eMedia: Explore, Create, Collaborate

eMedia groups are a fantastic way to collaborate with those around the state! Individuals have the ability to share resources and discuss in one convient location. Personally, these groups will help build my PLN by working with those I typically would not have the opportunity to interact with (e.g. other content areas and individuals outside of my school district).

Monica I agree that this is a fantastic way to collaborate.What a great way to make friends with other teachers and share lesson plans and units with them. it reminds me a lot of  teachers pay teachers except it is all free. 

They will help me build a pdrofessional learning network by building friendships with other teachers around the whole state. you don't have to stick to your collaboration group at your school or to your district . You can reach out to people all over the state and share lessons, units and other OER with each other.

Monica, 

These groups are a great way for collaboration as well as sharing resources based on their shared interest. These groups are great because they would work with my PLN when it comes to how much I would learn from each teacher as well as what each teacher would learn from me. 

I am sorry for this late response. I agree that is a fabulous opportunity tot be part of a group with similar interests and goals. PLN  can bring resources that otherwise could be out of reach or even knowledge of the user. I did not know there were Spanish teachers groups. I love this opportunities. 

I agree. It will be nice to see different perspectives from other districts and even different areas. 

I appreciate this course because I was not aware eMedia groups even existed.  I can see these as being a very beneficial way to collaborate with educators across Utah.  Often, educators are working alone and isolated from colleagues in our same content area.  By utilizing eMedia groups, we can bridge the gap of isolation and easily connect with others who may have ideas we are searching for.  And likewise, we can share our ideas to help others. 

I also appreciated the discussions feature.  This makes communicating more effective and easier to make suggestions as people are looking for new resources and ideas.  I really appreciate being able to organize content by folders, because they will make finding trustworthy resources much easier. 

Amy I didn't realize that emedia groups , or discussions or any of that existed. This class has really opened my eyes to what is out there and i found tht it is easier to collaborate with people throughout the state and share as well. what a great plan

I didn't know about them either. I said the same thing, that I feel isolated in my school and eMedia is a way to reach out for help if I need it. 

Emedia is great way to meet with other teachers and share resources.  While searching for a group to join, I noticed a couple of school districts had groups, grade levels had groups, and many others.  I think it is an easy way to get feedback and to see what works for others.  It is also great for building your PLN.  I can see connections being made outside of your school district as well as within.  It is also available when you are! No need to set up a zoom link, just log on at your leisure.

Tanya, I agree that it is so nice to meet new people this way because these groups are so well narrowed down that you can meet teachers who are interested in the same ideas as you. It is great to see the variety of groups too. Feedback is another great thing about these groups. 

Meeting people even if it is only online is a new development for teachers who used to do their journey alone. Even if the relationship is light and we share a few resources, it is a great value to have someone to reach out. Thanks for your thoughts. 

I had no idea that emedia groups existed. Emedia groups are a great way to meet other educators and share resources. Teachers can share lesson plans and resources with each other. Coaches can find resources for teachers and share them. These groups offer resources based on grade level or concept. The discussion section offers a way for the members to communcate with each other. It is a great idea to be able to ask other educators questions and get support from people doing the same thing. 

I had no idea that eMedia groups existed but I am starting to think of the many benefits that these groups could offer. I think one of the major benefits that I see is the ability it allows for educators to connect with other educators throughout the state that have similar interests. The groups allow educators to share resources that are of specific interest to educators that would be part of the same group. They can also post discussions to seek others' input or ideas on a topic, problem concern, etc. I think that eMedia as a whole is an underutilized resource and the groups feature is probably even more significantly underutilized but I think can offer so much to educators.

The benefit is that the groups are specific and accessable. The educator in the classroom next door to me is not necessarily an expert in the area in which I have a question. eMedia groups allow for collaboration between like content teachers that are working with the same strands and standards. It is a good blend between being limited to your building and getting answer from anywhere in the world.

