Final Post for #5

My PLN progress throughout this semester, to be honest, has been rather slow. I have, however, met a lot of other students in the same boat as me (Secondary Education/English majors) and to me that is a huge success for my own career. It's nice to have someone to contact if I have questions about which path others are taking and what advice they can give me. Because unlike current teachers, these students are going through the same exact things I am and will have fresh advice to give me. I also believe that if I grow and learn with these people then I will have them as excellent PLN resources down the road when we all, hopefully, have teaching jobs.

Since learning about PLN resources, I have taken more interest in getting to know my professors and to even contacting some past professors that I particularly enjoyed being in their class before. I think this is incredibly important for future references I may need in order to get a good teaching job or just for advice in general with my teaching career and/or lesson planning. Dr. Strange even pointed out that it is a good idea to go to local school events in order to meet teachers from there just in case I ever need a good reference from someone. Going to these events expand your PLN and can really help you in the long run.

So all in all there has not been a spectacular improvement in my PLN. There has, however, been a change in my own perspective about just how important a PLN is and how to acquire a successful one. This class has really helped me understand how connections locally and even all over the world can help my own teaching career and lesson planning in the future. Thanks Dr. Strange!