Beyond this course, I plan to further my digital identity by making an effort to work on the ‘Interactivity and connectivity’ piece of building a PLN. With regard to this stage, it is said that “to obtain knowledge produced from the activity performed in the network” (Morgado & Oliveira, 2014, pp.473) “dialogue and interaction [must occur] between members of the network” (Morgado & Oliveira, 2014, pp.473). Therefore, I think that it is important for me, moving forward in my career, to try to engage more with others on social media. In addition, in order to ensure that this dialogue can be two-way, I think that I will have to make it a priority to create some content of my own. Having a digital identity in my chosen field of Health Informatics is crucial to ensuring continual professional development and learning, and often comes with opportunities such as the chance to collaborate on projects, job offers, invitations to events, and invitations to speak at events. In any tech-oriented industry, it is important that the community is well connected and is making an effort to learn continuously as technology tends to change and adapt at a rapid pace. These connections in addition, ensure that good ideas in our space spread and can be adopted far from where ideas originated.

Throughout my time in post secondary, I have been connecting with peers, professors and professionals in the community in an attempt to build a mix of ‘strong’ and ‘weak’ ties in my PLN. I have met most of my connections through school, but have connected with some at extracurricular events, and through volunteering. I do think that as I progress through steps of my career that I will be able to rely on my PLN for professional opportunities. Many graduates of my program stay connected with one another and collaborate on projects, or come back to guest lecture for certain classes. I have also heard stories from others in my cohort of receiving offers to interview through LinkedIn. It should be noted, however that these students tend to have professional headshots on their profiles, and extensive co-op experience. So while connections are important, you also must have the knowledge, credentials and online presence to warrant people wanting to reach out to you.

References
Zaphiris, P., & Ioannou, A. (2014). Learning and Collaboration Technologies. Technology-Rich Environments for Learning and Collaboration First International Conference, LCT 2014, Held as Part of HCI International 2014, Heraklion, Crete, Greece, June 22-27, 2014, Proceedings, Part II. Cham, Switzerland: Springer International Publishing.

PLNs can help give power to messaging by increasing the reach of messages. Examples of this effect include ideas ‘trending’ on platforms like Twitter, and concepts going viral on the Internet in general. When content attracts attention and gains traction in this way it can benefit individuals, causes, and communities. The type of benefit to be gained is sometimes financial but can also include increased awareness and knowledge of topics, or incitement of a desire to support change in certain capacities.
For example, by offering to guest lecture for EDCI 338, Brad Baker increases Indigenous representation and brings attention to the importance of continued representation of Indigenous stories within the classroom.

Some of the most important lessons there are to be learned often do take place in environments beyond the classroom. Traditionally this has included places such as our homes as well as the places we work, volunteer, and socialize. Most recently with the advent of personal computers, mobile phones, and social media, a lot of learning has been taking place online. A good example of some of the places that online learning can occur can be found in my third blog post, where the V&R map, I have created can be found. I think that because information can be spread so rapidly through social platforms, what is most pertinent to learners can change very quickly, and education needs to be responsive to the needs, values, and interests of students.

Using online tools students are able to further knowledge learned from inside of the classroom through discussion with peers or further research, find new ways of contextualizing information, as well as ways to connect existing knowledge to new topics. As well, thanks to technology, this type of research and discourse can occur at any time of day. The increased accessibility of such resources that a PLN provides can also act to promote an attitude of lifelong learning even long after one’s post-secondary education or career-related training has been completed.

I think that the potential for collaboration that PLNs offer helps the development of thoughts and ideas in education discourse tremendously. With the utilization of PLNs in education, many of the principles of collectivism can be met. Some of the principles of collectivism include beliefs such as learning knowledge rest[ing] in diversity, fostering and maintaining connections critical to knowledge generation,
understanding the meaning of information through a lens of shifting reality (Veletsianos, 2010), etc. PLNs are also necessary to being able to produce ‘open teachers’ and facilitate ‘open teaching’ (Veletsianos, 2010).

An example of a hindrance to the development of thoughts in education discourse would be the social norms associated with different learning environments or resources that come to be prevalent and dictate what is acceptable to be discussed.

Some challenges that come with utilizing social media communications in education settings are professional boundaries, professional conduct, and confidentiality/privacy. A good example of a professional boundary could look like a doctor on YouTube knowing that he or she is not able to provide medical advice to people in the comments due to issues relating to liability in providing advice to people who are not patients of theirs. An example of a violation of professional conduct for example could look like a person deciding to post a picture of themselves attending a party during a pandemic, for example, and losing professional credibility (which would have a strong impact on a person’s PLN). It is also important to maintain confidentiality if say a certain piece of information is one that you have not been permitted to share publicly with others.

