PLN Reflection

Jenna Stoffel                                                                                                 
Due: 11/24/14

EDU 5170- PLN Experience                                                                                             

Learning a new application always takes more time than you think. To be perfectly honest, for me it takes A LOT longer.

For this PLN reflection, we were asked to familiarize ourselves with various types of technology that can be used for personal life, professional life, and also for the classroom. Throughout the course of the semester, we researched and created various accounts with google, feedly/blogger, twitter, edmodo and other tools and forms of social media. Throughout this blog post, I will be specifically taking about my personal experiences with feedly/bogger, google+, and twitter.

Google +

I remember sitting in middle school to early high school debating with classmates over which search engine was the best: yahoo, asks jeves, or google. It’s amazing to look back now and observe the vast enhancements google has made over the last several years. Throughout the duration of this course, I was introduced and trained in using google +, drive, and various extensions.

Currently in today’s society, there are many ways of sending/posting information. Although email is a wonderful thing to have, being able to experience google + for the first time was somewhat revolutionary. Not only can one join various circles, communities, hangouts, among other things, but one can also be very selective in which group they want to share information with.

Several google communities that I joined are Social Media en espanol, Christian Faith and Life, Spanish Cuisine, Greyhound Advocates, Ayuda y Novedads de google+ en Espanol, Bromas; risas, chistes, y locuras, Language Spanish Culture, and traveling.

Join Two Public Google + Communities & Create one Posting or Comment in one Google + Public Community 

Add Three Google + Users to a Circle

 Google + Public Community f

Google + Public Community 

Feedly/ Blogger

In 2010 I created my first blog before adventuring off to Peru for my summer study abroad. Up until that point I had never seen a “need” for a blog, but after multiple friends, family members, and teachers asked if I would consider writing posts and posting pictures of my adventure, I finally gave in. I wasn’t very good at maintaining my blog, but what I did find that once I began writing, it was actually quite fun!

I think that blogs are a powerful way for people to express and share information about themselves or about topics of interest. For this PLN assignment, we were to subscribe to five active blogs on Feedly. Surprisingly enough, it was rather difficult to find current and consistent blogs and also bloggers that permitted the community to post or comment. Eventually I was able to find three that I was able to relate too and comment on.

Subscribe to five active blogs in Feedly:

Comment on a post on three different blogs:

Write two blog posts in response to a post on a blog you follow:

Haiti - Spring 2014

\ Reflections from St. Andrew's in Haiti "We arrived in Port au Prince to a new airport, which had been rebuilt to international standards since our last trip in 2012. The swelter of crowed streets and pollution from car exhaust gave way to beautiful mountain vistas as we neared the village of Lafond. By all accounts the project and leadership program led by veteran WLS instructor, Chris Lindstrom, was a success. In the ten days that we spent in Lafond we helped to install solar arrays at the upper school thereby generating electricity for the school and twelve households in the community (first electricity ever in this village). Students and faculty raised almost $5,000 dollars to make this small miracle possible. It was not until were returned home to the U.S. that I discovered the real mission of our trip and why I feel so compelled to return in the future with more students from St. Andrew's. A week after we returned to school the students led a chapel service for the entire school community. Their reflections were so powerful, their experiences were so transcendent and the audience (mostly their peers) was so emotionally moved that I was filled with a sense of urgency. The idea of putting off another trip to Haiti for at least a year completely left my mind. The group continues to meet every Tuesday morning for our Haiti Breakfast at 8 am. We discuss our experiences and future plans over coffee, mangoes, peanut butter, bread and popcorn; a typical breakfast that reminds us all of our adventures in Lafond. I remember now what I said three years ago when this journey began: Our mission is bigger than one individual. We are compelled to look inward to challenge our assumptions about places like Haiti; we must also look outward, to think more thoughtfully about global issues. Each of us can determine our own call to action but to do nothing is not an option." - Diahann Johnson, faculty at St. Andrew's School in Middletown, Delaware

