PLN for effective PLN

Personality tests, Learning about yourself, and New insight; how these affect engagement in Professional Learning Networks. 


I have always been intrigued by personality tests. I find it fascinating which questions are used and how the algorithm works to then generate information about personality. At times I feel like these questions have nothing to do the type of personality information given in the results, but the results always seem to be near what I would expect. I took three personality tests and will share the results and then connect these results to professional learning network engagement. 

16 Personalities Test 

According to this test I am an INTP Logician.


Image Credit - Screenshot of Logician Explanation from 16 Personalities Test


Image Credit - Screenshot of Results from 16 Personalities Test


I think that the Logician fits me pretty well. For example, while I am very unlikely to start a conversation with someone I do not know (an introverted characteristic), I am happy to engage in a conversation someone else starts. This preference of conversation is true for me both personally and professionally. 

This test provides some great insights as it provides strengths and weaknesses.

Image Credit - Screenshot of Strengths and Weaknesses from 16 Personalities Test


My Personality Test

My Personality Test result was an INTJ. According to the results page only 2.9% of the population is an INTJ. 

To quote a portion of the results page, 
  • "You are a great problem solver." 
  • "...you are able to visualize where your project or company is headed and make a plan to achieve your goals." 
  • "You always try to learn from your mistakes, doing your best to avoid making the same ones again in the future." 
  • "You have no problem playing the devil's advocate and poling holes in others' arguments and ideas. ... You must remind yourself to make others feel heard, even when you don't agree." 




I have completed this test before and I have received the same results. I do love playing the devil's advocate and this can be both a positive and a negative in PLN discussions. It is a positive as it allows further discussion and sharing of rationales. This can become a negative if taken too far, or if the recipient takes it personally. Now, while playing devil's advocate the tone of delivery and exact word choice can also help mitigate any negative affects.  


FiveThirtyEight Test


Image Credit - Screenshot from FiveThirtyEight Test Results

The above are the overall results. Here again we see an inclination to being more introverted. The FiveThirtyEight test results also take a bit deeper of a look into the five areas, those screen shots are shown below. 





The agreeableness levels seem high while all other parts of the results seem correct to me, and more inline with the other personality tests. One of the aspects of high conscientiousness is being well organized. I seem to struggle with times where I am highly organized and then other times were that organization slips. The organization usually slips the most when many deadlines and projects converge. This is consistent with the 16 Personalities Test result showing being deadline challenged as a weakness. 







Area to Strengthen : Time Management and Deadline Challenges

Each school year I have made strides to get better at time and materials management. This year deadlines seem to be giving me the most problems. I am able to meet them, but I have had many late nights and early mornings to accomplish this. A mix of procrastination, overbooking, and distracted multitasking have also played a role in pushing work too close to the deadlines. 

Step 1: I have been inconsistent with using a planner. The first step is to reimplement this use and be consistent. By the end of October I will have returned to regularly using Planboard by Chalk as both a lesson plan organizer and a planner for both school and other requirements. I will set aside time each Sunday and Wednesday to make sure future events are noted and everything is set in the planner. 

Step 2: One of my current deadline challenges is the ability to focus. Right now I have so many different tasks I get caught up in choosing where to start that I delay beginning. To help alleviate this I am going to try and implement the Pomodoro Technique, working for 25 minutes and then taking a 5 minute break. Once four cycles have been completed a longer break is usually given. For me, I can work on any task for 25 minutes and then if I need to switch I can, but I will have made progress. I will being implementing this technique this week. One of the great aspects of this technique is that if you finish a task part way through a work cycle, the remaining time should still be used for work. This will help increase overall productivity. 

In step 1 I have address the general organization of materials and knowing key deadlines. In step 2 I am addressing the time management and productivity needed to reach the deadlines. 


Step 3: Task prioritization will be the last main step. Currently I am using lists, but sometimes these lists on digital and sometimes I write them out on paper. For this step I am going to determine what actually works best for me to keep a list of tasks with associated due dates and prioritizations. I am going to look at paper, the general notes and/or list app, and also investigating any other digital alternatives. Ideally, a digital alternative will work with another piece of technology that I already use such as Schoology, Google Calendar, and/or Planbaord. Before November 15th, I will have made a selection of how I will be listing priority tasks. 


With these steps I will be going into the school year rush between Thanksgiving and Christmas in a much better position. I am trying to create systems and routines that are sustainable. I believe these steps can be the key foundation to creating these routines. 

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