Unknowingly, I have taken part in Professional Learning Networks (PLN), especially in my role as a Next Steps Idaho Region 4 Ambassador. As part of my job, I've attempted to develop effective channels of communication with high school guidance counselors, career and college counselors, college recruiters, and support personnel. A Facebook group, questionnaires, and monthly emails were some of the methods used to determine the most effective communication method. I continued to communicate with the four groups via emails and the Facebook group because the poll received a mixed response. After the first year, I discovered that I needed to draw a line between my personal and work lives on Facebook, so I made a professional profile. In this capacity, I joined various Facebook groups under my professional profile to broaden my audience and learn from others. I also recognized the need for a Facebook group for parents to learn about dual credit and post-graduation steps, which I have yet to develop due to the considerable amount of work required. As I write this, I am strongly considering creating the parent Facebook group as a part of the work I complete for my summer OLP 4407 class.
I highly recommend using a range of platforms and resources by high school personnel, educators, and postsecondary recruiters. Our students will benefit more from our ability to effectively work together, impart knowledge, and absorb it from one another. Since my postsecondary colleagues and school partners are rarely in the same building as me, we have to find new ways to interact with one another.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHi Nikcole,
ReplyDeleteI am so glad to hear that you are involving yourself with these networks and are already experiencing, first-hand, what we are exploring in class! So, it sounds like you are the "administrator?" of the Facebook group and you are the one who leads the email group? Is that right? If so, I'd like to know more about that! What types of things do you and others post to the facebook group? Do you post regularly? Are there articles, blogs, and other information shared on the page?
I would very much encourage you to create a Facebook group for parents! I just recently volunteered at ISU's New Student Orientation which consists of new students coming to ISU with their parents to get acquainted with the campus and with the resources and offerings from our university. There was a Q&A panel so parents were able to ask their questions to, and during this session, I thought that a FB group would be very beneficial to parents or students who are newly entering college.
I was wondering what types of interactions do you find most valuable in the groups that you have joined?