I’m a new teacher, returning to relief / substitute teaching after 3 months in (several) classrooms.
My PLN has changed the way I learn, and the way I teach, for the better. Yet, I am still to meet a new teacher in my part of the world who’s ever heard of, or has a PLN.
Perhaps this post will help to change that.
Why you should begin your own PLN —Ashley Azzopardi (@ashleyazzopardi)
Casting an eye over my Twitter feeds this morning, I was mightily pleased to see an old ‘PLN friend’ and mentor back online.
Clive Elsmore, or @clivesir as I’ve come to know him, has spent the past few years working in India and Sri Lanka as a volunteer teacher, training local teachers in the use of ICT technologies and Web 2.0 tools like Skype. (He’s now back in the United Kingdom.)
As a very special member of my PLN, and someone with whom I have many educational interests in common, I wanted to take a moment to share @clivesir’s thoughts on how global connections impact on teaching and learning in today’s world.
Well, here’s my final post in the best professional learning experience I’ve ever undertaken – my reflections on using Twitter™ to build blog readership in response to the final Edublogs™ Kick Start Your Blogging Challenge.
Flickr CC Image: 'Yahoo Censorship Still Sucks, Part Four'
http://www.flickr.com/photos/51035555243@N01/420604426
Well, the big day is finally here. March 22, is United Nations World Water Day – a global event aimed at raising awareness of water issues facing developing and developed countries around the world. 
As part of our whole-school WaterWise focus, we have been teaching extensively about water conservation and management from a mostly local (Western Australian) perspective; as our state faces some significant water supply challenges due to changing rainfall patterns and climate change.
As part of World Water Day 2011, our WaterWise coordinator has planned some big events for the day – including photos and video of the whole school – dressed in blue – standing in a giant water drop on our oval!
As part of my contribution to our World Water Day activities, I’m taking a risk and attempting my very first global collaborative project based on the World Water Day theme of “Water in our Cities: Responding to the Urban Challenge”. Over the course of the day, I’ll be taking small groups of students’ aside to share their thoughts and learning with the world via a collaborative LinoIt page.
Now, here’s the tricky bit … I’d love to raise my students’ awareness of global perspectives on World Water Day and water issues around the world. To make this a reality, I really need your help!
I’d love to see international contributions from students, teachers, parents, or interested individuals – either on World Water Day itself (March 22, your time), or over coming weeks. You might like to share your thoughts, photographs, and videos of interest. All would be greatly appreciated!
Here’s the link: http://linoit.com/users/MrGraffin/canvases/worldwaterday2011
My students, colleagues, and I are looking forward to reading/viewing your responses. Thankyou!
Michael Graffin (@mgraffin)
As I sit back and relax after an interesting, but promising week, I thought I’d share an inspiring video which came through on the OzTeachers discussion list a few weeks ago.
Its time for a smile …
They say life has its twists, turns, and setbacks; and it can certainly throw up a few surprises.
The last two weeks have been one wild ride, as I’ve embarked on my first full-time contract teaching position for the duration of Term 1, 2011.
Michael Graffin (2010)
As of 9AM this morning, on the first day of school, I became a classroom teacher for the very first time.
While sitting there watching this mornings #edchat, and contemplating the QLD cyclone, I received a phone call from the Department of Education – and began a new phase in my professional journey.
I’ve been preparing for this day for over two years – developing my pedagogical and ICT skills, learning how to plan effective literacy and numeracy curriculum programmes, and contemplating what I’d do in my first days and weeks of school. Now, to my utter astonishment, I have been given the opportunity to actually apply my professional learning and skills in my own classroom!
To be honest, I’m really excited! I have an incredibly supportive Principal and Admin team, and was really welcomed into the school community. I know I have a lot to learn. I know that the coming months are going to be stressful, but they will be a positive and incredibly exciting learning experience.
Yes, I’m a second year graduate teacher, but I’m not afraid to ask for help. I know that I won’t be travelling on this journey alone – I have a supportive school community, and an incredibly diverse Personal Learning Network.
Dear PLN: consider yourself on notice!
As I embark on a significant new chapter of my journey, I’m going to need your continued help, encouragement, and support. When I’ve asked for help in the past, you’ve been there. I’ve been immensely grateful, and I know you’ll be there when I need your help. Thankyou
I will continue to share my experiences through A Relief Teacher’s Journey over the coming year. I’m looking forward to being a teacher and learner through 2011 and beyond; and I look forward to a long-term and meaningful engagement with my Personal Learning Network.
Well, the Edublogs™ Kick Start Your Blogging Challenge draws to a close this week. It’s been quite a ride, and quite a heavy workload - for a blogger accustomed to producing 4 posts a month.
In response to the penultimate challenge, I’ve created a guide to the widgets and badges displayed on the A Relief Teacher’s Journey sidebar, which has undergone a significant evolution over the course of this incredible professional learning experience.
My Sidebar Widgets & Badges
The most recent blogging challenge asked us to embed some media (e.g a video, a prezi, voki, voicethread) into our blog. Now, I’m pretty confident with my media embedding skills, and I have even gone so far as to develop a rudimentary understanding of the HTML code which underpins my blog posts.
I’m not some incredible blogger, able to create amazing media-rich posts out of thin air. I have a little secret ... I cheat …
Images make the blog. A good image often says more than the carefully crafted words the writer has used to convey their message.
I know of (and use) various ways to present images in blogs; however, I only recently realised that I haven’t always demonstrated best practice in regards to publishing images on A Relief Teacher’s Journey.
Learning about Creative Commons
In December 2010, I engaged in some wide-reading about Creative Commons copyright regulations, and quickly changed my blogging practice in response.
After I belatedly realised that my past use of images hadn’t been strictly legal, I made a conscious effort to use legally available images (from Flickr CC) to represent / support my blog posts. Over the next few months, I will revise some of my older posts to ensure their compliance with the copyright regulations which (do actually) apply to the Internet!
Flickr CC Image: 'Rodeo Beach - Marin Headlands'
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28027240@N00/4085330908
So, where to from here?
I’m not going to write a lengthy post about Creative Commons, nor am I going to present a series of tips for the effective use of CC images, sounds, etc. in blog posts. I know for a fact that others can do this better than I can, and many already have – see Sue Waters’ excellent “how to” post: Enhancing Blog Posts with Images.
No, I think I’ll provide a few handy links for ‘creative commons savvy’ educators, and publish a few of my PhotoStory™ presentations (2008-2009) which demonstrate the power of images for telling a story.
Let me know what you think.