References
Miller, Jesse. “EDCI 338 – BRAD BAKER.” YouTube, uploaded by MILLER, 04 Mar. 2021, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dy63SmEpvCw.

Emerging Technologies in Distance Education, by George Veletsianos, AU Press, 2010, pp. 128–138.

Notable individuals, such as Jody Vance who are already well-established in a field tend to use social media to explore new opportunities, create new connections, maintain old connections, and to produce or consume information across various platforms. Staying open to new opportunities and keeping up to date in a field are very important in today’s gig economy’ (Hirst, 2018), in which it is more important than ever to build and maintain connections and market one’s own brand, in a time where many have difficulties, obtaining and retaining employment within a chosen field. One of the benefits of being in the public eye and having a PLN that stood out most to me as mentioned by Jody was the ability to rely on members of your PLN for new opportunities in times of hardship, such as following layoffs at a job. Despite management at Jody’s Citytv job perhaps considering her role there with them redundant, because Jody was in the public eye, and had a strong PLN, others could clearly see her value, and she was able to get back on her feet again in a very short period of time. I think it’s important to remember that for every critic or competitor there is that may be out there, that there is also likely someone else who will want to support you on a professional level. A great example of this is the way that Scott Moore supported Jody Vance when she was closer to the beginning of her career.

Some of the risks of engaging with a public audience in a media space, particularly as a public figure or person in a position of trust, are that while such ‘exposure’ can be hugely beneficial for one’s career, there are also a lot of repercussions for missteps. As Jody mentioned, it can take many years or even a lifetime to build one’s reputation in the public eye and to build trust with an audience, however, reputation and trust can be easily destroyed in seconds (Vance, 2021) when for example a notable figure becomes surrounded by scandal. There are many recent and highly publicized examples of this happening in the world, especially since the advent of ‘cancel culture’. An example of a scandal an individual could be involved with could do with the provision of misinformation, for example. To mitigate a risk such as this, it is important to thoroughly research a topic before posting about it and to make sure that you gather information from reputable sources. To help gauge whether a specific individual is a trustworthy source of information, you can look to their educational background as well as whether they have any relevant peer-reviewed publications within the field you are interested in writing about. For other types of risks, it is important to consistently stick to a predetermined code of ethics that guide one’s online conduct.

I think one of the best ways to respond to negative replies and critiques is to learn from them and to take responsibility for whatever action that triggered the criticism if such criticism is valid. If it is not, as Jody mentioned we can ‘delete the jerks’ (Vance, 2021) from our direct messages, or provide some sort of rebuttal, as she described in the scenario with Don Cherry. When criticism is valid, it can be tremendously useful in one’s professional development.

Finally, with respect to building a community with online tools provided by an employer, there often are many restrictions on the content that employees are allowed to post, as well as many rules that dictate the way that employees are to conduct themselves in an online setting. I have, in fact, even heard cases of management monitoring private conversations that happen between employees through platforms such as Slack. Regardless of these restrictions, I think that the professional relationships that you can build with others in this setting are the most valuable asset that come of being a part of such a community. These professional relationships often endure and can prove useful even after you or others in your professional network decide to move onto new opportunities.

References

Hirst, Martin. Navigating Social Journalism. New York: Routledge, 2018. Print.

Vance, Jody. Balancing PLN & Public Discourse Jesse Miller. 28 February 2021. Web.

“Advocacy is an umbrella term that describes a method, approach and series of tools used to change policies and practices, reform institutions, alter power relations, change attitudes and behaviours and give project work a broader impact” (Begloian, 2016). Advocacy can take place online or offline and across a variety of mediums. Advocacy on social media platforms for example has become particularly popular, as it can be used to inform a vast public audience on various issues, in a way that is accessible to many and easy to understand. Advocacy communications in general as a colleague of mine pointed out @callim, “require clear objectives, knowledge of the intended audience, and language that is appropriate for that audience that is short, specific, and to the point” (@callim, 2021), which makes social media a particularly effective place for advocacy and advocacy related conversations to take place. The way that advocacy tends to look depends on the social media platform that is being used.

