Personal learning plans (PLPs)

What is the goal of the PLP?

The goal is of the PLP is to link it to lifelong learning goals and annual performance targets (Brown, Cooper & Ward, 2002). PLPs offer simple step-wise strategies to address what you want to learn and, within your organization, assist others in reaching their goals. PLPs, although not new to teachers or physicians, have received scant attention in librarianship. That said, PLPs help to direct learning accordingly and to encourage reflective practice, and should be viewed as a tool to help librarians reach their goals on an annual basis.

In summary, PLPs help you to understand:

• what you need to learn (e.g., clearly articulated learning objective(s) or essential question(s) you face in your work)
• why you need to learn new knowledge and identified skills
• how you are going to learn these skills
• how you will know when you have learned them
• in what time frame you are going to learn
• how your intentions link to past and future learning

PLPs are also known by other names such as learning agreements, learning contracts, personal development planning, personal auditing, personal action planning and learner profiling. A related concept is documenting your learning using an ePortfolio, a term which many scholars and researchers are using to share their research interests and their pedagogies. (Here is an example of a personal learning plan).

Principles of PLPs

Essentially, the principles that help you to identify and achieve your professional goals are similar for the PLP:

• your autonomy as a practitioner helps you to find ways to meet your goals
• while there is integration of theory and practice in your work, your responsibility is to apply theory to practice
• your motivation to learn is enhanced by a learning plan with clearly-stated objectives
• planned learning is open to change in PLPs, and should adjust as your needs and circumstances change throughout the year

One aspect linking the various approaches to personal learning plans is the use of mentors (or colleague) to support you in your learning and professional development.

Personal learning environment (PLEs)

The idea of an actual place or environment for your personal learning looms rather large in the field of education. There are many definitions of a personal learning environment but Stephen Downes says that a PLE is "...a personal learning centre, where content is reused and remixed according to the student's own needs and interests. It becomes, indeed, not a single application, but a collection of interoperating applications — an environment rather than a system. (Downes, 2005, E-learning 2.0, E-learn Magazine). Graham Atwell looks at PLEs as a tool to support online learning, and says a PLE "... recognises the role of the individual in organising their own learning. Moreover, the pressures for a PLE are based on the idea that learning will take place in different contexts and situations and will not be provided by a single learning provider..." Linked to this idea is the recognition of the importance of informal learning in the daily lives of professional librarians (Giustini, 2009). (See also Integrated PLEs.)

Personal learning networks (PLNs)

A PLN can be defined as a collection of resources (whether human or virtual) that provide learning and developmental opportunities. In the past, a PLN referred to the people, goals and connections that made learning possible; see David Warlick’s article and Stephen Downes blog post “Origins of the Term ‘Personal Learning Network'. Buffy Hamilton has created a great video highlighting the professional use of PLNs by librarians in several sectors of our profession.

Social media PLPs

The following are examples of web 2.0 programs:

• 23 Things for Professional Development blog

23 Things is a self-directed course aimed at introducing you to a range of tools that could help your personal and professional development as a librarian or information professional. Each week, a librarian writes about a tool from a list of 23 things and invites you to try it out and/or reflect on how it might help you in your professional development. Some tasks are practical things for you to try and some are less immediate in value.

• Twenty-Three (23) Things

This is the original 23 things program developed for the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County (PLCMC) which has become a staff training model for many library systems. Designed by PLCMC's technology director, Helene Blowers, and based on Abram’s 43 Things I (or You) Might Want To Do This Year, the program presents 23 activities to develop your information technology skills and awareness. These include instructions on blogging, using Flickr and photo mashups, online image generators, LibraryThing, RSS feeds, tagging, folksonomies, wikis, online applications, podcasts, and AV production. See Learning 2.0 for the program and links to other libraries using the program.

• Academic Library Social Media Training Plan:

This is an eight-week program designed for a fictitious university library as an assignment by three students at the University of British Columbia’s School of Library Archival and Information Studies in Fall 2009. Though aimed at academic libraries, the plan would be useful in public libraries as well. The modules include instruction and practice on blogs, micro-blogging, instant messaging, media sharing, social bookmarking/cataloging, social networking, and wikis.

References

• Brown S, Cooper K, Ward R. Supporting personal developing planning with IT: a guide for busy managers. 2002.
• Bullock K, Wikeley F. Improving learning in year 9: making use of personal learning plans. Educational Studies. 1999;25:19-33.
• Carrotte P, Walker AD, Rennie JS, Ball G, Dodd M. Personal learning plans for general dental practitioners: a Scottish perspective. British Dental Journal 2003;194:627-31.
• Downes S. New technologies to support informal learning. J Emerg Tech Web Intelligence. 2010;2:27-33.
• Seven things you should know about personal learning environments (PLEs). Educause.
• Florea M. Using webCT, wiki spaces and ePortfolios for teaching and building information literacy skills. J Libr Administration. 2008;48(3/4):411-430.
• Foti S, Ring GL. From ePortfolios to iPortfolios: find, refine, design, and bind model. Can J Learn Tech 2008;34.3.
• Giustini D. Tipping point(s): informal learning for health librarians in an economic downturn." JCHLA / JABSC. 2009;30.3:113–116.
• Grant S, Jones P, Ward R. E-portfolio and its relationship to personal development planning: a view from the UK for Europe and beyond. 2004.
• Hart J. How to use Twitter for social learning. Centre for performance and learning technologies. Social learning academy. 2010.
• Hiradhar P, Gray J. From a social digital identity to an academic digital identity: Introducing ePortfolios in English language enhancement courses. Can J Learn Tech. 2008;34.3.
• Malone D. Inquiry-based early childhood teacher preparation: the personal learning plan method. Early Childhood Education J. 2008;35(6):531-542.
• Massis BE. Continuing professional education: ensuring librarian engagement. New Library World. 2010;111(5/6):247-249
• Massis BE. Developing a personal learning plan. In: The challenges to library learning: solutions for librarians. Abingdon: Routledge, 2008.
• Middleton J. A reflective log linked to personal development plans (PDPs) and the practice professional development plan (PPDP). Ed Primary Care. 2005;16(5):593-596.
• Sigala M. Integrating web 2.0 in e-learning environments: a socio-technical approach. Int J Knowledge and Learning. 2007;3(6):628–648.
• Siriwardena AN. The acceptability of personal learning plans in vocational training. Postgrad Med J. 1997;73(859):289-92.
• Van Es JM, Visser MR. Do GP trainers use feedback in drawing up their personal development plans (PDPs)? Results from a quantitative study. Med Teach. 2012 Apr 11.
• Walker AD. Personal learning plans for general dental practitioners, a Scottish experience. Br Dent J. 2003;194(9):509-13.
• Ward R, Richardson H. Personalised learning plans in lifelong learning networks. Centre for Recording Achievement, 2007.