What does it mean to network using social media?
Networking is interacting with others as a way of developing professional and personal contacts. The ease of interacting with people globally using social media allows one to share information and develop relationships, making networking through social media a great learning tool (Guitterez). Social media aids us in sharing knowledge and developing our networking skills as well as contacts, at any time with others thus, serving as a personal learning network (Guitterez). Since social media allows us to interact with anyone worldwide, networking through social media aids an individual to gather knowledge from various different sources. Thus, causing an individual to develop a more diverse networking circle and interact with various different communities.
How are we motivated to participate in networked publics?
Those who do tend to network either via social media or in-person, have the primary goal of networking with others to “design and navigate their network to bring them the most professional and educational benefit” (Rajagopal et al.). Oftentimes, one needs assistance or advice in their professional life. Having a personal learning network allows one to seek advice from their networking circle quickly (Guitterez). Furthermore, networking allows individuals to communicate with others that share similar interests; interacting with others with similar interests allows one to feel more comfortable within their personal learning network (Rajagopal et al). Comfortability regarding interacting with their networking circle strengths one’s connection with their personal learning networking. Lastly, personal networks serve as a foundation of potential collaboration, which can be a great learning experience (Rajagopal et al.).
What are some risks and rewards of public communications?
Some of the most prominent rewards of public communications are the seamless and fast exchange of information, and knowledge. Within only a few clicks, one can share and/or ask for resources they need. Furthermore, public communication serves as a great way of exploring different communities, forums, and developing new interests.
However, public communications also have some risks. with online communications, it is well noted that offensive material, rude comments, and toxic online behavior can be often experienced. These entities can drastically impact one’s experience online negatively, as being attacked or bullied online can hinder one’s desire to associate with that community or social media platform.
Furthermore, most websites track our interactions online whether it is what we search, or what communities and/or forums we visit. Tracking our data is an invasion of our privacy, as many companies and social media platforms use various algorithms to track our patterns and interests (Boyd, 2). In addition, what happens with this data of ours that is collected is often not discussed with the individual directly.
References:
Gutierrez, Karla. “What are Personal Learning Networks?” SHIFT, 21 June 2016. https://www.futurelearn.com/info/courses/learning-network-age/0/steps/24644. Accessed 20 January 2021.
Rajagopal, Kamakshi, et al. “Understanding personal learning networks: Their structure, content and the networking skills needed to optimally use them.” First Monday (2012).
Boyd, Danah. “Networked Privacy.” Surveillance & Society, 22 December 2012. https://ojs.library.queensu.ca/index.php/surveillance-and-society/article/view/networked/networked. Accessed 20 January 2021.
akk12
Hi Nav, thank you for sharing your blog on PLN and social media. You made many great points in your post. One that stuck out to me was “networking allows individuals to communicate with others that share similar interests; interacting with others with similar interests allows one to feel more comfortable within their personal learning network,” which I think people are not aware that they do. We tend to navigate towards people who have similar hobbies or goals and create a network that reflects that. But I think it is important to step out of our comfort zone and connect with people that are different in terms of goals and interests to expand one’s knowledge and experience. Furthermore, I agree with you that people use social media networks to share “offensive material, rude comments, and toxic online behaviour” to avoid this.; these networking platforms need to take more initiative and implement strategies to create a safe environment for people to share appropriate content with others.
I look forward to engaging with you again this term.
Asha
brownsugar
Hi! I am glad you liked reading my blog. I hope you enjoy my future blogs as I will be aiming to write everyone a different manner as a way to jazz it up!