After reading a selection of the venture case studies and the CL SWOT, please respond to the following:
If you agree that CL can be the solution to the ills of our current education system, share with us how radical a venture you are willing to undertake to pioneer the change.
If you do not believe CL is a panacea, please tell us why not and expand your discussion with what you think it will take to successfully re-engineer our educational system.
I love the idea behind CL and have tried to incorporate it in my classroom since I became a teacher. Unfortunately at this time there are so many barriers that its a uphill battle. It would seem that you would have to go “all in” or at least have the flexibility in your curriculum, tech department and administration to be able to fully appreciate the benefits of CL. I’ve have many CL based ideas, however rarely have I had actually been able to get them up and running in a classroom. Time, rules, technology seem to always be the biggest challenge.
I would have to agree. I think that it is possible, currently, to incorporate aspects of CL, but not yet possible to completely switch, at least not in the public system. I think that private institutions are closer to incorporating a CL based approach as they are not limited by the structure and guidelines dictated by the public system. They are far more open and flexible. Having said that, post secondary institutions still require a certain level of academic achievement before students are allowed to enter their programs, and if alternate programs, such as CL based programs do not prescribe to traditional testing, then other means of evaluation will be necessary. The more I consider CL, the more I like its many facets, but in reflecting more upon is precepts, the less I feel that we are ready to adopt it. It will require more continued success through programs such as Q2L to convince the powers that be that it is a worth cause.
Jetz66 and Adeel,
Thank you both for your contributions. Adeel, it’s such a shame that you had the will but were stymied by outside factors. You make a good point that the best intentions don’t count for much unless there is political will and flexibility in the system (administration, etc). I was curious to know what you both thought of the NYT article, What Connected Education Looks Like? Although I thought some examples were a little light on CL principles (I think the criteria was that they use technology to build community and share knowledge), but I liked the “just do it” spirit and I thought they illustrated the range of possibilities well. The article gave me a small place to start building my CL practice, not only as an educator, but also as a learner, even if it is as small as trying to get better at making my own connections within my professional community (networking is actually a critical CL skill that is implicit in the practice.) So my question to you would be twofold: 1) As a starting point, is it useful to reflect upon your own professional learning and see how you could make that more connected? and 2) We all get really caught up in the grand vision, and indeed, that’s the focus of this OER question. I wonder if it would have been better to ask, What is the smallest way possible you could start to bring CL to your classroom?
Thanks again for the thought provoking responses! Cheers, Jen
As I went through the ventures, especially the one involving the Hive project, there were elements which reminded me of the “unschooling” movement. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unschooling)
I first became acquainted with the unschooling movement a few years back, when there was a radio program on a boy who had gone through the process. The mother was very dedicated to the cause, and took an approach which I would have great difficulty following through with. Her unwavering conviction was that proper choices and decision making were most important things we could teach, and items learned by choice would stick far harder than any learning which was forced.
Of particular interest was her approach to spelling. When phrased as a decision between “respect for choice” vs “correct spelling”, respect for choice won out. Ultimately, at the age of 15, the boy became frustrated with people misunderstanding his messages and looking foolish and made his own choice to correct his spelling. Naturally, this approach does not coexist well with formal schooling.
Two common elements which I see between unschooling and CL are that system-wide, objective standards are given less value and that much more power (and responsibility!) is given to the student.
I think the challenges which both approaches face are similar as well. Under “weaknesses” you mention “Requires major educational restructuring and ideological change for wide implementation.” And I believe because of the perspective shift CL is requiring of students, this restructuring must be an all or nothing change.
Our current system focuses on measured achievement of specific standards. Many motivators, for students, parents, teachers, and administrators, come from external measures of success. Approaches to learning often revolve around, “Is this on the test?”
The removal of that question is what is required to make CL truly work. For students to take on the responsibility necessary for CL, they have to learn for learning’s sake, not for the mark. For teachers to have the freedom to pursue CL, they have to be a resource for learning in any direction, not just to a measurable standard.
What’s one way to get rid of the question? Get rid of the test. Not only would it be difficult to create, but it would be counterproductive. Get rid of any bit of assessment beyond a child’s satisfaction with the knowledge they’ve acquired. It may create a void of feedback, but the change must be complete. Any feedback would be a measure against a standard, and once one standard is measured it becomes a slippery slope to incorporate others. And we need to focus on the satisfaction with knowledge to create the initiative to continue learning.
I don’t think I’m ready to get quite that radical. As long as education is funded by the public, the public will demand accountability, and accountability comes in the form of numbers. And measurability comes in numbers. In a competitive world, we need rankings to determine who gets our limited resources.
CL has a touch of anarchy to it; the emphasis on student interests and variety of learning environments throws a wildcard into the mix. In order for it to really work, it won’t just require educational reform, but possible societal reform as well. (Your “What is CL?” video touches on this as well.)
Thanks, Leemail, for the numerous points you raise. I agree with you that Connected Learning and Unschooling are both methods of making significant change to education. I, for one, do not see CL as being nearly as drastic a change from the status quo as is the Unschooling movement.
