Building a Professional Learning Network (PLN)

Reflection Journal

Name: MIkenna Klan Licensure: Early Childhood with 4/5th

endorsement

Points:​ 75
Directions:​ Each candidate will create a reflective record of his/her field experience using Twitter to build a
Professional Learning Network. The journal will be a record of the learning experiences that occurred throughout the
course.

Professional Learning Network (46 pts - 2 pts each)

Fill out the following 5 rows for EACH of the tables below to start developing your PLN through Twitter. ​Note: The top
row (in grey) is an example not to be repeated. NO Cedarville University affiliations may be used in this
documentation of your PLN.
Teaching & Learning (e.g. pedagogy)
Twitter Handle Name Position Institution Name
@drjervin Dr. Jeremy Ervin Dean Cedarville University
1. @prekinders Karen Kox website creator prekinders.com
2. @Teach_Preschool Deborah Stewart teacher/blog creator teachpreschool.org
3. @pschooltoolbox Darla Hutson teacher/blog creator thepreschooltoolboxblog.com
4. @LearningWR collaborative teacher/website creator learningworkroom.com
5. teacher/blog creator/
@kreativeinlife Crystal Radke kreativeinlife.com
speaker

Content ​(Spanish, English/Language Arts, Bible, Social Studies, Mathematics, Science, Music, PE, Health, Special
Education, or Reading)
Twitter Handle Name Position Institution Name
@DanDeWitt Dr. Dan DeWitt Director of the Center of Biblical Cedarville University
Apologetics & Public Christianity
1. creator of elementary math
@elementarygames collaborative elementarymathgames.net
games website
2. second grade teacher- focus in
@mrsamymeyer Amy Meyer ---
reading
3. provides research, classroom
@ReadingRockets collaborative Readingrockets.org
activities, and suggests books
4. blog creator- kindergarten Littlemisshypothesis.blogspot.c
@LMKindergarten Lara Coe
science focus om
5. @MrK5math Greg Coleman website creator mrelementarymath.com

1
 Mover & Shaker in Education
Twitter Handle Name Position Institution Name
@CU_Educ School of Education N/A Cedarville University
1. author, blog
creator, keynote
speaker,
professional
@Catlin_Tucker Catlin Tucker development Catlintucker.com
training, blended
learning coach,
Google certified
innovator
2. award winning
english teacher,
autho,
@trev_mackenzie Trevor Mackenzie instructional trevormackenzie.com
coach, speaker,
blogger, podcast
creator
3. Innovative
Teaching,
Learning, and
@gcouros George Couros georgecouros.ca
Leadership
Consultant, and
author
4. The National Association
@NAEYC for the Education of Young organization naeyc.org
Children
5. author, influencer,
@TeacherToolkit Ross Morrison McGill teachertoolkit.co.uk
CPD trainer

Education Hashtag
Twitter Hashtag # stands for
#EDUC2100 CU’s Tech in the Classroom course discussion
1. see what is being done to transform education and learn about existing
#edreform
issues within the education world
2. includes ideas for teaching students global awareness and informing
#globaled
educators about academic issues and changes happening around the world.
3. keeps educator up-to-date on new tech tools for the classroom and ways to
#EdTech
use tech in the classroom
4. #EarlyEd a community for early education teachers to share ideas
5. #PassionDrive a place to find and share teacher motivation and inspiration

2
 Weekly Education Conversation (e.g. Chat)
Twitter Hashtag # stands for Day Time & Time Zone
General Education topics from CU’s School of
#CUchat Thursday 7 pm EST
Education
Topics pertaining to kindergarten and early
1. #kinderchat Monday 9 pm EST
childhood education
Tuesday
chooses different education topics each time and
(evening
2. #appleEDUchat discusses them while talking about how tech tools 3 pm EST
session)
can enhance learning
Tuesday
(night
session)
chooses different education topics each time and
*differen
3. #appleEDUchat discusses them while talking about how tech tools 9 pm EST
t topic
can enhance learning
than
evening
session*

Reflection Report
Comment on what you have learned—the value of the experience—the impact it has had on your future decision
making.

Part A: Personal Reflection (4 pts - 2 pts each)

● How does your personal background affect (content or style) your Tweets?
I personally am interested in teaching kindergarten or first grade. I also have a passion for education in inner city
schools and third world countries. Most people’s tweets have a theme because they tweet about things they are
passionate about. Twitter gives educators a way to share issues and ideas they care about in effort to make a
difference and inspire others, so my tweets would revolve around the topics that I mentioned I was passionate
about. I want to be able to inform others about the issues pertaining to education in these areas so that I can inspire
others to make a difference and get ideas that they may be able to incorporate into their classrooms if they are
teaching in an inner city school or in a third world county.

● Could you have done anything differently (including technological equipment) to alter/improve what you
experienced and learned? If so, what?
I wish I would have utilized TweetDeck sooner. It was mentioned during class, but I didn’t remember it until it was
more towards the end of the semester and decided to experiment with it. When I finally decided to check it out, I
realized how helpful it was. I had never used twitter much before this class so I was not familiar with how to use it.
TweetDeck allowed me to navigate the site easier. Using TweetDeck when participating in twitter chats made it
easier to follow along. This made the experience more enjoyable because I was able to participate more and and
learn more so I was able to benefit from the chat.

Part B: Impact Learned (26 pts - 2 pts each except where noted)
● What have you learned about yourself through this experience? Have any of my basic “teaching voice” been
challenged?

