Well my friends, it seems as if we have reached the end of the semester and it it time to reflect!
I have absolutely loved every second of this course, especially throughout the pandemic. I have really been missing the social aspect of school and being able to connect with other education students, but because of our networked learning this semester, I feel a little bit more connected to my classmates. even though we have not been face to face.
I am thankful that this course has encouraged me to start making professional connections. If I am being honest, it is definitely a little scary trying to create a professional network as a student early on in the program. But, this course has pushed me outside of my comfort zone and I am now getting comfortable being uncomfortable (which I am really grateful for).
Throughout the semester, we were encouraged to contribute to the learning of others. We did this mostly by commenting on blog posts, interacting on Twitter, and using our class Slack group. It was great interacting with each other and creating that connection. It definitely helped ease the lack of face to face connection. Here is a document that has some of my interactions with classmates and others!
I used Slack to ask questions and help my classmates if they had questions! I really enjoyed using Slack because it is a professional way to communicate in a group. I really appreciate the different channels and that you can upload documents. I like Slack so much that I use it to communicate with members in my non-profit!
We used Twitter to build a PLN and create a professional Digital identity. We were encouraged to share resources and articles we found interesting, and most of us did so with Feedly! I frequently commented on interesting resources that my classmates shared to let them know that I found their post useful! We also used Twitter to encourage each other and answer questions.
In addition to both Slack and Twitter we also interacted with each other by commenting on class blogs! It is really nice receiving a comment on your blog post. It tells you that someone is actually reading what you have to say! Whether we asked a question in our reply or simply encouraged our classmates, it contributed to their learning and their success.
Even though we are finished this course and I am unable to take EDTC400 next semester due to scheduling conflicts, I will definitely continue to grow my PLN and connecting with others online.
Thank you Katia for encouraging us and demonstrating what a fantastic online leader looks like.
Paige