Assignment #5 - PLN

Developing your own Personal Learning Network (PLN) as a digital leader can be immensely beneficial. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Tech-Leading Principals outlined by Jennifer Demski gave me a lot to think about. In order to inspire your teachers to innovate, you have to create an atmosphere in which that is created and fostered. This begins with the leader. As a leader, you have to constantly model for your staff that you are willing to walk the talk (NETS-A 3c). Fostering collaboration (both digitally and in-person) amongst your staff is also crucial. I loved the idea of the experts quoted in the article where each staff member set up a Twitter account of their own and began to establish their own PLNs working with others in the school and district, using common hashtags centered around the tech professional development they are receiving. What a great way to stay in the loop!

Another way to establish PLNs within the school is to rely on the expertise of your teachers by being open to their ideas. Everyone has their own set of strengths and no one person needs to be responsible for it all! If teachers have ideas, let them foster that. Establishing technology PLNs within the building, where teachers are taking the lead in the professional development (and leading teams of other teachers) of specific tools could be wildly successful (NETS-A 3b). On-going, quality professional development that enables teachers to become more comfortable with the digital tools they are provided, as well as ways to effectively use it in the classroom is crucial to proper implementation (NETS-A 3a). Even as a leader, being willing to admit you don’t know it all and modeling for your staff that you are committed to growth yourself in the area of bringing the world to the students in your school through technology can be powerful in inspiring the staff to take the ride with you. Showing them that taking risks is not only allowed, but necessary for the school to grow digitally, is how you get those “frozen” people to unfreeze and join the ranks (NETS-A 3c).

As a principal, I plan to find a blog or two, kept by strong digital leaders, to follow so that I can begin this process of developing a strong PLN. In addition, I am following a few of the technology innovators on Twitter. Staying up on current research about technology in the classroom, specific to the technology that we have in my district, will help me to be able to provide relevant information to my staff (NETS-A 3d). Staying connected to the rest of this cohort is also a part of my plan as we embark on this administrative journey together!

My first step in developing my own PLN is to begin this work now. I don’t need to wait until I am a leader to be developing a network of leaders that can help guide my work. This will make my job easier when I do become a principal because in some ways I will be able to hit the ground running. I plan to work with my principal next year to begin implementing some of the technological tools we have used in class these past two weeks.