Category: Blog Posts

PLN Spaces Through Social Media

Building a Personal Learning Network (PLN) through social media expands your connections, supporting both professional and personal growth.

For professional growth, I use LinkedIn to explore employment opportunities, network with companies I am interested in, and connect with other students who are also beginning their career. I also use it to keep up with industry updates.

On the more personal side of things, I use social media platforms like Instagram and Discord. They are the main way I stay connected to friends and family, especially those who do not live in town or are in completely different time zones.

Privacy, Ethics, and Security in Digital Spaces

Privacy, ethics, and security are crucial to creating a safe environment for all users, including yourself. I protect my information by ensuring that my social media settings are on private and periodically cleaning up my follower/following lists. I am also selective of who I allow to view my profile and avoid sharing sensitive information. Using strong, unique passwords and enabling two-factor authentication enhances security for all accounts. It is an added layer of security to protect your information online. By being mindful of what is shared online and respecting the privacy of others, we contribute to an ethical and respectful digital space.

Inclusivity and UDL in PLNs

Inclusivity in PLNs emphasizes the importance of diverse backgrounds and perspectives. It values everyone’s experiences. Making everybody feel comfortable participating and sharing is one way I ensure that my PLN is inclusive. This can look like putting the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) concepts into practice. Using multiple means of engagement, representation, and action allows flexibility for learners to engage with material in a way that suits them. This might look like more hands-on activities for some, or providing information in a variety of formats such as through videos and texts. By accommodating to their strengths, learners will feel more motivated and engaged which contributes to fostering an inclusive environment.

Challenges and Importance of Diversity in Digital Learning

Ensuring all content is accessible is key to create a diverse and inclusive digital learning environment. For example, this might look like providing captions for videos or translation services to eliminate language barriers. Pulling information from a variety of sources that represent different cultures and perspectives can be another challenge, but is still another key factor to ensuring a diverse learning experience.

Digital Identity

A digital identity is how we represent ourselves online on various sites such as social media platforms. Typically, this can be split into two categories: Personal and Professional.

A personal digital identity reflects who we are outside of work. This can include online interactions with friends and family through chats, and sharing photos of your social life. Your personal identity can also be another place to express your hobbies and other creative projects. These are the main aspects of my personal digital identity.

A professional digital identity reflects your career and/or academic life. For example, you might post about an achievement or an article related to your career. My LinkedIn account is my main professional digital identity.

Maintaining the boundary between personal and professional identities is an important part of being a responsible online user. It also ensures that personal interests don’t impact your professional life. I always double check privacy settings and I am very intentional with what I choose to share online.

Digital Visitor and Resident Map

By creating my own digital map, I have a visual representation of how I use various online platforms.

My online identity is more prominent on social media platforms such as Instagram and Discord, where I interact and share things with others.

On platforms such as Youtube and Reddit, I consider myself a visitor as I do not actively engage with other users or post content.

This map will likely change as I enter different stages of life and begin to focus on different goals. I imagine that I would spend less time on apps like Discord, and more times on platforms such as LinkedIn as I continue building my professional digital identity.

Theories of Personalized Learning

Amanda Morin’s Personalized learning: What you need to know article highlights that every student learns in a different way and at a different pace. Personalized learning is tailors educational plans to the students’ needs. Theories such as Constructivist and Self-Directed Learning are examples of personalized learning. Constructivism emphasizes action and engaging students, and self-directed learning allows students to take the initiative in identifying their learning goals and strategies.

One of the key benefits of personalized learning for me is the flexibility it allows. I am able to learn at my own pace, which encourages me to continue learning despite a variety of factors such as health. Self-directed learning has kept me motivated as I am able to pick what interests me and also improve the learning strategies that I know work for me.

Privacy, Surveillance, and Digital Footprint Awareness

Everything done online can be tracked, creating a digital footprint that is very difficult to delete. There are countless stories of people facing criticism based on old social media posts that have resurfaced. Therefore, I always ask myself whether what I post or comment is something that would cause an issue with anyone I work with, or those who don’t know me well. I also ensure that my personal digital identity remains on private settings rather than public.

Hello!

My name is Serena and I am a fourth-year music student with a minor in public administration. Currently, I mainly play piano and electric bass. I used to be in the computer science and music combined major program but I was not enjoying the computer science courses. However, I am still interested in programming.

Social Media and Its Role in Education:

Social media can be a powerful tool when used correctly for education. I started attending UVic in 2020 when everything was online. Social media platforms such as Discord were lifesavers for making connections to classmates. Almost each class ended up having their own Discord server dedicated to hosting study sessions, sharing notes, and fostering a sense of community despite not being able to see each other in person. It was the only way we could engage with each other.

Many of my friends have social media accounts that are practice journals where they upload a video once a day on the technique/piece they are working on. It helps keep accountability while also sharing tips and tricks with the broader community.

I think accessibility is both an advantage and disadvantage for education. It is easy to find information in short clips or graphics, but anyone can create them and it might not be accurate information.

Personalized Learning and Digital Literacies

Personalized learning keeps me motivated because it is accommodating. It allows me to pursue what I am interested in at my own pace and uses my strengths accordingly to ensure success. The main reasons I dropped out of computer science was due to the pace and the fact that I was simply not interested in the theory portions of the classes.

Digital literacy skills are necessary for personalized learning to be effective, especially when technology is always changing. The ability to adapt and learn software is crucial. Digital literacy skills are also important for evaluating sources.

Digital Identity and Online Presence

I mostly use social media as a way to communicate. Platforms such as Instagram have become the main way to connect with other music students outside of class time to organize rehearsals and plan concerts. I rarely post on any of my accounts, and almost all settings are on private. However, I still strive to be authentic online while keeping professional accounts and personal accounts separate.

Maintaining a positive online presence is important because anyone can see it. Whether it’s a potential employer, classmate, or teacher, it can be their first impression of you. A positive online presence can lead to more connections and opportunities.

Navigating and Using Online Platforms Ethically

Learning how to navigate online platforms is important to get the best use out of it as each platform is unique and has its own etiquette. I treat Discord much more casually in comparison to Slack. I have only used Slack for work and I would not respond to someone on Slack the same way I would on Discord. Navigating online platforms requires adaptability due to the constant changes. I have found Reddit and other forum platforms helpful when there are updates, especially for music software.

Ethical practices online create positive communities by being respectful and mindful of others. Leading by example is the best way to do this. Giving credit to original creators is also essential.