Mod 4: Connectivism Analogy

In George Siemen's article "Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age" he proposes that many of our Western, traditional theories (cognitivism, behaviorism, and constructivism) of learning are outdated by the boom of our technological and informational age.

A quote from the article, that seems to sum his point is, "John Seely Brown presents an interesting notion that the internet leverages the small efforts of many with the large efforts of few. The central premise is that connections created with unusual nodes supports and intensifies existing large effort activities. ... This amplification of learning, knowledge and understanding through the extension of a personal network is the epitome of connectivism." Nodes are defined by Siemens as anything that connects and shares information, such as a person, a computer or database within a network, etc. "Connectivism presents a model of learning that acknowledges the tectonic shifts in society where learning is no longer an internal, individualistic activity." (For a more digestible introduction watch some of Siemen's You-Tube videos.)  A quote from this You Tube video states, "The network becomes the learning, the network that learners create."


One way to view learners through this theory is that they are not autonomous, together with technology learners create and use knowledge, and so an individual learner is like a puzzle piece.  No one person has all the information they need in life, in their careers, so we rely on a network (interconnected puzzle pieces) of others.