Here’s an excerpt from Joycelin Farmer '17, chapel service on the 2014 Haiti trip: "On that clear blue morning we started down the mountain and the kids reattached to our arms as if the night never set us apart. We were going to church. Now I'm not particularly religious but in that little concrete and tin structure I felt something puncture me fast and deep. Everyone was praying out loud together, but differently, they were proud of what they had, for in Kreyol they prayed for the Americans... we[the Americans] seemed to own the entire world compared to them but still their words swirled in my head, bless them, keep them safe, answer their prayers, and I lost it. I broke down silently in my chair and I stared at the beautiful brown faces who lived how they lived and still could ask for nothing more. I cried, I wished to give them what they lacked but I knew that some how that was wrong. I tried to understand but I couldn't really. So I closed my eyes and I prayed. I prayed for the people around me and for things I won't share so they remain sacred but mostly I just prayed to appreciate life like the Haitians.”  For the complete podcast, go to http://www.standrews-de.org/podcast/index.aspx

Posted 17th May by Christopher John Lindstrom

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   Jenna StoffelNovember 24, 2014 at 11:40 AM

   It seems as if It were only yesterday I was in the same place as Joycelin Farmer. A small concrete and tin structure can be filled with so much love and compassion-especially when the hearts of those who have nothing pray blessing over those who have an abundance.
   If I could summarize my trip to Haiti, I could do it in one word: humbling. Never before had a trip impacted me not only for the duration of time spent in that place, not only for the few weeks following, but for a life time.
   Personally I believe that still to this day I am being taught and reminded about something that touched my heart in Haiti. They are a beautiful people, a beautiful nation.
   How wonderful that Christopher John Lindstrom was able to be apart of this experience for Joycelin Farmer and for many others.

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Link To Haiti- Spring 2014

 Link To "Seen from my window"

Twitter

                   I Figured I'd save the best for last...

              

                   For years now I have resisted to get twitter and was quite happy with my choice of limiting my social media participation so that I wouldn't be distracted from other things in life.... and then I took EDU 5170.... just kidding!

                    Seriously though, I had resisted for quite some time, but not that I understand how and why people use twitter, I am much more open to it and find myself checking twitter daily. 

                    Twitter is one of the greatest forms of social media, networking, and a place for collaboration unlike any other application. With the creative use of Hashtags # and @ mention's people from every walk of life from anywhere in the world can communicate. 

                    Below are screenshots of the application of the knowledge I learned by using twitter:

Follow at Least Six People/Groups on Twitter

Conveniently, I was able to follow more people that needed. I had twitter search through my google and facebook accounts so that I could find people and groups to follow. 

Tweet five times with a hashtag

Once I began tweeting  they just kept coming! One difficult thing I found with tweeting is that you are very limited in how much you write. Using twitter helps me to think short and succinctly. Also, not everyone follows you just to follow you so when tweeting, it is important to truly post interesting and thought provoking tweets.  

      Re-tweet Two Interesting Tweets

Re-tweeting on twitter is essentially the same as "sharing"on facebook. When reading tweets in your mini feed, if you come across soemthing you like or find to be of value, simply "re-tweet"the tweet so that people who are following you may also see/read it and pass it on further. This is very impactful as one persons tweet could end up easily on the screen of someone who hold a lot of weight in society or in the world. Pretty neat if you ask me. 

Tweet once with a @mention

By mentioning someone in a tweet is basically ""tagging that person on facebook. This allows the tweet to appear on the home page of the person you mentioned. 

Tweet once with a @reply  

This is pretty self explanatory... When you @reply to someone it allows you to "comment"on what that person just tweeted. This is valuable as the person who tweeted the original tweet can now view what other people have posted underneath. 

Participate in One Twitter Edchat (Via tweetdeck)

During this particular Edchat, people seemed to be posting once to twice and hour however when I posted, it so happens that no one posted after me. When I have some time, I would like to revisit this particular edchat in order to engage in some deep conversation and collaboration concerning teaching Spanish as a second language. 

            In conclusion, completing this PLN project was a very eye-opening experience as I became very nervous at times knowing that  once posted to the internet, always on the world-wide web; and it truly is world wide. I believe that the easiest part to the PLN project was searching for communities and adding people to circles as well as tweeting and hash-tagging on twitter. As for the most challenging part of the project, I believe that the edchat as well as finding a current feedly blog to comment on was particularly difficult. Lastly, I believe that this project was valuable in many ways in showing me how to access the greater web of networks via the internet. Technology is an integral part of today's society, and with all of the advancements happening monthly, I do not foresee it slowing down anytime soon. My hope is to "jump on board"with other educators in order to be the best teacher I can be and prepare my students, both current, and future for the careers and education they will face after they leave my classroom.