Thursday 6th November
Keynote Speaker: George Siemens, eLearnspace
Analyzing the obvious: technological and social connections
George’s workshop has prompted me to ask the question: What is the purpose of our teaching, or, why do we teach?
If our primary motivation is to prepare young people for the world they will encounter when they leave school, then we need to be thinking now about our current effectiveness. What do students need to survive in the 21st century? How can we help them learn the things they need to know with technology that is available, affordable and accessible.
On the other hand, if our motivation is to instill a lifelong love of learning in young minds, then we perhaps need to look at how we deliver learning content and how we provide learning opportunities to engage students and allow them to immerse themselves in their own learning processes.
George’s presentation points us in the right direction to think of ways to achieve both of these things: to prepare and future-proof our students, and to empower them to steer their own learning experiences.
He claims that deep knowledge and effective learning occurs when students are connected through networks.
If we understand how and why connections form we should be able to understand how to shape better ways of educating students. If we focus on networks we can create a streamlined process of learning from design to delivery of content. Knowledge is what we seek to teach. Knowledge resides in how we connect things together. Knowledge is a pattern of connectivity – a way of engaging with and navigating networks. Knowledge is a way of engaging with the network connections.
Learning is networking, putting together the patterns of knowledge.
Three levels of connection are needed for learning to occur:
1. Neural: how our brains form thinking is through neurons firing to make a pattern of connectivity. Its not the image of the person that forms the memory, but the patterns in which the neurons fire.
2. Conceptual: how we define the subject matter to form a conceptual map. An expert’s understanding leads to contextual understanding that a novice cant.
3. Social/external: Technology has amplified the significance of social networking in forming connections needed for learning to take place.
Understanding is dependent upon the breadth of our knowledge: how and what/who we connect to deepen our understanding.
“Connections are to learning as atoms are to the physical world” (Siemens)
The more connections, the deeper the understanding.
There are many technological tools that are now available to make connections for our students: this is exciting. Education is an exciting crossroad.
To understand connections and the patterns they form leads us to understand how people learn, acquire and acccumulate knowledge.
George claims that if we can monitor someone’s thought patterns, the process of forming connections and the patterns they make through this process, then we can enhance learning for them.
“Learning opportunities are determined by how we interact with knowledge and others” (Siemens)
Siemens challenges educators to ask:
“What happens when the tools of control shift from educator to learner?”
The content and the tools of technological learning put the control in the hands of the learner: eg in his lecture some people are blogging (me included), googling, twittering, emailing, typing etc whereas traditionally, learners are held captive by the teacher/lecturer.
Technology can free the learner, empower them and allow them to make choices.
As students increase the number of connections through technology provided by institutions, they assume increased control of the learning process. It seems to me that if that is so, then outside of school, students have almost total control of how they learn, yet as they ‘power down’ when they walk through the school gate, they reluctantly have to relinquish this control, let go of the learning process. This highlights a key deficiency of educational institutions today.
Did you know that the extra 40 plus million voters in the 2008 US election were largely encouraged to vote via interactive connections, online?
Technology amplifies the ability to connect with other people in learning communities.
“Our views of knowledge and learning dictate the shape of our institutions” (Siemens)
George urges educators and institutions to view students as clients and themselves as providers.
If you are in business, when a client’s needs shift, you must shift with them or your business collapses. It makes sense that if our field is about providing and delivering learning and knowledge to students, then as the requirements of these students shift, our delivery methodology (pegagogy) must shift to accommodate their new needs.
Learning networks cater for 21st century learning needs.
A learning network is a group of people and data sources somehow linked. The connection provides an opportunity to learn with someone else (Eg a library, forum, blog). You don’t have to be a contributor, but can participate by the nature of the link or connectivity.
George describes the chief characteristics of networks:
- They vary.
- A social network is a type of learning network but the tasks are not explicit.
- A learning network is task-focused and specific, intentional.
Sustained participation occurs in varying contexts (Klein: Sources of Power) and determines the value of connections and networks.
Sensemakers are people who shape our views of the world: newspaper editors etc. Institutions have traditionally performed as sensemakers.
Today we have to make our own way through complex fields of understanding. We need to become our own sensemakers to negotiate new knowledge, situations and contexts. This is critical for our students.
“Our institutions are about being sensemakers for our students, not making sensemakers of our students”.
George’s message makes me understand that this needs to change.
Our students need to be able to ‘make sense’ of their world. This is how we can best prepare them for their future. Enabling them to take control of the learning process and to participate and engage with technology in relevant ways will encourage a lifelong love of learning that extends well beyond the classroom walls.
I cant help but ask: isnt that what we seek to teach?
