Can your PLN be used to help professional development post-course? If yes, how? If no, what limitations exist?

From my view, I think PLN could help professional development post-course.PLN can help people express their opinions online quickly. It enables people to learn and share their opinions indoors. Moreover, by setting different topics and questions to let students discuss, thus new ideas can be got. Meanwhile, network can also open to the public to allow more people to join topics, so that more people can learn and participate in our topics. Furthermore, we can hold events online, such as voting on topics. In this way, more people can understand what we are learning.

Can your PLN be relied on to open professional opportunities?

I think PLN can provide open professional opportunities because the purpose of PLN is to allow more people to express their views on the Internet anytime, anywhere. When people study and discuss enough topics, they will have a certain understanding of the topics discussed, and they will also inquire about certain materials on the Internet for self-study. In future career, this is also an indispensable kind of study, which is beneficial to help people make certain plans for their future careers.

Why Media Literacy matters in your PLN

What is media literacy?

Media Literacy should be an essential quality of people. People first need to obtain information and evaluate it after thinking about it independently. (Media Literacy Fundamentals,2017) And post people’s views online. It’s actually like an ability that people show. Having the right media literacy can help people adapt better to society and express their views on things.

Why is it important?

If people do not have the right media literacy, it may lead to the proliferation of false information. Because reports on the same news on the Internet may have distinct results. When people do not verify the wrong information and make comments on the Internet, which will make their opinions be wrong and it is very likely to be seen by others, causing other people to have misunderstanding.

Why is it dismissed?

I think it’s hard to change people’s thinkings. When people begin to collect information, they will make judgments and subconscious evaluations of the information collected. In fact, the information of other people on the Internet can rarely change your own opinions. In addition, everyone should have their own opinions, because if everyone’s ideas are the same, everyone in the world will be the same.

Why should you aim for varied views but the factual consensus in your PLN?

People have discussion on some topics because their ideas can not reach consensus, and the discussion on information on the internet can make people think more deeply. So then, people can pay attention to this topic. If all people can reach a consensus, they will often forget about it quickly. At the same time, they will not reflect on the mistakes they made in the incident. Although arguments may lead to misunderstanding, and even prevent people from reaching the right conclusions. But I think that only by continuous discussion and reflection can we make social progress.

Reference：

Media Literacy Fundamentals. MediaSmarts. (2017, January 19). Retrieved November 16, 2021, from https://mediasmarts.ca/digital-media-literacy/general-information/digital-media-literacy-fundamentals/media-literacy-fundamentals. 

Explore the video provided and reflect on the themes of a PLN in a professional capacity.

I think the use of social media in community publicity is a good idea, because in reality many people may have no chance to know the past and the culture of other communities. Social media can not only be used to show the community to outsiders, but also make community residents better know the culture and background of their own. PLN can make people get to know at home conveniently, so wasting time to learn in other special place is not necessary at all.

Which social media platforms are beneficial in education?

I think instagram can play a significant role in education because most of younger people have instagram. they could initiate topics and discuss them on the instagram. Meanwhile, it can also be displayed and seen by public. Instagram could record their views on different topic at different ages. when student looking for a job in the future, it can also help enterprises better understand student thinking and their experience.

Consider the equality that exists when all have the same platform to engage community dialogues.

I think there are unequal conditions for community dialogue. First of all, some students are relatively outgoing, so they have many friends in real life. Their online expressions will be supported by many friends. While for students with few friends in real life, their opinions tend to be thought of as strange ones by most people, so their views will be ignored and even ridiculed.

Consider as an additional piece, when working with the vulnerable sector, how does social media fit into professionalism and regulations?

In my opinion, wrong information ought to be avoided to spread, because many people may sustain losses due to their reliance on spread of wrong information. There is also a great impact on professionalism. As is known to all, wrong public opinion may arise from wrong information on Internet. Both sides are affected. Some formal social media platforms require identity verification to register as a user, which can effectively protect private information and should be preferred to use.