For example:

@django. “Paying $23 for a lukewarm hamburger delivered by a guy who has never had health insurance, our economy is running flawlessly”. Twitter, 13 Feb. 2021, 4:03 p.m., https://twitter.com/django/status/1360741374673436673
Figure 1. A typical post whose message is that America requires major political and structural changes.

Source: https://www.mprnews.org/story/2014/09/03/is-the-political-debate-dead
Figure 2. An example of an interactive campaign that includes diverse voices in the conversation about why we should work to abolish student debt and put more effort into helping underemployed students find opportunities.

Source: https://issuu.com/anselmolucio/docs/its_not_just_the_content_its_the_business_model__2/s/10354166
Figure 3. Facebook ads are used here by Joe Biden to extend the reach of his campaigning.

Source: @sywtta. “I just hit 1 million followers on Instagram 🤯. For the good stuff: https://t.co/qFSgs6GRtJ?amp=1.” Twitter, 1 Aug. 2020, 8:29 p.m., https://twitter.com/sywtta/status/1289765237306953728
Figure 4. An Instagram blog that informs users on progressive political and social issues in a graphic slideshow format.

It is important to have a diverse and inclusive PLN in social media sharing with political content for example because we are all stakeholders. It is particularly important to reach disenfranchised groups and to ensure they know that certain organizations and individuals may have their best interests at heart for example, during an election. It is also important to hear the voices of these people online and consider their messages as we change policies and practices and reform institutions so that we can move towards a place where one’s gender, sexuality, race, and socioeconomic status have less bearing on people’s rights and overall quality of life. A relevant example of this being done is in the way that Markiel Simpson utilizes social media to promote the messaging of the BC Community Alliance.

In recent years, social media use in public discourse has frequently challenged advocacy communications. One example of this was former President Donald Trump’s tweets. Typically, reactions were mixed when he would tweet, with a large majority critically dissecting and refuting his messaging and others (unfortunately) taking it at face value. I think it was important for users to be discussing and challenging these sorts of dangerous messages, actions, and opinions such that the public would not be likely to reinstate Trump for another term.

I would say that my PLN does indeed amplify the views of others. I for example have some resources related to the Black Lives Matter movement in my Instagram bio and try to repost content related to the non-profit I am working with when I feel it is appropriate. While I am not directly impacted by the things that members of the Black Community face, I feel as though it is important to be an ally by spreading their message in the hope that things can change for this group of people. The non-profit that I am involved with, called Looking Glass has done much of its advocacy online this year, including participating in the #EDAW2021 campaign, promoting a petition for increased funding and policy amendment with respect to eating disorder treatment, as well as advertising and hosting their usual in-person fundraising gala completely online!

Most employers have strict policies regulating their employees’ use of social media. In the Medical community, for example, professionals are forbidden from sharing identifying details about patients and specific patient encounters. Most businesses in addition do not allow employees to publish certain information or intellectual property in general, or to speak on their behalf on social media unless the post content is approved by that organization’s PR team. It is also expected that employees conduct themselves professionally online on all identifiable accounts.

One rule that I think guides more effective social media use is the concept of getting out what you put into it. The more you actively engage with others online and their content, the more opportunities there are to learn things.

References

Begloian, Anush. “What is Advocay and How Can It Help?” 2016. Culture Partnership. online. 24 February 2021.

Collins, Bob. MPR News. 3rd September 2014. Online. 24th February 2021.

Lucio, Anselmo. Issuu. 2020. Online. 24th February 2021.

Simpson, Markiel. “EDCI 338 – 2021 – 02 – 22 MARKIEL SIMPSON.”  22 Feb. 2021. doi: https://youtu.be/yCSpm1Lx8-A

If I were tasked with creating a PLN prior to engaging in a social media campaign, I would make sure to follow relevant organizations and thought leaders or advocates in professions related to that topic across a variety of social networks (LinkedIn, Instagram, blogs, etc.).
As an example, the non-profit that I volunteer with called the Looking Glass Foundation in Vancouver just participated in an annual campaign called “Eating Disorders Awareness Week’. This campaign involved a vast variety of participants including other non-profits, health authorities, dieticians, counsellors, and members of the public. During each day of Eating Disorders Awareness Week, Looking Glass would publish a new educational post, and would typically tag other partners in the area or across Canada to engage more individuals and facilitate increased participation. Looking Glass also used a specific hashtag for this occasion which was “EDAW2021” in order to create an easily searchable back-channel (Woods, 2013) for this event. In addition to this, organizers also arranged for different monuments across Canada to be lit up in purple in advance to increase awareness of the event, such as The Calgary Tower.