PLCs occasionally stumble through common assessments. It is nice when teachers are teaching the same classes in the same building, but many are singletons attempting to find similar content to build on that isn't quite there. These eMedia groups will help singletons find a connection that can benefit their class instead of compromising to fulfil a requirement. 

eMedia groups are a nice way to connect with other educators in Utah that are interested and/or teaching the same things as you. I've used other ways to connect with groups of educators such as Facebook and various online forums and the biggest difference between these groups and eMedia groups is that narrowness. While the groups I'm in are interesting and occasionally have good things I can use they're so diverse and disparate from what I'm actually teaching and experiencing that they're very rarely useful. I think eMedia is a great way to grow a PLN that is larger than your immediate school and colleagues while still being focused on the same standards and local issues that you are.

I agree with you Moira, these groups are great ways to connect with others on something you are passionate about. I like your point that the eMedia groups are more narrowed down towards what you may be teaching or experience. 

The benefits of eMedia groups are that they are groups of people who have the same ideas and thoughts as you. It can make it easy to find items that pertain to what you want to look up. They can help build communities of teachers who can communicate with others throughout the state in order to collaborate. These groups can help me build relationships with other teachers who teach the same subjects. It gives me a place to turn to when I need help on creating a lesson or an idea on how to teach a certain subject. 

Being able to collaborate and work with educators from all over the state of Utah that have a common interest or curriculum being taught is one benefit of eMedia groups.  Also being able to quickly find resources that might help with a specific content or curriculum is very valuable to educators.  Sharing ideas and working with other educator in an eMedia group will help build my professional learning network (PLN).  I’m attending UCET conference in March, so I joined that group hoping to talk to others also going to the UCET conference.  EMedia is already helping me build my PLN.

Joining eMedia groups can help educators access resources that are relevant to the content and grade level they are teaching.  The groups create and review resources that provide feedback.  Educators can access to quickly determine if it is applicable and appropriate for their need.   It is a time saving and efficient way to search for resources that have been developed and/or used by teachers in similar situations.  Connections with colleagues promotes better teaching.  Joining eMedia groups help target the specific content you want and alerts you when new material is posted promotes those connections.  A PLN is a tool that uses social media and technology to collect, communicate, collaborate and create educational materials, lesson plans and other resources with connected colleagues anywhere at any time. Educators, worldwide, make requests and share resources.

eMedia groups are a valuable way to connect and collaborate with educators across the state. It's awesome that educators who share similar interests, or teach the same content, can contribute to the eMedia group they are apart of and receive feedback on their resources as well as allow other educators to use/remix their work for their own classroom. This is a great resourse for teachers to navigate and utilize so they don't have to always "recreate the wheel." I joined the UCET group because I am attending that conference in March and am looking forward to building my professional learning network through that group by seeing what other contribute and what I can use in my own practice. I wish I would have known about eMedia and the amazing resources offered sooner! 

Being able to collaborate with other educators throughout the state is the biggest benefit I can see. Sometimes as educators we are exhausted of ideas and need others help outside of our school and district. It is nice because we have a place to turn when we need help. We can count on fellow educators giving us ideas and resources that are valid and engaging that align with the standards.

It is also beneficial that you can find groups that are for anything in general or you can find groups that are specific to what you are looking for. You can also create a group and hope that it can benefit other educators as well as have others input to make it better. There are so many resources out there and this is a place to collaborate, review and find accurate content. 

eMedia groups really make sharing resources with teachers easy and effective. Materials can not only be shared within a deparatment in one school, but teachers from across the state can share their resources. This makes it so that teachers can spend less time creating very similar lesson plans and more time fine-tuning their techniques and focusing on teaching the studetns.

By collaborating with teachers across the state, this will definitely help build my PLN. As Katie mentioned in the class video, collaborating with eMedia groups really allows you to easily expand your connections beyond the walls of your own brick-and-mortar school. This has a great deal of far-reaching benefits.

I am excited to have learned about eMedia groups.  I see many benefits of joining individual groups within eMedia.  Being able to share resources among teachers is invaluable.  It saves so much time!  I love that many of the resources shared are editable or have given permission for others to change up to fit their teaching style.  I can see how helpful these groups will be in the future as I plan lessons and look for resources.  I have so much more success coming up with an engaging activity once I have someone else's ideas to bounce off of.  By meeting new people within eMedia groups of my interest, I will be able expand my professional learning network.  I look forward to learning from like minded educators, to get ideas from then, and discover and follow their social media platforms.

