Is Being Connected Important?
Can you make it through an entire day without connecting to the Internet? Probably 50% of those reading this blog are nodding yes and thinking that a day without Twitter, Facebook, and email just might do you some good. However, the Internet consists of more than social networks. It is a communication superhighway consisting of social, business, technological, and learning networks. A day without Internet means using foot-propelled transportation (no buses, cars, airplanes), no buying anything as cash registers are generally connected to an Intranet, no cable (digital is Internet driven), no usage of downloaded items (books, music, games, movies), and no reading items in which the Internet helped create (so the local newspapers is barred too). A day without being “connected” is a day without communication and knowledge creation.
Learning in a Connected World
So, now that we have established how important being “connected” is let’s discussion how knowledge creation or learning is facilitated in a connected world. First, we must recognize that known knowledge (what you now know) has a shelf life. New technology, concepts, and information are becoming available at a much faster pace than ever before. You must constantly update your knowledge base. In a connected world knowing where or how to update what you know is actually more important than your known knowledge.
Connectivism at a Glance
Connectivism, a learning theory for today’s world, is grounded in the belief that learning happens without hands-on or face-to-face interaction. We have acquired the capability to learn externally and we have embraced the shifting dichotomy of modern learning. This learning theory is now about how to learn but about how we are already learning. For me, learning happens through a series of connections with information and people. I hear someone mention the “news” in Egypt so I google news in Egypt and find several articles that inform me about the former president of Egypt, what he did, why it was a crime, and how he is being punished with 25 years in prison. I had very little known knowledge of this information but I knew how to update that knowledge. That’s is connectivism.
Can you make it through an entire day without connecting to the Internet? Probably 50% of those reading this blog are nodding yes and thinking that a day without Twitter, Facebook, and email just might do you some good. However, the Internet consists of more than social networks. It is a communication superhighway consisting of social, business, technological, and learning networks. A day without Internet means using foot-propelled transportation (no buses, cars, airplanes), no buying anything as cash registers are generally connected to an Intranet, no cable (digital is Internet driven), no usage of downloaded items (books, music, games, movies), and no reading items in which the Internet helped create (so the local newspapers is barred too). A day without being “connected” is a day without communication and knowledge creation.
Learning in a Connected World
So, now that we have established how important being “connected” is let’s discussion how knowledge creation or learning is facilitated in a connected world. First, we must recognize that known knowledge (what you now know) has a shelf life. New technology, concepts, and information are becoming available at a much faster pace than ever before. You must constantly update your knowledge base. In a connected world knowing where or how to update what you know is actually more important than your known knowledge.
Connectivism at a Glance
Connectivism, a learning theory for today’s world, is grounded in the belief that learning happens without hands-on or face-to-face interaction. We have acquired the capability to learn externally and we have embraced the shifting dichotomy of modern learning. This learning theory is now about how to learn but about how we are already learning. For me, learning happens through a series of connections with information and people. I hear someone mention the “news” in Egypt so I google news in Egypt and find several articles that inform me about the former president of Egypt, what he did, why it was a crime, and how he is being punished with 25 years in prison. I had very little known knowledge of this information but I knew how to update that knowledge. That’s is connectivism.
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