Connectivism and Connected Learning Course

This is my week one reflection in which I have unpacked some of the key features of connectivism, Next I generated some questions about the way that i was going about learning in the early stages of the course. I tried to see if I could change the way i was managing or not managing my learning.  This concept map did provide a way forward for me as  i started to identify the connections I was making with my learning, the course resources, the network of learners and technology.

At a personal level thinking about my own learning

Need to work quite differently I was immediately not so much overwhelmed but lost for strategies to use to organise myself. So did some rapid learning about

• Personal Learning Environments
• CMap tools
• Pageflakes

From an educators perspective i am struck by the primacy of connection and their importance to learning. Whilst ideas about networking are not new, this concept is new as networking seemed to be to smack of using people for their knowledge, information and influence. This is more than networking its about growing something that is genuinely collaborative and focused on learning.

Some questions

1. Can connections be forced or are they formed by voluntary associations between people, at an organisational level?

Moving towards Learner Centredness – Using technologies in everyday life

1. If by learner centredness we mean putting the learner and learners needs at the centre of activities how we are facing some contradictions with the narrowness of the curriculum, teachers pedagogical repetories,  and the technological capabilities of our learners.

a.   How can the current notions of curriculum as being owned by a discipline area ( old thinking) and therefore taught by those discipline experts be changed to acknowledge that the boundaries between discipline areas can be very blurred?

b.  Learners coming into Employment preparation may need to build their literacy/language skills but may also be technologically very competent, how can we use leverage off their strenghtens to develop LLN competencies with teaching/learning activities that challenge?

c. Having learners develop skills for gathering information, building their own PLEs, and exploring ways of connecting are primary skills for todays webworld how can we use technologies to not just augment but to really change our practices in these areas.?

Are we augmenting or really changing our teaching/learning practices – a questions raised by George in Grant caseys blog. ?

A further thought is that the first step is augmenting or using new tools/technologies to enhance what we are doing. This is the playtime of the technology- its the time when everyone  wants to have a play with the new toy.  Its a great time of learning, fun and enjoyment.

However the next step for teachers of changing the pedagogy is really challenging, people need time to collaborate, talk, reflect and connect in different ways. Whilst organisations can get deliver on the neutral skills training for new technologies some sectors of TAFE just cant make the shift to put in place new processes and new structures that promote connection making. This requires brave and courage leaders who are themselves learners with a view to the horizon not to the next audit.

Using old approaches I was trying to do the whole slog.

Week 3 Reflections

I seemed to have found a door into the course this week. My imagination was really captured with Valdis presentations/audios/blogs on network analysis. I liked this idea about Network Weavers as people who seek opportunities, have bigdreams but facilitate small projects, after quality of relationships, create scale and impact. Finding this seems to have led me to an open door and a jumping off point to think more about networks. Also his ideas about edglings as someone who has always had an eye nationally on the ‘edglings’ ( now I have a name for them) this course is extending my view to the international stage. Something to think about is

How other characteristics do network weavers have ? Are there examples of network weavers inside educational institutions and how do they get their voices heard?

Network weavers would have a key role in nurturing and maintaining connections needed to promote continual learning- how do they identify whats needed to do this?

Next up Stephens brief presentation on Learning Networks held me to understand the implications for practice in a connected world.  I was really challenged to think how  i was/was not using the approaches suggested and just how far I have really gone in really changing what I do in the learning session. The quote about ’stop doing what you do in the classroom online, its a different world’.. hit home.

Georges presentation on the attributes of networks , small world and hubs helped me to shine a small light onto networks and their characteristics. As an e learning mentor we came up with the concept of e mentors or groups of ementors at each site. I have been struggling to find the words to describe this concept and think now its like a network with both strong and weak ties.

How do networks get build? Do they centre on an interest/purpose/etc/ How do networks get maintained and sustained? Can healthy networks exist inside organisations ? How does the learning happen in networks?

I it at the individual or network level?