Finding people to bounce ideas off of is great.  It create a collaborative effort and benefits all the people involved. 

The benefits of eMedia groups are that teachers would come together to focus on the one subject that is in these groups whether it would be the use of Google or the use of Microsoft. These groups are a fantastic way to collaborate with other teachers in many ways such as sharing their love of Google or even their love of science. These groups would help me with my professional learning network because I would learn more from these teachers as well as figuring out how each teacher would put these thoughts together. 

I love how you pointed out teachers of the same subject would come together--especially teachers with similar interests in using similar digital tools! That would be great for developing new curriculum / materials!

eMedia groups would help me have a lot more interactions with teachers of my same subject! And I'd get to see what fun or innovative (and digital) things they are doing in their classroom. I'd also love to get feedback on my ideas this way, since that really helps me as a teacher and improve my practice. I could also see which participants are producing the work that most interests me and then reach out to them to potentially share, create, or get feedback on materials together. That wouldn't be possible without the eMedia groups making connections easier for all!

I like that you mentioned feedback.  Since I work at a small school my feedback loop is small. It would be helpful for me to receive feedback from others.  I also enjoy giving feedback to others so they can improve their work as well. 

Finding groups in eMedia that relate to my instructional topics will help me learn from other teachers in this content area.  It will help me see what resources others have created or found.  It is all about working together to make our instructional practices the best they can be.  I look forward to connecting with new teachers around the state. 

I could see how eMedia groups would be beneficial in my area.  Being a singleton teacher at my school, I find it valuable to collaborate with other teachers throughout the state.  I use google drive a lot with teachers in my district but it becomes difficult to work with others thorughout the state because some of the permission settings are restricted.  By using eMedia it would be easier to work with others in the same content area to come together to share and remix resources.  It would also open up other networking opportunities with those educators who I may have not connected with before.

The benefits of being part of a group with similar goals and interests are of great value for everyone. Being in your own world and desk trying to review old videos online that may or may not be relevant to your state is a thing of the past. Having an In-state network is always a plus as we all share the same goals and have t cover the same standards. In my case having someone to reach out for Spanish resources is great. 

I am planning on uploading resources I make or find to the groups I join. One of the main goals and ways to build my PLN will be to join other groups by grade, by subject, and by language. I believe that the more contributions I make the more I will receive frommy groups. 

The benefits of a group in eMedia are that you have chosen to be a part of a group that is pertinent to you and your profession. I am isolated in my school because I am the only SLP. I have a hard time knowing what I should and should not be doing. I have worked in the schools for 9 years, and I still feel like it is difficult for me to create lesson plans for my students and to find resources.

With the eMedia group SLPs in Education, I will have a place where I can look for ideas for new content. It will help me so I'm not creating everything myself, and it will be awesome to have a place where I can ask questions from others in the field. 

It really would be nice to use the content and resources found in these eMedia groups, instead of creating all materials and lessons from scratch. Why re-invent the wheel? Besides, working in these collaborative groups can help teach to the diverse needs of your students by bringing in different perspectives and ideas. 

There are so many benefits of Emedia groups. First, it's nice to have a place were others can share information on a topic! I think sometimes teacher feel they are the only ones having a hard time with a lesson. It's nice that teacher can join a group of other teachers and get ideas! Technology has really helped students and teachers feel connected with others. This emedia website is such a great resource for teachers! I really like that you can even start your own eMedia group and others can join and help you with your ideas! 

eMedia groups help build my professional learning network by allowing me to connect with other educators throughout the state and not only in my school or district. I think as educators, we need to expand our circle beyond the people we see everyday to get new ideas and perspectives. eMedia groups allow educators to do both in one location. I can come and find resources for a targeted topic and discuss with other educators interested in the same topic. I can see these groups really helping save time when looking for a certain subject or activity. Instead of searching through the whole catalog that is available, the group could be a faster way to find just what I am looking for. The groups are easy to navigate and find what each one has to offer.

