Flipped learning network

The social network group that I chose is Flipped Learning. I have heard flipped education; however, I have not tapped into it until this mod. Flipped learning is more learner-centered than traditional education. Learning is not limited to classroom anymore; instead, learners can learn both inside and outside classrooms with supports of technology in their learning, which can meet learners' different preferences on learning.

I found it exciting to know this approach which I will definitely incorporate in my future classroom. After having checked the website, I found another website which is categorized under flipped education-- PaGamO.  PaGamO, an online platform, designed by Dr. Yeh and his students, enables learners to learn through playing online games. Learners can choose games according to their levels and grades, and use this tool to gain knowledge through competing with others. Unlike traditional learning, learners will find interesting to acquire knowledge through playing games.

To conclude, Flipped Learning provides information about how to use flipped learning and what features are of flipped learning. Before incorporating flipped learning in my future classroom, I will definitely check this website to see if there are anything that I should be cautious about.

ePals: Learning on A Global Community

Not until this mod did I know there is such a useful website which allows students' to learn in a global community. ePals provides a platform for students to learn differences and similarities of areas world wide without boundaries. Besides, students can learn about local and world wide issues of both countries when interacting with each other. I would incorporate ePals in my future classroom as follows:

To begin, I would incorporate Pen Pal Exchange into my classroom. I would invite students to have one to one message with other students from a different cultural background. In this Pen Pal Exchange, I would invite them to have project and share local problems and issues of their own countries. After expressing problems of their own countries and knowing issues of other countries, students should think about possible solutions for those problems for their pen pal. Through this project, students can not only practice their writing skills but improve their critical thinking skills. 

Besides, I believe it is also practical to use ePals when teaching about race issues. For example, after reading articles about America, students can truly get in touch with Americans and discuss about race issues from both American and Taiwanese perspectives. From this project, I believe students can learn differences and similarities between two nations concerning race issues. Also, students can learn those issues not merely from textbooks but from real interactions with those people, which will leave a deep impression. 

To conclude, in this global village, our learning community does not need to be confined to an area. Through using ePals, students can not only improve their writing but learn global issues from different perspectives and, thus, become a global citizen. 

"A learner is like a..."

It takes long time to think about the analogy to describe the learner of today. After reading the article and watching those videos, I think learner of today is like a leaf on a tree. Leaf cannot stay healthy and strong without helps from others, such as sun, water, and branch. Similar to learners of today, hardly can they gain knowledge without building connections with each other. In other words, learning can only happen when learners form network with others.

Likewise, Siemen (2005) gives an insight into learners' learning nowadays. According to Siemen (2005) Connectivism: A Learning Theory for Digital Age, "Learning (defined as actionable knowledge) can reside outside of ourselves (within in an organization or database), is focused on connecting on specialized information sets, and the connections that make us to learn are more important than our current state of knowing." The term connectivism can explain learning is not an individualistic activity anymore but a collaboration and connections with each other.

Also, one of the videos from Siemen, the changing nature of knowledge, clearly illustrates that due to the fact that knowledge is being changed so rapidly, it would be difficult for us to learn it merely from books. To gain this fast-changed knowledge, Siemen considers both internal and external networks as critical elements for learners of today. Internal network is defined as how learners' mind create learning itself. As for external network, it emphasizes when learners form and make connections with each other, knowledge exists external to the individuals. In short, knowledge cannot be gained if learners fail to make connections with others but when learners form networks with others.

To conclude, back to the analogy: A learner is like a leaf. A learner cannot gain knowledge (as a leaf which needs soil, water, sun, branches) if he or she fails to make connections with each other. How can a tree grow healthily without connecting to soil, getting close to water and sun, and having strong branches?

A comparison: Pinterest vs Diigo

What kinds of social media have you used? Which social media platforms are more preferable for leisure business? After using Diigo and Pinterest, I found out both of them provide useful but different functions for users. The followings are about those usefulness and differences on Diigo and Pinterest.

First, both of them give users a platform to organize information they are interested in for future use.  Diigo, a social bookmarking, allows users to save links, write down notes, and highlight texts if needed. It is time-saving for users of Diigo to look back for important information. As for Pinterest, users can use it as a curating, create various boards to organize topics. In short, users can use Diigo and Pinterest to categorize information that they are into. 

Moreover, though both of them enable users to save information that they are interested in, I would say Diigo seems more academic than Pinterest. Diigo is more suitable for the professional to save links for future use because users can just look back those notes that they have taken. Also, users can get main points of articles by viewing descriptions they made. Unlike Diigo, Pinterest can only show images associated with the page. Users will only see images at first sight and, therefore, it would be difficult for users to show and get too many details or information on merely an image; however, it would be good for users to share and follow what they like in their daily lives, which, in my point of view, is more similar to Facebook or Instagram-- for leisure use. 

The following chart compares distinguishing features of Pinterest and Diigo :

Can you highlight text in saved sites?	No.	Yes, users can highlight texts and write down notes.
Can you use multiple tags?	No.	Yes.
Can you copy and paste from original article to appear in comments about site?	Yes.	Yes.
Can others post comments on your site?	Yes.	Yes.
Can you follow others?  Can they follow you?	Yes.	Yes.
Can you message people you follow?	Yes.	Yes.
Are you offered suggestions for related articles?	Yes.	Yes.
Would you continue to use either of these?  Which?  Why?	I would use Pinterest to record what I am interested in for my leisure time. As for Diigo, if I am a master degree student again or doing some research for academic purposes, I would definitely use Diigo.

To sum up, both Pinterest and Diigo provide interaction environment for users to share resources and make comments. It is definitely beneficial for teachers to gain information they want, and for students to interact with their classmates through either creating a group on Diigo or commenting on classmates' posts on Pinterest. I believe both of them have potential for educational use.