Introduction to personal learning environment

Finding your way around the course website

“	See any detour as an opportunity to experience new things.	”
—H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

This OERu course is a micro Open Online Course (mOOC) where you will create your own personal learning environment (PLE).

Participation in this course requires learners to establish their own PLE incorporating a number of web-based tools, for example, microblogs and blogs. You will use your PLE to document your learning and to connect with other learners taking this course.

This course also utilises a number of features associated with Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), so if you are new to this kind of learning, you should spend a little time setting familiarising yourself with the course environment and learning approach.

This orientation provides a brief overview of PLEs and suggested learning approaches for open online courses. There are also detailed tutorials in the support section should you need step-by-step support in setting up your PLE.

Orientation

Activity

A free content video streamed from Vimeo Neal Gillis and Dave Cormier. This micro Open Online Learning Course (mOOC) requires learners to establish a personal learning environment. Download and read "7 Things you should know about personal learning environments" (Pdf version). Watch the short video, Success in a MOOC by Neal Gillis and Dave Cormier. In this learning sequence of the course, we will execute the first two steps recommended by Neil Gillis and Dave Cormier in the video above. Orient yourself: Familiarise yourself with the learning environment so you can find what you are looking for. You will find all the links you need for this mOOC on the course dashboard (you will find a link to the course dashboard in the navigation bar above). Declare yourself: Set up the technologies where your thoughts and reflections will be published and acquiring the knowledge and tools to connect with fellow learners. You will declare yourself by posting an entry in your course blog using the allocated tag for this course.)

Did you find what you need to get started?

The best way to find the answers to any questions related to studying this course is to spend a few minutes exploring the course website, navigation links and subpages.

As this may be a new learning environment, in the beginning you may get lost, so it's a good idea to bookmark the course dashboard in your browser.

Check list for getting started

Review the following questions to see if you're ready to get started:

• Do you know where to start?
  • Yes
    • Great!
  • Not sure
    • The startup section in the main menu navigation provides the information you need to get started.
• Have you found the course materials?
  • Yes
    • Well, then you're ready for the first session.
  • Not sure
    • You will find links to the course materials in the Learning Console, that is, the study section of the main navigation. The learning pathways are also listed in the Courseware section of the site.
• Do you know what assessments and assignments are recommended for the course?
  • Yes
    • Good! This will assist you in planning how to engage in the course.
  • Not sure
    • Visit the assessment section of the site. We recommend that you read through the assessment section before commencing your learning journey.
• Do you know how to get support during the course?
  • Yes
    • Looks like you're good to go! Our courses rely on peer-support, so please help fellow learners find their way around the course. Pay your knowledge forward.
  • Not sure
    • First consult the support section where you will find FAQs and detailed how-to tutorials. If you're still unsure, post a question using WEnotes from the learning console. Your fellow learners may be able to help.