You mention the Hive Network which is in fact an out of school program allowing for connected learning of inner city learners in 3 large American cities. Certainly it exists without major restructuring of education. Perhaps this is the most feasible implementation of CL for now, until those education-funding taxpayers demand the system-wide changes?
I’m not sure if you had a look at the Q2L school in NYC page of the OER? I think they are being overly ambitious in their efforts to integrate CL, while still keeping up with common core requirements. So not only are they continuing along the standardized test path, but they have added to their instructional and assessment loads by instructing and assessing for the 21st century skills as embodied in Connected Learning. Talk about biting off more than one can chew…
The important points you raise are well-noted, Diane
Hey Diane,
First off, thanks for reading that response. I didn’t realize I’d rambled that much, until it came out of the little reply box and showed up in full on the page.
My main connection between unschooling and CL was the need for the change in approach from students. I don’t know how the Q2L school manages to empower the students while still making it fit in the confines of standards. I guess time will tell if they’ve managed to master the logistics, or if novelty is the driving factor.
Thanks for the week. It’s been very informative and succinctly packaged (unlike my responses!)
John
Thanks for the link to the unschooling page. It was really interesting, I particularly liked this quote :
“Since we can’t know what knowledge will be most needed in the future, it is senseless to try to teach it in advance. Instead, we should try to turn out people who love learning so much and learn so well that they will be able to learn whatever must be learned”
To me this is connected learning is moving towards. We can’t know what skills our students will need in 5 years time, so it is better to encourage them to become lifelong learners. Connected learning, with it’s emphasis on connection and interest driven learning, is perfect for this. In an increasingly social media savvy world the students need to learn how to collaborate and learn what is interesting for themselves.
Thanks again!
Extremely well put, though unlikely. I love the touch of anarchy!
In my experience, a good way to kill new initiatives is to try to ‘incorporate aspects of them’ into your current practice. Too often this results in the new practice getting swallowed by the existing bureaucracy because it is too easy to fall back into your ‘old ways’ when things don’t go smoothly. Drastic change seems to require an ‘all or nothing’ approach. However, it doesn’t have to be a school-wide venture. It can begin in individual classes with the understanding that they may not always be able to comply with current practices in the rest of the building, but can provide acceptable (hopefully more desirable) alternatives. This requires commitment and support from all stakeholders. If successful, it will promote further change.
I am always hesitant to say that any one theory or model is the answer to all of our problems. CL is authentic, inquiry-based, learner-driven, collaborative, multidisciplinary, and equitable. By being so, it incorporates many of the characteristics of effective learning included in other theories and models, including the achievement of mastery through apprenticeship. The current theories of connectivism, constructivism and cognitive apprenticeship have many similarities. It may difficult to determine how they are different, or which is better, depending on the environment in which they are enacted. However, they all seem to indicate that we have come to the realization that, rather than prescribing and imposing learning, we have to get out of the way and let learning happen naturally. The focus should be on facilitating effective learning in the environment we are in rather than worrying about how to label it or which specific theory we should follow.
Thanks for contributing to the discussion, jldr!
You seem to be expressing caution about the wholesale transfer of educational efforts to the Connected Learning model, like most of the other members of this class.
I like your suggestion that it might be reasonable for only some classrooms in a school moving to CL. Perhaps we don’t have to go ‘all in’ for math and socials and art and English, etc. Maybe we chose one subject and do what we can as educators to incorporate CL principles.
I believe it was Adeel, in another post this week, who suggested that perhaps the elective courses might have more flexibility in incorporating CL principles. Could you see that working well in your teaching environment?
Connectivism, Constructivism, and Cognitive Apprenticeship do indeed have many similarities, as you point out. I love what you say : ‘we have to get out of the way and let learning happen naturally’. Couldn’t agree more.
All the best, Diane
Making a full transition to a model that focuses on the leanring and removes the need for any formal standarized testing does sound scary. Although, the learning theories you put forth all align with the CL model, integrating into the classroom is another question all together.
CL provides truly meaningful and authentic learning experiences that are focused on preparing students for an amorphous workplace that will provide them the necessary skills to be an asset in any environment. However, as many others have stated, not having measurable results scares legislators and educational management as they have no benchmark data to assess it’s impact. It is due to this fact that I believe CL will never be given anything other then just lip service, and smaller scale trials, as opposed to full adoption.
That being said, I have implemented CL in my teaching practice since I started teaching and it has continually given me the most rewarding moments of my career.
Even just a month ago I did a shared writing activity where my students were tweeting experts on website creation and content management. We began a dialogue with a friend of mine who has his own social media management company back home and had a discussion about what the students can put on their own sites they were creating. This discussion brought in an outside perspective where students from China got to engage with an expert from Canada about their work. This relationship continued after the Google hangout where we used our LMS to continue the dialogue with Jeff post discussion. The students loved having another person to bounce ideas off of, and felt like the work mattered more as they knew someone other then the teacher was going to look at it.
I am lucky to be teaching the Design Technology curriculum as I feel it allows me to have more freedom with some of the direction I get to take things, and feel that in a Secondary Math class, I might have less opportunities like this to get students engaged in the content.