To be seen as a leader in a space of my choice, I would need to be well-informed on a topic, and be vocal, which would look like producing my own content as well as engaging with a variety of partners in the community and across the world. In order to help raise my profile, I would ensure that I have a strong and consistent personal and professional digital identity that is genuine, and try to ensure that
my PLN is an inclusive space, where commentary is respectful and everyone is welcome.


References
Woods, Bianca. “Building your own PLN: seeking new insights and ideas? Expand your personal learning network.” T+D, vol. 67, no. 11, Nov. 2013, p. 70+. Gale OneFile: Business, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A348998538/ITBC?u=uvictoria&sid=ITBC&xid=1010abdf. Accessed 15 Feb. 2021.

Retrieved from “Blogsomemoore”
https://blogsomemoore.com/

Many companies have embraced diversity in opening-up opportunities to those of different cultures and beliefs, however, the effects of intergenerational poverty on access to opportunities are still overlooked, meaning that many still do not have an equal chance at achieving career success compared to those from more affluent backgrounds. I believe that more can still be done in education and in creating hiring practices that can better address this fundamental inequity.
From my experience, many workplaces are still relatively homogeneous. Even when we hire people from a variety of backgrounds, we still tend to end up with many people coming from similar socioeconomic backgrounds, who attended the same schools, with the same hobbies, and so forth.
I think that we need to begin to consider how a more disprivileged background can affect career prospects beginning from a child’s first exposure to education. Supports in school (as a piece of a child’s PLN) need to be available for children who start out with fewer resources or have unique learning needs perhaps due to ADHD or Autism. In addition, I believe that as much as possible that children should be kept ‘together’ (Moore, 2018) in order to remain a part of one another’s PLNs and to enable children to learn from one another.
A relevant example to how a diverse PLN and set of resources can make a difference in a person’s career prospects lie in the common ask for ‘good communication skills’. In other words, this can be understood to mean a person who is confident, well-spoken and is effective at written communication. What this ask fails to consider, however, is that such skills can only really be developed if one has had the privilege to allow for these skills to be nurtured.
With respect to recruitment, even when candidates come from relatively privileged middle-class backgrounds which would have allowed relatively equitable access to education, attaining a point of entry into one’s field of interest can still be a challenge.
This came to be exemplified in the attitude of a recruiter at a networking event that I recently attended.
On a surface level, she explained that she loved to match suitable applicants to roles and to create opportunities for people. However, she gave many subtle signs that she had an underlying belief that none of the students in attendance were qualified to be suitable for relevant work within the industry she was hiring within. For example, she opened by saying ‘I’m sure many of you have applied to us and have heard nothing back”. She then began to plug her ‘talent on demand’ program that effectively asked individuals to welcome the idea of temporary work that would not provide individuals with a reliable income because of perceived inexperience. I thought this was an interesting thing to say to a room full of students with extremely relevant degrees and experience without knowing a single thing about anyone in attendance. She then went on to relay an anecdote about how a candidate with an ‘unusual background’ in Philosophy whom she did not think would be successful as a Project Manager ended up being ‘fantastic’ in the role. This seemed proof to me that traditional hiring practices DO NOT guarantee us the best candidate and that our strategies around recruitment could use an overhaul. There is an extreme amount of pressure to following graduation to land ‘the right job’ in markets that are competitive and oversaturated, and the challenge is even greater in times of economic downturn.
I think that one’s resources growing up and one’s PLN and supports or connections can make all the difference in who is ultimately chosen to be given a chance in the business place.
I think that having a diverse PLN in school and in the workplace is the only way to learn. If we are not exposed to different ideas, if our ideas, realities, and perceptions are never challenged, then we will never grow or learn. We can learn so much from one another. In addition, we often fear what we do not understand, and this can often act to divide us as people. I think that diversifying our PLNs is an absolutely necessary way to further our learning and to better understand and appreciate those around us. And in order for others to feel comfortable enough to welcome us into their truth and to share their knowledge with us, inclusion is paramount.

In terms of my existing PLN, I would say that it’s fairly diverse. Since Health Informatics is multidisciplinary in nature, I find I am following accounts that relate to Health, Technology, and Business. I am connected to a lot of my peers on LinkedIn and on Facebook messenger who come from similar backgrounds and to a few professionals in my industry. I used to tend to participate in a silo of information sharing, but I have lately been trying to expand my horizons by following a variety of different accounts and individuals and making an effort to hear their stories. Out of personal interest, I follow accounts related to mental health, art, science, environmental issues, politics, comedy, etc.
A diverse PLN certainly can broaden one’s view of inclusion. I still think there is more room in all of our PLNs to expand to include the voices of those whose realities we know little about. Something in addition to this that I would still like to change is my lack of participation on a lot of online platforms.

