Our Personalized Learning Network (PLN) is who we choose to interact with– friends, family, colleagues, etc. It is a group of people that we connect with online and offline to learn from and share ideas. When we network using social media, this encompasses the people that we interact and learn with online; networking on social media can be global. Additionally, networking online entails learning that does not occur in person– a phenomenon that has occurred since the World Wide Web (WWW).

https://www.futurelearn.com/info/courses/learning-network-age/0/steps/24644

Our Motivations:

Why do we want to network online? We want to network online because it is convenient, it shares new and novel ideas, it is accessible, it is global (provides us with insight into the world), and the list goes on. Typically individuals already have personalized social media, which makes learning online familiar and easy as well.

Risks & Rewards of Public Communications:

Risks

(1) Lack of Privacy- Sharing something online can be traced back to you in the future despite your liking. Privacy is a huge concern in the online world– especially with hackers.

(2) Lack of Control- Along with privacy, we are typically unable to control what pops back up in our future if we have once posted it online.

Rewards

(1) Building/Maintaining Connections- As I mentioned earlier, networking on social media can be global, meaning that building new connections across the world can occur. Additionally, because of social media, maintaining our connections is easier. As Rajagopal and colleagues (2011) state, “remaining “in touch” with known people” on social media makes maintaining connections simpler.

(2) Newfound Learning- Rajagopal and colleagues (2011) state that “finding hidden people and expertise” can occur because of technological advances.

(3) Reduced Barriers and Greater Accessibility- I know firsthand that networking online is a blessing for those with compromised immune systems. During a time like COVIS-19, for the most part, people were able to stay in touch!

Check out one of my fellow colleague’s blogs:

Public Communications for Professional Gains

They seem to have very similar ideas to me and wrap their blog up very nicely at the end when they speak on What this means for me?. Great blog, thanks for sharing!

Reference:

Rajagopal, K., Joosten-ten Brinke, D., Van Bruggen, J., & Sloep, P. B. (2011). Understanding personal learning networks: Their structure, content and the networking skills needed to optimally use them. First Monday, 17(1). https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v17i1.3559

Other Reading:

https://ojs.library.queensu.ca/index.php/surveillance-and-society/article/view/networked