In the Introduction to Digital Literacy for Online Learning course I was required to complete a few short quizzes about digital online skills.
The first of these quizzes was titled ‘Connect’ and gave an insight into how proficient I currently am in connecting online. The profile outline showed that I was a ‘Newbie Novice’ when it comes to connecting to people online and that I still have quite a lot to learn about connecting online.
Before this course my connections online were fairly limited and a large amount of the connections I made digitally, on platforms such as Facebook or Gmail, were people that I largely connected with in person anyway.
Especially with what is currently going on in the world, having a connection with someone that is accessible for the both of you virtually any time, rather than having to organise meeting in person, is extraordinarily valuable for this reason. It also helps greatly to be able to connect to people that otherwise would be well out of your radius as you would likely not meet them in person due to location or social factors.
In the first assessment of this subject I was required to create a LinkedIn account and explore that platform quite thoroughly and found it amazing how easy it was to connect to groups with similar interests and professionals in the field of study I am aiming for.
Having done the aforementioned assignment I was able to connect with a bird watching group including people from around the world that share the same interest in birds as I do and see what they have been able to see from birds in their own locations and where they’ve been, thus experiencing the benefit of an online connection and passing the barrier I previously discussed in terms of location. I have also connected with an ornithologist from Sydney who has posted various articles of current events and issues in the ornithological world, things that I am invested in that wouldn’t usually come up on my regular news-feeds and updates.
While setting up my professional profile there were a few things that came up that I was able to write about myself that I had never really thought of before. Simply from writing a short description about my current experience and future goals I was able to see how much I had grown and changed from when I started my current job and get a good look at how many valuable skills I had picked up from my workplace that I could apply in a new field.
I hope to become more proficient at broadening my network of people with similar interests, both on a professional and peer level so as to gain more knowledge on the subject through various insights and perspectives that they may share. It would also be beneficial to seek out potential employers for the future and possibly begin to look at volunteer positions they may have on their websites or connected groups.
As a learner, connecting with more groups and people online that have knowledge and experience in my field of study will allow me to draw from their experiences and gain a deeper knowledge myself through what they share. As a professional it could potentially mean making the connection to a future career or workplace and help me to head into my desired area a lot quicker.
Being a ‘Newbie Novice’ I only really have one place were I am connected online in a professional manner and that is my LinkedIn profile:
http://www.linkedin.com/in/jeremy-piening-74ba951b2