After reflecting on the conversation with Jody Vance, it becomes ever apparent to me that curating your social media cautiously and effectively while still trying to maintain a genuine attitude towards your viewers is a careful balance. Particularly striking was the comment that “it takes a lifetime to build a reputation and a heartbeat to break it”- Jody Vance 2021. Which made me think about how especially in this era its important to curate your content and be cautious of the opinions you share as you are communicating with a diverse PLN that may not share those views. In saying that, I would curate my social media cautiously but genuinely. Being careful with what I share but never sharing anything I don’t believe in. Which is the practice I believe notable figures would use aswell.

Martin Hirst’s article on the economy of fake news brings an incredibly interesting perspective that misinformation is in some ways a capitalist tool used by certain news network PLN’s in order to garner more views. This criticism of mainstream media has never been more valid. Real journalism and sourcing is increasingly difficult to find and so this ties into how we interact with our own PLN’s. Misinformation is one of the risks of engaging with a public audience space. Whether you unknowingly share misinformation or are a target of that misinformation, it is undoubtedly an increasingly common issue especially for government officials and educators. For this reason we must be very conscious of what we post in our PLN’s misinformation is inherently deceptive obviously by nature, it can be concealed and convincing. People in positions of power need to be ever careful due to their sphere of influence as Hirst insinuates in his article.

Being a public figure online comes with the scrutiny of many eyes. There will undoubtedly be criticism of your personal values. I think the best way to combat this is through dialogue. So often when a figures values are called to question online they are quickly defensive and to say that those critiquing are wrong and crazy. But if we ask questions and try and understand why that persons perspective disagrees with our value we can further advance our PLN to being even more diverse and effective as a learning tool. If you seriously believe you are the target of needless hate, take a step back though. Trying to address the problem and defend yourself can often just throw more fuel on the fire.

Be receptive to critics but don’t interact with online bullying.

Refrences.

Navigating Social Journalism | A Handbook for Media Literacy and Citiz (uvic.ca) (2018)

Jody Vance – Media Voices – YouTube (2021)

My social media campaign of choice would be on how to learn various different languages/language exchanges. To build up my PLN first I would interact and comment on educational language platforms that are already established such as YouTube and Duolingo. I would participate in local gatherings and attend meetups that focus on learning different languages and having various conversational exchanges. This would be a good way to interact and start to build up a network around myself to launch a campaign from. Through assisting people and interacting at the community level I could gain a small base following and then from there launch a YouTube channel to post various online videos from in person language exchanges. Then through interaction and commenting on already established PLN networks i could bring people to my own network to then launch a more effective campaign about how to efficiently learn new languages through in person videos.

Utilizing already established networks to be seen and get people in your own PLN is a massively important tool for starting your own social media campaign, you cant expect to just start a channel or a campaign and have instant success and followers, you need to build up a base elsewhere first, whether its locally or from interaction on the already established PLNs online.

How diverse is your PLN?

Honestly my PLN could be much more diverse. I use twitter, outlook, Brightspace, Instagram etc. But I think I could develop my PLN on the professional side a lot more with thinks like LinkedIn which i tend not to use very much. My PLN diversity could benefit from some new professional or personal apps where i can actively seek out new connections and network with people which i tend not to do very much of with my current PLN to be honest.

In your PLN, are you learning from a variety of voices or are you the loudest in the room?

I’m definitely learning from a variety of voices, I tend to observe much more than participate on social media which leads me to gain insight and think critically about how different facets of my PLN interact with each other. I’m maybe overly cautious of the opinions i put out into my PLN to be honest as I’m often not sure whether I have carefully considered my opinion or thought enough for it to be something that i want on my page forever. I would say I’m someone who takes advantage of the vast amount of information and voices in my PLN but not someone who really takes advantage of the ability to project their own which could certainly lead to good discussion.

Do you participate in a silo of information sharing (similar themes or wide range of interests)?

I only really participate on subjective topics or things I know I am competent enough to comment on. I will ask questions occasionally but like I said before I’m quite cautious about the opinions I put online as I think its easy online to just comment your thoughts on something without thinking about it even though you may not really have enough perspective on the conversation to share anything meaningful. I think if you are not competent on the topic or you do not have anything meaningful to say, then you should just share and interact with information by asking questions or observing.

