Personal learning networks (PLNs) are well known as teacher resources for professional development; their collaborative and ever-evolving nature make them fantastic places for collecting, interacting with, and learning from diverse up-to-date content. This is essentially the same kind of input and interaction that language learners should be getting as they endeavor to keep up their studies and motivation to take in more language and improve their skills. PLNs, then, can offer immense benefits to language students if they are made aware of how to create and utilize them. The question then becomes how to best train students to use them. Kumaravadivelu’s (2003) tripartite concept of pedagogy as possibility, practicality, and particularity provides a model for teachers to aid students in setting up their own PLNs.

The three aforementioned divisions of the practice of teaching language that Kumaravadivelu (2003) envisioned are further broken down in his model into macrostrategies for teaching. The three macrostrategies most directly affected by student use of PLNs are “maximizing learner opportunities,” “promoting learner autonomy,” and “contextualizing linguistic input.” Viewing the PLN-creation website, companion app, and Chrome extension Pearltrees through the lens of these three macrostrategies can help explain how PLNs are powerful tools for English language learners.

Maximizing Learner Opportunities

The digital nature of PLNs allows students to access input for their receptive skills as well as practice for their productive skills at any time. The screenshot in Figure 1 shows an example of a student’s Pearltrees homepage. This what the screen looks like upon opening the app or web version. In this example, the student has chosen images to represent each category. Clicking any one of the images takes the student into a folder where they have saved materials they have sought out either in class or independently.

Figure 1. Pearltrees student homepage.

Promoting Learner Autonomy

When students have ample (essentially infinite) opportunities to practice their language skills, they are empowered to take control of their own skill development. Pearltrees allows this through its ease of access to so much content. However, having access to and knowing how to use content well are two different realities. Teachers need to spend time showing students what good autonomous practice through a PLN looks like. An in-class activity in which the teacher models searching for, finding, and adding a specific web material to the Pearltrees PLN should be followed up with brief activities discussing what to do with the material once it is collected. For example, a teacher may guide students to find a website that has audio recordings for English language learners, such as ELLLO or listenandwrite.com. Teachers should then go on to show students that they can listen to and pause the recording and try to write down new words that they hear. After that, they can check for spelling and meaning of the new term using Google or the transcript (if one is available), and then they can continue listening to the rest of the recording and repeat the process for new words or phrases. Productive skills can also be practiced through PLNs. The screen shot in Figure 2 of a student PLN shows that pronunciation is an area of interest for the student and that it is an area that can be practiced quite a bit with tutorial videos, explanations, and practice exercises.

Figure 2. Pearltrees screenshot of student speaking page.

Contextualizing Linguistic Input

One of the greatest strengths of a PLN is giving students the chance to choose their own context. Students should find ways to incorporate their own interests into their language practice by adding online content from journals, magazines, and organizations that deal with topics in their field. An easy way to do this is to help students find luminaries in their chosen field or people they are interested in and have them follow these individuals on Twitter. Pearltrees can serve as a great place to keep all of the websites that are not on Twitter in one place for students to access any time. Figure 3 shows the reading section of a student PLN. This student has an interest in comics, so they have added pages that allow them to see those comics. Some, like the “We Are New York” page, are geared toward ESL, while others, like Readcomics.to are not, so there is a nice mix of scaffolded and authentic text.

Figure 3. Pearltrees screenshot of student reading page.

Having students select the materials is a crucial part of the process. Success in getting students to frequently access their PLN requires students to be excited about the content they will encounter when they open it up. Suggesting good learning resources as a jumping off point and then allowing students to seek out their own contributions ensures student ownership and engagement in the PLN they create.

Conclusion

We can introduce to students the use of PLNs as a digital space for them to get tailored target language input and practice their language skills outside of the classroom and to help them become more autonomous, engaged learners. Pearltrees is a free, exciting app and website for creating, adding to, and easily accessing that student-specific content. With this app, teachers can help students transform their phones and digital devices as well as their free time into tools and opportunities for language skill improvement. Being able to frequently check or play on a digital device can lead to a targeted boost in English language practice as students easily access content suited to their level, interests, and goals.

References

Kumaravadivelu, B. (2003). A postmethod perspective on English language teaching. World Englishes 22(4). 539-550. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-971X.2003.00317.x

As an English for academic purposes specialist and international educator at Missouri State University, Kurtis Foster enjoys seeking out the intersections of student experience where community meets the classroom and interest becomes engagement. He has explored this nexus through teaching and curriculum development at Missouri State University, in partnership with the Sister Cities Association, Isesaki, Japan, and at Kyungnam University, Changwon-shi, Republic of Korea. His current research focus is English as an international language and its contributions to better language skill attainment and improved intercultural communication.