Personal Learning Network

This is what as known as a popplet, or a mind map generator. It allowed me to place in front of myself a visual of my own PLN, or Personal Learning Network. A Personal Learning Network allows one to keep track of what tools they use, who uses them, and how they are all connected. For example, my family is separate from social media, but I have family members on social media. I am super excited to practice with these tools and achieve mastery because I have been exposed to just how useful these tools actually can be. I am ecstatic to begin using Twitter for all of its wonderful uses, such as the lists category. I am so thrilled to fill my lists full of educational feed that will bounce ideas off my head as I am scrolling. I was also considering using Twitter professionally in the classroom for certain projects or activities like we have in our class, just probably at a simpler high school level. I feel like this is a great way to get all of the students not only interacting with each other, but other credible sources that they can use towards their own educations. I also want to be able to bring Skype into my classroom, which provides a new communication platform for my students and me. I would be able to help students with homework through a video chat, and neither of us would have to be physically present. I am well aware that not every student will have access to technology and the Internet, so I am prepared to make adjustments for such situations. One method I could use would be hosting a workshop certain days of the week after school to help boost student’s proficiency in technology, core classes, or even just boost their own self-esteem. Technology provides endless benefits to us and I am very excited to see what future technology will have to offer in the classroom.

UW-Platteville Pre-Professional Days Reflection

The Daily Life of a Teacher


The session I attended was “The Daily Life of a Teacher” by Justin Doyle and Travis Meyer. They are both Agriculture teachers at Darlington and Blackhawk high schools. This was a fun session as these two were both dynamic and engaging speakers. It was informal and questions could be asked during the session. I thought it was very interesting how both speakers lived on farms, so they were practicing their content area even when they weren’t at school! This also established their credibility in the classroom; they do it for a living. A quotation the two used was “Be a marigold, not a walnut.” The meaning of this quote is that marigolds are good for whatever is around them, they benefit all. Walnuts kill things around it and provide no help to others. Another quotation they used that stuck with me was “Students don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” This was very moving to me because of the truth behind it. There can be a learning barrier if the student doesn’t have a positive relationship with the instructor. Once the student recognizes the instructor’s intentions, learning isn’t such a chore. Forming a better relationship with the student can heavily impact how that student learns. It is also very important to have a relationship with the students’ parents and families. Both speakers send home a letter each month to one kid’s parents saying how class is going. They also regularly attend the sports events and the students appreciate their presence. Most of the people that attended the session were students with few professors scattered throughout the room. I don’t think that I would really enjoy working in the agricultural field as I have years of experience working on various farms doing various chores. I think my experiences there proved to me that I’m not fit for an agricultural career, rather, temporary positions to assist me on my way to my own career. I really enjoyed the energy that these two men brought into the room and I am very thankful that I attended the event. I left with a valuable experience and some knowledge I didn't have before attending.

Digital Identity Assignment

Hello all! For an assignment in our Educational Media Theory class, we were paired with a partner to find as much information on each other as we could using the internet. The purpose is to essentially create a digital identity for ourselves based off our research about each other. This was a very interesting assignment because sometimes things about us that end up online are no longer accurate. Some of the resources that I used to develop research on my partner Maria Bast were Facebook, the google search engine, Instagram, and various local websites that contained information. This assignment took more time than I anticipated. The Internet is a vast platform without limitation, and so is the planet in a sense. Since there are so many people in the world, it is not quite easy to narrow it down to one person on the internet. There are several “Bradley Klein” students here at UW-Platteville, just as an example. In a way, this was somewhat of a “stalking” assignment (Ha!). However, the significance of this assignment is very apparent to me: anything that gets put online is accessible by anyone, anywhere, anytime. Kind of scary isn’t it? While doing research on Maria, there was nothing that I discovered that made me uncomfortable or scared to talk to her again. According to my research, she is a wonderful presence to be around and a very successful individual. She seems to be full of smiles all of the time and has a large group of friends and family that care about her deeply. I hope the same can be said about me! While I did compile a lot of information about Maria, I do not feel like I know her. There are so many aspects to the human life, that it is quite impossible to know what somebody is all about just by their online profile. Some may disagree, but there are many things that cannot be properly conveyed through the Internet, such as tone, body language, and facial expressions. Talking to Mariah did prove my hypothesis about her to be correct. She is a very kind, intelligent person that I hope to call my friend in the future. She is very polite, and a good listener. She is also very hardworking as she achieves success in the classroom and in the workplace, it is apparent that she is a valued employee at her place of employment at Pizzeria Uno. Maria was definitely not surprised by my findings, as it is clear that she is very conscious about what she puts out into the Internet. She doesn’t post offensive material, photos, or anything that would make any viewers consider her as unprofessional. I admire the way that Maria not only carries herself as a person, but as a professional. I am happy that I have had an opportunity to complete this assignment because it informed me of information on my social media accounts that was not accurate, which I changed immediately. I highly value the purpose of this assignment and wish that other people would have an experience like this so they are aware of how important it is to keep oneself professional on a platform like the Internet. Keep on keepin' on!