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There are articles, videos, and graphics tweeted all day so it is easy to learn new information. I have read an article
that discusses the power of an observant teacher. By paying attention to the learning patterns of your class and
observing each student individually, it allows you to teach better because you are more aware of how your
students learn. I have looked at twitter accounts from other countries and observed practices that they do
differently. I followed a school account from the UK that takes on a more holistic learning approach. Students took
a cooking “masterclass” that was used as a more engaging learning experience.

● What Twitter handle did you follow in the area of ​teaching & learning​ have the greatest impact? Why?
@Teach_Preschool was one of my favorite accounts I followed in the teaching and learning section. Deborah, the
woman behind the account is very active on her account and is constantly tweeting new ideas and sharing things
new ideas. She is an advocate for outdoor learning which I enjoyed learning about because it is not a topic I have
explored much. She creates aesthetically pleasing videos and links blog posts that draw people to her page, but
she is still very informative about the topics she discusses. Her Twitter has inspired me to think of new ideas I can
implement into my future classroom.

● What did you learn about my ​specific content​ (Spanish, English/Language Arts, Bible, Social Studies,
Mathematics, Science, Music, PE, Health, Special Education, or Reading)?
As a early childhood educator, I do not have to focus on one main subject which means I got to explore several
content specific pages. I have been able to compile some lesson ideas for my future teaching career. I have read
many articles that were tweeted out. I have been able to learn more about the role of reading in the classroom
and have learned more about teaching math lessons. I have been able to see math lesson plans available which
has given me insight into what works best for early childhood classrooms.

● What Twitter handle did you follow in the ​content area​ of my professional learning network that had the
greatest impact? Why?
@ReadingRockets is constantly sharing posts with new education topics for me to explore. I have been able to
learn the most from this account because they discuss topics that matter to educators. Reading Rockets take
questions from people and write posts based off of them. This means that many of their posts cover topics that
current educators are curious about so it is relevant information that is good for staying up-to-date on topics
pertaining to reading education. Reading Rockets is a source that will be able to give me ideas for my classroom
and help me to continue growing in my knowledge.

● What educational Twitter hashtag did you follow have the greatest impact? Why?
Following #PassionDrive made the greatest impact on my experience. The teaching profession is often looked at
as an easy profession which is far from the truth. Educators face a multitude of challenges daily and it can be easy
for teachers to become discouraged. In my education profession class our professor told us that the one of the
best characteristics a teacher can have is grit. Although I am not a teacher yet, it is still good for me to see what it
takes to be a good teacher. It is also a reminder for me to stay diligent in my studies so that I can be the best
teacher I can when the time comes.

● Of the weekly educational chats that I participated in, which week/topic had the greatest impact? Why?
[Recommend #ntchat - New Teachers Chat on 1st & 3rd Wed. of month at 8 pm EST.]
I participated in an #appleEDUchat and the topic was “Everyone can create- in language learning.” When I jointed
the chat I didn’t think I was going to learn much because I will not have to teach a foreign language, but I decided
to stick around and I am glad I did. They asked questions about how creativity, drawing, photography, video, and
music enhance language learning. It challenged me to put myself in the shoes of a student and see how these
things can be beneficial. Although the chat was referring to foreign language learning, I think some elements
could be helpful for language development in an early childhood classroom.

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 ● What new skills did you learn during this experience?
I have learned new about some new tech tools that I can use in my classroom. The Book Creator App is a great
tool that enables students to create a book. They can add graphics and real photos to their personally designed
page layouts and covers. I have also learned that connecting with people on Twitter is a good skill to have. Like I
mentioned earlier, I was able to connect with people through the Twitter chats I participated in. I spoke to an
older woman who had been in the field for a while. I know that I would be able to message her with any questions
I have. Building a good reputation on Twitter and building online relationships can be a good networking tool.

● What do you think went well for you during this project?
I think my overall experience went well. I was able to learn new skills, get ideas for lesson plans, learn about
current issues in the education world, connect with people, and learn about other opportunities that the
education world offers. I was able to communicate efficiently after some practice and after I followed my first few
accounts I was easily able to find more that I was interested in

● How will you use Twitter as a future teacher?

I can use Twitter as a platform to share my ideas and get ideas from other education accounts. Posting my ideas
might be able to help others get inspiration for their classrooms. Having support from fellow educators is
important and Twitter offers a place where educators from around the world can share ideas , support each
other, and inspire each other to keep going and to be the best that they can. I like the fact that Twitter is an
international site because I can get ideas from educators all over the world and implement them into my
classroom.

● What were your most frustrating moments during this assignment?

At first, navigating Twitter was difficult for me. Participating in my first Twitter chat was a challenge. I did not
know how I was supposed to respond to the questions being answered. I wasn’t sure if I was meant to reply to
the one who initiated the question or tweet separately and just use the hashtag. Hashtags in general were new to
me on twitter, but I was able to learn through trial and error.

● Based upon what you’ve learned in this entire course, what will be your strategy as a 1​st​ year teacher to keep
current in educational research and practices?
Twitter is a good place to stay up-to-date on information as I briefly discussed earlier. Twitter chats usually cover
up and coming topics which allows me to be informed on those. There are also several education Twitter
accounts that tweet posts covering new information and changes that are being made in the education world. If
there is new research or practices in the education world, it is very likely you will be exposed to the information if
you follow educational Twitter accounts. So, by following these accounts I will be able to find articles and posts to
read or I will be notified if there is something I need to find an article or post about.