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This article from Minnesota State University talks about the half life of information and how today information is growing and doubling at such a fast rate that no one can be as knowledgeable in there field as they were 50 years ago. By using connectivity it allows people to better keep up in there knowledge field.

This is a really interesting article. I never thought about it, but it is a compelling notion that one person cannot be an expert at anything any longer, simply because everyone can be an expert with a device in their hands.

This article gives you the standard overview of connectivism; however, the point about knowledge growing as more nodes are established is a great point. I would agree with Chris Denny. Can anyone (sometimes even the teacher) be the expert any longer without prescribing to connectivist theory?

The authors postulate that within connectivist communities, the roles that people take (lurker, leader, expert, etc.) have as much or more to do with personality traits than the desire for engagement or ability levels of the participant. They use massive open open courses (MOOCs) as a testing ground and Personality and Self-determination theory as the prisms through which to view learner interactions within these communities.

This article begins by defining constructivism as the principle that all learning starts with a connection, be it neural, conceptual, or social, and that learning is the ability to construct and traverse connections. The authors acknowledge that it is widely recognized idea but not yet accepted as a formal learning theory. The paper focuses on four key principles for learning that exist within connectivism: autonomy, connectedness, diversity, and openness. The authors also examine different theories regarding personality and self-determination and look at how these affect the individual's experience within connectivism.

Here, the author describes connectivism as the proposed learning theory for a digital age and is "based on the principle that all learning starts with a connection." Additionally, "learning in connectivism terms is a network phenomenon" and strongly emphasizes learners making connections. The concept of autonomy is also discussed in depth.

This article focuses on the future of the learning management system in online education. It argues that the closed LMS is incapable of offering the interactivity of web 2.0 technologies to students. It stresses the need for greater connectivity and environments that can be personalized.

I had never heard of start pages until reading this article. Are these used? I didn't recognize any of the products listed.

As the person in charge of the LMS at the School of Nursing, I find this article to be completely valid. We have some younger faculty that want to do more than our LMS will allow, even with some of the widgets that have been added. The main problem that we have is that our current faculty simply use our LMS as a place to provide information instead of encouraging students to use it more like a PLE.

This is a GoogleDoc created by George Siemens for an MOOC he co-facilitates on Connectivism through the University of Manitoba. It outlines the differences between connectivism and other prominent learning theories. It details the distinctions of the connectivism learning theory.

Thanks for sharing this! I love the chart because you can compare the different learning theories all in one place! I always struggle to keep them straight :)

I really enjoyed this brief handout because it did such a nice job of summing up some of Siemens other work that I had found during my own search.

While learning about PLE's, I wondered how it affects learning in the classroom and I stumbled across this article. This article discusses the flexible form of a PLE and how it helps students meld their own learning spaces. It can be difficult to incorporate such a new type of network in the classroom, but the research and examples in the article shows many ways that developing PLE's can help students develop their own learning and knowledge development.

I think this is a good article discussing the initial concept of a PLN and how it can be used in the classroom. I had never heard of Symbaloo, but can see how it can be helpful as an educational resource, just like we are using Diigo.

Summary: Although the paper identifies three challenges to Connectivist Learning (self-directed, presence and critical literacies) the findings, based on Kop's research, suggest that social networked learning does work. The paper includes students responses, both positive and negative, about their learning experiences. I found that aspect of the paper fascinating.

This paper highlights current theories of learning and gives a critical analysis of connectivism ""within the context of its predecessors" in a attempt to establish whether this theory is indeed anything new to offer for teaching and learning in the digital era.

This article looks at the challenges that could be faced by using PLEs and Connectivisim in social networking. The article breaks down the challenges to Connectivist learning and then explains the research methodology behind their findings.

This site provides ideas on different technologies that can be integrated into the classroom. I like how it also address adminstrators, as all school personel should be on board with supporting technology integration.

This is a great resource for those trying to integrate more technology into their classrooms. When everyone is not on board with technology integration then it makes it hard on those one or two trying to integrate it.

This podcast features George Siemens discussing his Connectivism Theory and its relationship to Behaviorism, Cognitivism, and Constructivism.

I like that it was Siemens talking about his theory in comparison to the other big 3 theories. It leaves no room for interpretation when it comes straight from the source itself.

Great resource, nice find!! I was struck by his insight that many education systems serve instruction instead of serving learning. Additionally, his description of the learning process as non linear resonates with me and furthered my understanding connectivism and CoPs. Thanks :)

This is an excerpt from the book by Etienne Wenger, Communities of Practice: Learning, meaning, and identity. In it, Wenger details that communities of practice are found everywhere in our lives, from a very young age (daycare!) on up. For many reasons, modern societies are concerned that valid learning takes place and Wendger hopes to contribute. He points out that "a social theory of learning is...not exclusively an academic enterprise." It is all around us. Wenger is not discounting the many other theories of learning that have been developed in the past. His theory is in addition to these.

Andrea, thank you for finding this. I thought I'd found everything available on the internet for Wenger. I had been vacillating back and forth about purchasing "Communities of Practice: Learning, meaning, and identity." Having now read this chapter, I think I'll have to go ahead and buy the book. I love Wenger's writing, especially his straightforward prose used to support his argument for the Communities of Practice theory. Here's a fine example: "What if we assumed that learning is as much a part of our human nature as eating or sleeping, that it is both life-sustaining and inevitable, and that - given a chance - we are quite good at it? And what if, in addition, we assumed that learning is, in its essence, a fundamentally social phenomenon, reflecting our own deeply social nature as human beings capable of knowing?" That's very nice.

