Who are you, and what do you like to learn about? (academically, professionally, and/or personally)
I am currently pursuing a M.Ed. in Instructional Design and Technology. I am also a full-time federal employee. I am interested in learning about psychology, language acquisition, new trends in learning and technology.
What hardware do you use to learn? (Eg. smart phone, tablet, laptop, desktop)
I like to use a desktop computer at home and at work (I enjoy looking at a big screen and working with several documents and applications open at the same time). At school and before going to bed I prefer to use a tablet (since it’s very light and easy to carry around). In transport I use a phone because it’s small, portable and is always connected to the Internet.
What software do you use to learn? (Eg. search engines, mobile apps, social networks, eBooks, digital libraries, wikis, blogs, videos, podcasts)
I think everyone uses search engines to learn, including myself. I use mobile apps to learn languages and when I am enrolled in a MOOC. I use social networks to gather interesting information and learn about new resources. I use blogs and videos to learn real-world skills (cook, build, create). I am looking into starting to use podcasts to learn when I am in the car.
What digital tools do you wish you had access to for learning? (Eg. any graphic organizers, mind-mapping tools, resource management tools, progress tracking tools, design tools, etc.) Why?
I would like to have a tool that would allow me to enter my life tasks (learning, work, personal) and then show me how much I completed or still need to complete that day/week/month/year. I would also like to have my professors/colleagues/family access to this tool so they can put a work front for me and then I could look through it and accept it (so I can sort tasks and prioritize). I think this would be very useful to organize life and make the learning process easier. Now I spend a lot of time trying to figure out what I need to do, where to find it, how to complete it properly.
What might your ideal Personal Learning Environment (PLE) look like?
My PLE would be a tabula rasa. It would be a platform with a white screen and then additional tools, widgets, docs, social network feeds that I could add based on my preference. I would also like to design it how I like it, with colors, fonts, location that I prefer. It would also include a way to organize the learning process, prioritize tasks and be hyperlinked to everything.
Example: An assignment is due in 2 weeks. This shows up in the UPCOMING assignments feed, when you click on the assignment the guidelines, rubric, materials all show up. It’s all there, organized, in one place. I complete the assignment, upload the file to this same place and then click DONE and it sends it to my professor for review and is gone from the upcoming assignments feed.