References
Moore, Shelley. “The Evolution of Inclusion“. YouTube, uploaded by Five Moore Minutes, 1 October 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQgXBhPh5Zo&feature=youtu.be.(02:12-02:18).

A digital identity is a person’s entire “presence online” (Stoller, 2016). This consists of everything individuals post, how one interacts with others online, and how one’s digital content affects how one is perceived by others. Some examples of what it could include are an individual’s social media profiles, one’s “body of work, portfolio, blog, and tweets” (Stoller, 2016). Also included would be to which groups or networks an individual belongs to online. Each person can be distinguished from another online via their unique digital identity.
Typically, a digital professional identity is only a component of one’s entire digital identity. One’s social media use will differ greatly depending on whether one intends to use a platform for personal or professional uses. Typically, social media use for professional purposes is characterized by a greater level of restraint with which one generates content and interacts with content online. As well, a social media presence professionally is typically cultivated for a purpose. Personal usage of social media is typically for the purpose of leisure or to nurture personal interests (Spracklen, 2015). Both approaches to digital identity can contribute to helping form one’s identity as an individual and to finding a sense of belonging online (Spracklen, 2015).

“People have always found a sense of community and belonging through social networks” (Spracklen, 2015) which are typically “organized around a past that is imagined or constructed from myths of belonging or exclusion” (Spracklen, 2015). Each ‘imagined identity’ or the norms that are associated with each community of individuals influences those who wish to join that group.
Often the right sort of “performative behaviour” (Spracklen, 2015) needs to be displayed to allow for an individual to be permitted to join a certain group or community. In this way, digital identities can converge in networked publics. Aggregations of digital identity can be of use in the tracking of user habits online and this data is often of great interest and value to companies.

A digital wallet would also be considered part of one’s digital identity. A digital wallet could consist of payment information, passwords, cards, passports, etc. A digital wallet essentially contains all the tools that one needs to participate in society. While digital wallets provide an easy way to verify identity, information, and complete transactions, they are precisely the reason that sometimes phones can be a greater target for theft than a wallet in recent times. As well, if someone has access to your phone or an account of yours that is logged into, that individual without having to verify their identity can essentially impersonate you for whatever purpose they desire.

With “more and more people, businesses and devices interacting online” (George et al., 2019), the benefits that come with having a digital identity are numerous. Much of our business is conducted online or has shifted to being conducted online in recent years. Having a digital identity in this type of environment means having greater access to a range of meaningful opportunities (George et al., 2019). For example, job recruitment is conducted almost exclusively online these days. Websites such as Indeed.com, craigslist and company’s own websites have largely replaced the classified section of the newspaper. As well, digital identities allow us easier access to services such as banking, prescriptions, doctor’s appointments (George et al., 2019), etc. In such a way, it is faster than ever to complete transactions, sign and submit documents, and complete many other tasks. Hence why many telecommunication companies for example recommend you use their online help portal prior to calling or making an in-person visit.

However without access to a phone, computer, or the internet, many can become excluded (George et al., 2019) from participating in our increasingly technologically driven modern society. As laws, civil society, and professional spaces engage the accountability of digital identity, I feel that it is important to regulate what organizations are entitled to do with personal information, and for there to be some accountability in keeping our data safe. I think that Estonia’s model of “giving information only once” (George et al., 2019) and citizens owning their own data is a good example to follow. Something that I would like to see is more of is transparency with privacy related clauses as well as security audits and overall enhanced security.

References
Kilekani Nandan, Kubzansky Mike, Manju George, Ratas Jüri, Snapp Mary. “Press Conference. The Value of Digital Identity for Global Economy and Society”. You Tube, uploaded by The World Economic Forum, 5 February 2019, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-V7lyxrOmw&feature=youtu.be

Spracklen K. (2015) Identity-Making and Social Media. In: Digital Leisure, the Internet and Popular Culture. Leisure Studies in a Global Era. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137405876_6

Stoller, Eric. “What is Digital Identity.” You Tube, uploaded by University of Derby, 25 November 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0RryRbJza0&feature=youtu.be.& (0:05-0:06, 0:29-0:32)

Image Credits: Google