That being said, having upper management and an administration that supports these kind of learning experiences makes for a much more rewarding experience for both teachers and students.
Here’s a video of the Hangout if you wish to check it out.
http://youtu.be/nSvHcDtZDaE
Great example, psweeze! Thanks for sharing!
Hi psweeze: Thanks for sharing your inspiring tale of connected learning. Those students definitely were engaged!
Again, the thread I am hearing it ‘CL for electives, not so much for academics’.
Too much at stake for too many stakeholders (eg teachers and administration and government) to make significant inroads?
It will be an interesting trend to watch in the next few years.
Thanks for contributing your experience to enhance our discussions. Diane
I see CL as a modular component of an overall strategy towards an objective. Learning styles and individual considerations should determine the extent to which CL is accessed.
Tbere are so many fascinating elements of CL. I really appreciated being able to explore the various forms it takes in school and in very innovative out of school programs. I’m really curious about the opportunities for learning to take place outside of schools. There seems to be a rigid divide between learning in school and that which takes place in other settings. I would love to see more examples of CL breaking down that divide to help learning occur in authentic situations in and out of school. The Hive project for example, seemed to be one of these opportunities, though it had to rely on philanthropy in order to continue operating. It would amazing to think of a fully funded blended education system that incorporates all sorts of learning opportunities in and out of the classroom. So many students are not engaged by learning that takes place at desks in classrooms. As a result, so much potential is lost to the detriment of society as a whole. I recognize that funding for our public school systems in Canada are generally lacking, however it should not prevent individuals from taking the steps to include even the smallest elements of CL, in and effort to demonstrate to others the value and potential it could have to improve our education system.
Thanks, alemon, for your thoughts. I see a lot of wisdom in your words, and also wish that out of school CL might have a chance even without the large influx of cash from philanthropic organizations.
Do you think there are philanthropic organizations in Canada that can (or do) fund similar here?
Diane
Although I doubt CL can be the “panacea” it most certainly can contribute to the cure. The concept of Bring Your Own Device (BYoD) really interests me as a potential playing ground for CL. I would love to start a privately funded school that worked off the BYoD model in accordance with CL methodology. For me, this feels like an interesting solution to the concern over resources and upkeep. Equity being a major consideration of CL makes a school functioning off of the BYoD model slightly problematic. Still, as long as some standards and rules are put in place to assure equity among students, CL may flourish in a BYoD environment. The school could put in place a Social Collaboration Network such as Google Drive, or even a pay-for solution such as Emodio or Basecamp to have students stay connected. The school could in theory be paperless as well, with students collaborating on documents and files through cloud sharing, rather than pen to paper.
Thanks for sharing your ideas, brendanalexander, on CL. Thanks for bringing up the point that BYOD is a natural jumping off point towards CL. Thanks for suggesting Emodio and Basecamp, will investigate. Cheers, Diane
While this is not a “true” application of CL, I believe that it can be expanded to fit the definition.
My principal and I are piloting a “high-water grading system” in our Chemistry and Physics classes. Assessment of students is formative throughout the unit with summative assessments being given at the middle and end of unit, as well as a final exam.
Students are encouraged to work in groups hand in any and all assessments (formative or summative) before the due date to allow us to give feedback.
The grade the student achieves in the unit is the highest of the 3 summative assessments.
The students have been doing nothing but group work (for some, a huge step) and working collaboratively to solve problems that some wouldn’t have even attempted on their own.
I have also found the level of understanding has increased dramatically, so much that on my unit exams I am putting questions that I would never think of putting before!
I would love to be able to extend this to work with another school in my division or even set up an open course where students from all over could contribute.
Thanks, jasonharbor, for describing the project you are spear-heading. I agree that it is connected learning. Right now, the connections are all within the same class, if I understand correctly. But your desire is to expand the connections to other classes in the district.
So powerful to hear how the learning has increased so much. To the point where exam questions are being adjusted to accommodate the increased learning!
I have to think the kids are super-engaged. Wow! Well done, Diane
Although connected Learning (CL) seems to provide new opportunities for students, communities and teachers in collaborating, and connecting, through new technological implementations, it does indeed have its weaknesses. For a long time, educators have been spending all their energy and time in searching for a “better” method to offer students a “better” learning environment for “better” learning outcomes. We only use “better” here because it’s believed there is no a unique and best way adapted for “all” the students. Thus, I think every single emerging learning theory and practice should go for the right person to achieve the maximum effect. That however, needs time and observation. Most of the time, a blended method may not be a bad idea. So let the CL join the current educational system and engage students from participating pioneer schools like Q2L. In there, the new learning approach in progress will be showing the learning process naturally which can attract those who are interested. The following rate of registration can also show us whether the CL pedagogy is accepted by parents and students and see if it’s too extreme and idealistic or not. In the competitive venture’s path, the market will tell. However, having focused on synergy and autonomous learning in in- class and out- of- class activities through CL, it is crucial to understand the effects of overestimating people’s capabilities of self- discipline, especially for most of the elementary and high school students who are still carving out an educational path for themselves.