A relevant trend through all three recent class articles for me is the concept of "learning connectedness." This includes the idea that learners engage in the process of transferring information into knowledge through the external contact with others who help make this information take on meaning. I boiled it down to that information in the head comes to life when it leaves the head to take shape in the world. It is also interesting in I read the three pieces in a different order with the journal entry first, and then layered in the article and forum discussion piece last.
Initially, I found myself disagreeing with the Kop and Hill article, as I questioned whether learning is dependent of others. Do I need to be tethered to a "node" in order to experience learning? What if my community of practice doesn't deepen the information, but simply instructs the people to absorb what is given? Sort of like a Trump rally or Palin debate. Or better yet, both combined. Sorry, I couldn't resist.
As I absorbed the Brown article and considered the way technology has changed our ways of learning, I also appreciated how I now have new ways in which I engage in material. I can read articles and engage in dialogue with others about the topic. This can help me expand my insights by being stretched in my thinking with others invested in the topic, which may be outside my previously known circle of friends. Yet, the same potential downfall is present in that this group may be uninformed or simply debate without rational logic.
This is where the third article by Siemens informed my understanding by addressing the role of the educator in this learning process. We can have some very informed learning processes occurring over the digital world, but unless we have someone questioning the information and encouraging critical thinking, we are not deepening the learning. We are simply passing the play doh along with our hands to another person, and never diving in to consider and mold the play doh with our partner into a new form. The educator will always be needed in my opinion, to make this new form of learning across digital platforms "come alive." Or else it is merely a new medium for information to stay as information without going deeper into our consciousness.
I agree. There will always be the need for an educator, my question is how is that role changing, and what skills are most important for that teacher to master? Thanks for sharing your insights.
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