I like that you pointed out how you can connect with educators outside of the state. I didn't really think of that, but what a resource to connect with educators all over! Teachers all over go to workshops and classes and have years of experience, and it would be cool if they all shared what they learned in these groups. 

eMedia groups are a great way to reach out to other educators who may have ideas or knowledge about what we need help with and we may get faster answers because there tend to me more people in the group.  I also think that as a recevetly returned teacher (ten year break) that I can find a lot of support from teachers who have been in the field and they can help me expand my knowledge and improve my resources.  eMedia groups can help me become a better teacher.

What a great idea to have emedia groups that are based on a certain topic or subject! It is very beneficial to learn from others, to be able to look at their resources, and to get ideas from their lesson plans. It is really handy to be a part of a group and look for helpful information relating to the subject or topic you are interested in. Then to be able to have discussions and share comments and receive insight on a topic could be really beneficial. I love collaborating with other teachers in my school and this would be another way to collaborate and learn from others but on a much wider scale which would really build my PLN as it reaches others all over the state. I'm looking forward to it! 

I liked your ideas they are very parallel to mine.As you said we need more collaboration to see the new improvements related to our own subjects.

The groups in eMedia are a great place to collaborate with other educators. Collaboration is such a vital key to good teaching both to help with lessons and ideas but also for assessment and working through student data. There never seems to be enough time to collaborate with other teachers. I think that eMedia groups provides another outlet for collaboration outside of your school. It opens up the opportunity to work with other teachers that may be focused on the same subjects or curriculum. I like that you can post resources in the groups which makes it easy for other teachers to use and share.

Using eMedia groups for collaboration and sharing of ideas and lessons helps build your professional learning network. Expanding your professional network is a great way to keep learning exciting with new ideas and lessons. These networks can also help teachers work through obstacles and problems that may arise in teaching.

One of the huge benefits of eMedia groups is being able to connect and collaborate with professionals outside of your school and even outside of your district. There are usually only 1 or 2 SLPs at a school so this is a great way to work with others and get therapy ideas for how others are working with students to make progress on IEP goals. EMedia groups would greatly extend my professional learning network by allowing me to be able to chat with SLPs all across Utah as well as outside of Utah. 

Tara, I like being part of e-media group. It is a huge resource for Utah educators, Many lesson plans, new ideas, tech tools are ready to use for us.

I feel more confident whenever I see the same group of educators who discuss an important topic for the benefit of their own professional development.E-media groups provides great opportunity for all types of educators to improve their own current subject knowledge. Collaboration is one of the most important skills for 21st-Century Teachers. Under certain classifications, we will be able to reach the most needed technological assistance, and pedagogical experience timely.

Educational technologies and instructional strategies also developed rapidly. We need to be informed of ongoing, and up to the date information. PLNs are very beneficial to getting all of these advantages.

E-Media is a great way to keep on top of the education standards and stay up to date with resources in technology. These collaborative groups are a great way to connect with others and share ideas and resources.

This is really neat! I am a part of dozens of Facebooks groups that attempt to do something similar to eMedia Groups. However, resources are shared, questions are asked and answers, yet it's very difficult to sift through so many posts that may seem irrelevant to what you are looking for at the time. Therefore, eMedia groups discussion is an excellent way to connect with a PLN in your state who are familiar with your specific CCSS and expectations. It also keeps resources organized and free of random content. I would like to see more ed tech groups and ELA groups, as well. Maybe I will start one :)

The resources on eMedia are so searchable you could easily find the resources you are looking for that others share and everything here is connected to state standards.

The eMedia groups can help teachers all over connect and collaborate with one another. It is a great way to share lesson plans and ideas you find with other educators teaching the same standards and concepts to their students. It can save teachers time and energy so they aren't creating every unit or lesson on their own. This is a great resource for new teachers who could use lessons created by others as well.

The benefits of joining an emedia group are connecting to others with similar interests and shared resources. Having a group that can share ideas and support new learning. As i was browsing the resources I noticed many individuals that are from the same organization and I can connect with them on a professional level as well. These emedia resources can help build a PLN in the same way allowing connection with others through shared interests. I also like that I am able to build my local PLN by sharing these resources with team members and seeing them get excited about what is available to them.