How can you use a diverse PLN to broaden your views of inclusion?

I think its definitely a reasonable task to develop a diverse PLN and use it to broaden how you see inclusion. Interacting and conversing with people who have completely different worldviews across the globe has never been easier. If you make diverse connections with diverse groups of people across multiple different apps. You are sure to broaden your views of inclusion and see many things in a different light. The basis for everything is communication. Just through interacting and communicating about even mundane things online can lead to higher levels of inclusion among everybody. It all starts with a hello.

In your professional setting of choice, do you think inclusion is actively embraced?

My professional setting of choice is social services, specifically in outreach as that is what I do for work. To be honest I do think inclusion is attempted to be actively embraced in the field but at times I think a lot of it can be rather performative as opposed to meaningful and real inclusion. That being said I think this professional setting is still doing better than the corporate world for example in terms of inclusion. I would just hesitate to use the word embraced is all I mean. It is important in social services to strive for that though as you must provide assistance to everybody from all walks of life.

What is the learning outcome of your PLN and how are you ensuring your exposure to diversity and inclusion?

I learn a lot from my PLN and I would like to think my world view becomes broader every day due to my interaction in it. From my interactions in academia on Brightspace and matter most, to personal interactions on things like twitter. I would like to think I’m being exposed to a diverse set of people and ideas and being inclusive aswell. I have quite a few friends from different places across the world who I have in my local network and I would like to believe that helps me in creating a diverse and inclusive worldview in my PLN.

How has your thinking about inclusion and PLN evolved after reviewing the videos and readings?

My ideas about inclusion and PLNs in general has become much more sufficient after the readings I believe. I think its very easy to get caught up in mob mentality or angered easily by certain views we see amplified online. But if we approach such views with inclusion and a respect for diversity we can often come to an understanding with one an other that seems to be uncommon on the internet in this day and age. Accepting that the internet and those in your PLN are likely to have vastly different ideas then your own is the first step to discussion. In our local community we are often times not espoused to such different ideas but online that is not the case. Keeping this in mind can help us remember to be inclusive and mindful of the diverse environment a PLN can be.

What digital platforms are students currently using to develop their professional network?

The digital platforms used by students to develop their professional network is ever growing. Many students use apps like LinkedIn or twitter to showcase a professional portfolio, but in more recent times apps like Tiktok can be an important and effective way to market yourself for certain job prospects. There are plenty of jobs for social media teams for orgs or marketing teams so having a successful Tiktok, Instagram, or twitter page could really put you ahead of the pack in terms of showcasing your social media success and what you bring to the table. I think there are more and more jobs appearing that requires the use of people who are experienced in running social media platforms and having a personal successful one is becoming more and more of a benefit for potential employers in that field.

What could the student consider in expanding their professional learning network?

There are many things that could be expanded upon in a students social network . The importance of networking is not stressed enough. Developing ones PLN and making connections online has never been such an essential part of life before. I myself am bad at networking and making these connections so it is something that could be expanded upon for me personally. Making more connections with UVIC students online whether it be Brightspace/matter most etc. developing professional and personal connections has so many benefits that are often overlooked by many students. Students should look to use the online connectivity tools given to them by the university to develop their professional learning network with other students and profs at school, interacting is key.

In your network how can you create a digital identity/ reputation?

You can carefully curate your digital identity/reputation in your network. Just like in real life, respect I think is key, which is something many people forget on the internet due to the sense of anonymity. Conducting yourself in a respectful manner is incredibly important, as any comment or post that you make that could be interpreted as something damaging to your reputation is now permanently there for everyone to go back and see over and over again. The thoughts you articulate, the kind of pictures you post, how you conduct yourself with others online are all important aspects of shaping your digital identity and reputation.

Find out what a local employer would do if you applied for a job with them?

Speaking from my personal experience. My boss first saw my resume, looked over it to make sure I was first qualified. He personally told his staff the second thing he checks is if they have a Facebook page that he can find. He has said that many people have posted things on their Facebook which lead to them not getting the job. Now for me my Facebook is private and unsearchable so he was unable to gain access to my personal network, not that I post much on their anyways. I think this is not uncommon amongst many employers as personal and professional lives may be separate, if you have a public personal identity that is not conducted in a certain manner it may lead to less job prospects. I also think LinkedIn is a very important tool for getting more successful applications as its a place for employers to find you, rather than you to find them. If you have a good list of achievements and qualifications it could get you a lot of offers.

