a breakdown of physical and temporal barriers. I now can be fundamentally transformed in my practice as a professional by the knowledge of a person across the world from five years earlier.

Developing a PLN is fundamental to development and growth in today’s educational and professional environment. And while in the past this network might be confined to physical books or those in physical proximity, the advents of social media, in particular, has changed everything. The sharing of pedagogy, teaching resources, webinars, micro-credentials, and all other sorts of professional development are shared widely through social media.

The Popplet Mind Map below is a brief reflection of the power of creating a PLN. The connectivity to diverse research and ideas that would otherwise be absent in an age before is astounding. This visualization, like an iceberg, only touches the surface of professional possibilities.

Mind Mapping is a critical thinking skill, both academically and professionally. Both for teachers and students, mapping your thoughts and practices out through a tool like Popplet can be a compelling visualization of one’s thoughts.