In this article that focuses on social networking and learning, Ruth Reynard explores research conducted by The National School Boards Association (USA), in partnership with research firm Grunwald Associates and with the support of Microsoft, Newscorp, and Verizon, published a 2007. The research cited indicates that learning through social networks is mostly "unidirectional (posting messages, downloading media files, updating personal information) and students utilize it as "a self-reflective learning environment." However, the author points out that the researchers also found if instructional design is geared toward "the user controlling the tool rather than the tool dictating the user's activity," learning collaboratively can increase knowledge because the learner becomes actively engaged in the task, rather than passively approaching it.

I really like the message where it says that students become more actively engaged when they control the tool rather than the tool dictating the user's activity. The students then take control of their learning. They map the course they want to take.

this was very interesting - I found myself wondering how much of it was still relevant given its "age." Crazy that 2008 is "old" but social media has changed so much since then!

I love this video. It is short but does a great job connecting all of our ideas. And I love the way it ends…"for now."

How cool that you linked back to this. It was created by one of our class members.

I loved it! I agree it is awesome and just shows how connected our world is.

I like this article because it lists both pros and cons to using .PPT. I also like that it clearly states not to use too many slides and that it is meant to help add to the presentation, not deliver it or make it more interesting.

This article comes from the OD Practitioner journal, Fall/Winter 2000. This article focuses on the basics of Communities of Practice, defining the dimensions, purpose and changes from knowledge sharing now rather than in the past. This article focuses on the industrial and business world. It shares that knowledge in the past was knowledge was to be horded for power, while today it is to be shared to grow said power "in multiples" (Allee, 2000). The article goes on to share the benefits for everyone as far as the business, community and the individual. I appreciate the call for possible new communities of practice to meet new business community challenges.

I like how this article, even though it focuses on the industrial/business world, still has some great applications to the world of education. It's also interesting to find out more about some surrounding groups to CoPs and how they are related. A quote from the article (pay close attention to the last sentence in regards to education) says, "Communities of practice emerge in the social space between project teams and knowledge networks. When multiple project teams are engaged in similar tasks the need to share what they know often will lead to community formation. From the other direction, a loosely organized knowledge network of people who share common interests can gel into a focused community when people recognize new shared opportunities or begin to seek a significant breakthrough. Those who would support communities need to learn what conditions foster their emergence and create an environment in which they can flourish."

This is a guest written article about creating a PLN. It has very good graphics illustrating a PLN. It also describes the different components of a PLN including information aggregation tools and the social media connections. It even shows the step for a beginner to get started including resources to use and also blogs to follow. Short and sweet and to the point.

Hi Cinnamon! Great resource! I really thought some of the graphics and links included in the article were helpful. The section on information aggregation and social media connections at the end of the article was especially helpful.

This article provides a snapshot of how personal learning networks work and their benefits. Torrey Trust explains that PLNs allow for professional development to be catered to your specific needs at that moment. Educators can seek instant feedback for questions or ideas they may share. She also outlines the main tools that make PLNs work, information aggregation and social media. It is a good article to for educators new to PLNs. It provides a good understanding of why PLNs are important to professional development and also explains the ways in which the information is shared.

A combination of PLN and connectivism that shows why we need this more than ever in education.

This is great. I really like the video format and how Johnson brought all of his ideas together and is really talking about connectivism. He never said the word, but he's talking about connectivity and innovation. He's talking about PLNs and CoPs. The video was very helpful

There is an office space in Fayetteville that I feel is built around this premise. The space is set up to facilitate connections and foster innovation. http://www.fayettevilleflyer.com/2012/01/24/the-iceberg-the-stage-is-set/

This is a link to a Pinterest Board regarding Personal Learning Networks by Eric Sheninger, I found the information very helpful and fun. I love looking at pictures to understand concepts! EDTECH543 Personal Learning Network

This is a Pinterest source used for PLNs that offers numerous resources for educators and personal learning networks.

I have yet to get into Pinterest, feel it might be a black hole for me. These are some great PLN pins. The images alone give you a good idea of ways you can build your PLE.

I like this infographic for several reasons: 1) it's an infographic, and 2) it's Creative Commons Attribution licensed, which means anyone can use it, change, it, share it, or make it even better, as long as attribution is given! One of the key points made here is that connectivism allows for cross-generational learning, challenging the notion that learning can only be acquired through transmission from our elders.

At first I thought this visual was very overwhelming and chaotic, but as I looked at the individual parts that make up the whole I gleaned a lot of new information about the way personal learning networks work. The visual also made it very distinct that not only cross-generational learning occurs, but also cross-cultural learning. I feel this is important because learning across cultures can be highly beneficial in showing various points of view. Great source!

The article takes a look at learning process behind connectivism. It also compares constructivism to connectivism. It describes the features of connectivist learning objects or CLOs and the integration of CLOs together to contribute to learning. It also has some extra information like construction and communication or interchange of CLOs.

In this article, the authors compare constructivism and connectivism and look at how constructivism is moving towards connectivism. One important idea or theory is the use of the web in a more "collaborative framework." For example, individuals will collect, reflect, connect, and publish information from the web.

Interesting to see the point of view from the authors about some shared learning experiences that make possible informal learning from spontaneous connections between open networks. Most of the times it is said that the members of the network choose the other members to get connected but it is also important to pay attention to the unplanned connections.

This article focuses on the novice experience in MOOCs, and how the theory may badly serve some of its participants. The author tries to explain this in relation to the theory of connectivism. It explains how technology and learning novices, and their sense of confidence interact with Connectivist theory. This article is worth the read, if you are looking at the limitations of connectivism.

Thanks for posting this article. In my job as an online teacher I see many students with low self efficacy and can definitely relate experience with the author about this.

This was really a fascinating look at the "other" side of connectivism. Having learned a bit about cMOOCs while working on this assignment, I agree that a connectivist MOOC is probably not the most suitable place for a novice learner, and it assumes that participants will enter with a certain level of prerequisite knowledge.