What does it mean to network using social media?

Networking is described as the process in which people make mutually beneficial professional and social connections  through exchanging information and conversing. While networking has always been around, though likely by a different name. Its undeniable that the appearance of social media and an increasingly online world has increased its importance in todays society tenfold. Networking is a vital part of being successful in many career paths, and often times, being a good networker can yield better results than education or experience. Networking using social media would be to converse and interact with various individuals over sites like Facebook, Instagram, twitter, or LinkedIn to name a few. Social media allows us to maintain connections with people with relatively little effort. Networking over social media can be as simple as liking or commenting on a colleagues or classmates post. We all network on social media in todays day and age we just all do it to varying degrees and for various reasons.

“an essential life–long learning skill they need to develop, is the ability to find and to connect with relevant others, i.e., professional networking” (Johnson, 2008; Nardi, et al., 2000).

How are we motivated to participate in public networks?

We are highly motivated to participate in networked publics as social media progresses further and further. People communicate their opinions more freely online, they date online, they make friends online, they find jobs online, they go to work online. We live in an online world. If you are not participating in these networked publics it is incredibly difficult to keep up with all these aspects of life mentioned above. And with more and more people doing it, so does the social pressure to participate as well increase.

The article What is a Personal Learning Network (PLN)?’ by Gutierrez (2016) discusses how we participate in PLNs all throughout our life, that they are a “life long learning tool” The motivation to participate in public learning networks is so strong because it is something that is inescapable throughout everyone’s life.

What are the risks and rewards of public communications?

As I mentioned before, networking and communicating on public networks can be very beneficial for ones learning and furthering themselves socially or professionally. With that being said there are some obvious risks to public communications as well, the primary one being data security. As we all know Facebook and other social media titans have been accused of suffering data breaches that compromise the private information of millions of people. Anything you post online leaves a footprint, its there forever. In Boyd’s 2012 article on networked privacy the author discusses how our private information is becoming increasingly networked, and how that posses potential challenges for the ethical concerns of having so much information known that many people would wish is not. Public communications in turn come at great social benefit, but one must be cautious in a online world where it is becoming increasingly difficult to protect your private information.

What is digital identity

I would describe digital identity as the face you show your PLN and online world. Your identity can be as vague or as deep as you desire. Your digital identity is everything you present to your social networks. The kinds of pictures you post, the community’s you reside in. The ideas you like and share, all of it compounds into your digital identity. Even in this course we all have a digital identity that we present to each other, though it is just one small section of such it is our identity none the less.

How do personal versus professional approaches to digital identity affect social media use?

Personal and professional approaches to digital identity usually vary greatly. The way you present your identity on say your private Instagram, is likely to be very different the the way you present yourself on your LinkedIn account. The two identity’s serve different purposes. A personal identity allows us to connect with like minded individuals and facilitation socialization to fulfill our needs of connection with other people. Whereas a professional identity is often a much more catered identity which showcases our education and experience in the workforce in order to find more career opportunities. For example, we might use social media in a personal approach to post pictures of our new puppy, whereas we would never do that when trying to use social media in a professional setting. The two identity’s serve two completely unique purposes.

How do digital identities converge in networked publics- what are the impacts and/or benefits?      

Digital identities from all over the world can converge in PLNs. Social media while it can be a unhealthy and dangerous tool at times, also connects us like never before. There are tons of benefits from this convergence of identities. Community’s form for every possible niche you can image, people that feel marginalized often times find community and personal connections through this convergence. New ideas are formed, perspectives shared, laughs had. We tend to take for granted many of the connections we have in life as PLNs are so ingrained but ask yourself if you would have many of the connections you do today had it not been for the emergence of social media and PLNs.

References

Boyd, D. (n.d.). Networked Privacy. Retrieved from https://ojs.library.queensu.ca/index.php/surveillance-and-society/article/view/networked

Future Learn. What is a Personal Learning Network (PLN)? (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.futurelearn.com/info/courses/learning-network-age/0/steps/24644

Gutierrez, K. (n.d.). What are Personal Learning Networks? Retrieved from https://www.shiftelearning.com/blog/personal-learning-networks