Is Personal Learning Network a new term???
A tweet from Chris Brogan (who I now know is a part of my own personal learning network) led me to this podcast
Clearly this podcast is geared toward universities and educators, but it made me question.
Why aren’t we using this more in our businesses and personal development?
I searched YouTube for other videos of the same subject. Most were posted from 1 to 8 months ago with a few listed from over a year ago so clearly not an age old concept.
I needed a good description and history quickly so I searched Wikipedia for a definition:
Personal Learning Network: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_Learning_Networks
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Personal Learning Networks consist of the people a learner interacts with and derives knowledge from in a Personal Learning Environment. An important part of this concept is the theory of connectivism developed by George Siemens and Stephen Downes. Learners create connections and develop a network that contributes to their professional development and knowledge.[1] The learner does not have to know these people personally or ever meet them in person.[2] The following is an excerpt from Dryden’s and Vos’ book on learning networks:[3]
“For the first time in history, we know now how to store virtually all humanity’s most important information and make it available, almost instantly, in almost any form, to almost anyone on earth. We also know how to do that in great new ways so that people can interact with it , and learn from it.”
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Personal Learning Environment: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_personal_learning_environments
“Personal Learning Environments are systems that help learners take control of and manage their own learning. This includes providing support for learners to
- set their own learning goals
- manage their learning; managing both content and process
- communicate with others in the process of learning
and thereby achieve learning goals.
A PLE may be composed of one or more subsystems: As such it may be a desktop application, or composed of one or more web-based services.”[1]
Important concepts in PLEs include the integration of both formal and informal learning episodes into a single experience, the use of social networks that can cross institutional boundaries, and the use of networking protocols (Peer-to-Peer, web services, syndication) to connect a range of resources and systems within a personally-managed space.
While PLE is a very new term, the concept represents the latest step in an alternative approach to e-learning which can trace its origins to early systems such as Colloquia, the first peer-to-peer learning system, and in more recent phenomena such as the Epsilen Environment developed by Ali Jafari and the Elgg system developed by Dave Tosh and Ben Werdmuller and PebblePAD developed by UK-based Pebble Learning. This alternative approach developed in parallel to that of Learning Management Systems, which unlike the PLE take an institution-centric (or course-centric) view of learning . . .
SOoo - PLN seems to be a new learning style that is fast developing based on our full access to social media tools and open access to information important to us individually. We get to decide what we learn!! Brilliant! Just what had happened to me as I researched a subject I didn’t understand. I experienced the above described learning style and loved it. It is very close to the learning experience of online education. The Wiki definition corresponds with the information offered in my recent Certified Distance Education Recertification Course.
Is Personal Learning Network a new term??? It seems to be relatively new; however some of us have been learning like this for a lifetime. It just wasn’t as cool and we didn’t have access to as much information. Maybe our time has come 
This is what I want Real Estate Success Center and Social Web Learning to be. One focused on real estate learning and the other focused on social media tools, tips and etiquette.
Upon discovery that we are encouraged and free to develop our own learning environment and network, I’m off to organize my Personal Learning Network with the intention of using this “new” style to share information through my school and blog.
Please feel free to join, learn and contribute. Would love to hear your comments about your Personal Learning Network.
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