A great leaping off (or summarizing) video on what a PLE is and its connection to connectivism. This apparently was a high school class production. My only qualm might be that their concept of a PLE is a bit web-centric, but this is really well done. I particularly like the end portion about the role of the instructor in a connectivist world. A definitely worthwhile five minute investment.

As is the case with many academic theroists, I admit that I find Siemens (the co-ideological leader of the connectivist movement) much more engaging to listen to than to try read. I didn't think I would stay with this for the full hour, but I did. I love the citation of the TS Eliot quote "Hell is a place where nothing connects" and its discussion here relative to the cognitive overload that many modern day learners are experiencing (i.e., too many resources, too difficult to assess what is worthy and what is crap). Highly recommended.

As PLEs are often positioned as the antithesis (or antidote) to closed institutional based learning management systems, this article title struck me as an oxymoron. The article sets forth several plans for making the existing VLEs (think LMS) systems more like a PLE. This includes a widget store, significant options for customizing appearance and perhaps most interesting, a mechanism for making system data available back to users (where confidentiality is not an issue). Did not see whether or not, post-graduation access to institutional PLE resources will be provided or not, as this is a key issue in my mind.

This article provides another example of an actual case study attempting to implement a connectivist pedagogy in a smaller size ( to something else. For example, is a limited participant (closed) class automatically disqualified?

This article proposes the infrastructure of a next generation "context-aware" PLE environment that would automatically filter content using a Bayesian prediction engine. The guts of this are over my head, but it does address one of the key issues with PLEs and Connectivist pedagogies which is information overload and significant time wasted exploring the "wrong" links and resources.

Several years after their pioneering connectivist MOOC (CCK08), Siemens and Downes moderated two additional MOOCs on PLEs (PLENK 2010) and Connectivism (CCK11). This article outlines the key connectivist activities underaken (aggregation, remixing, repurposing and feeding forward and participant reactions. I believe the title is about choosing between the "abundance" of a connectivist approach versus an alternate pedagogy that provides greater learner support and fosters greater social connection.

This articles debates what constitutes a personal learning environment and how PLEs have emerged as a reaction to closed LMS evironments. The authors argue that a collection of resources does not alone constitute a PLE; it must also be associated with intentional learning practices such as blogging. Not my favorite, but certainly on topic.

One of our readings discussed a 2008 graduate online course in educational technology (EC&I 831) that was one of the first to translate connectivist principles into practice. Shortly thereafter, the leaders of connectivism, Siemens and Downes, moderated a similar class (CCK08) as a MOOC with thousands of participants. This article documents both the successes and struggles associated with the CCK08 MOOC.

David Weinberger ("Cluetrain Manifesto") was one of the recommended authors for further reading on Communities of Practice. The central premise of this book is that the digital era fundamentally changed how we store and reference information. In a physical storage based world, an book or article can only be filed in a single way. Digital materials can be filed in unlimited ways and thus enable a greater degree of connections to be made. The next generation of web search technology "semantic search" will tap into this.

The Encyclopedia of Informal Education entry on communities of practice referenced an innovative school in Utah experimenting with CoPs; this article details the researcher's experiences. The article suggests that the CoP approach represents neither the instructor directed or student directed approach to education that most people in Western culture are familiar with, and thus is often met with initial resistance.

I love discovering new sites and apps that combine cool functionality and great design, and Story Map is one of my favorites (along with Flipboard!). Also check out http://timeline.knightlab.com/ for a great timeline tool. I am planning on using one or the other to create a map of all the places I have lived and then share it with my family. Only downside is the lack of documentation or tutorials at this juncture, but it's pretty intuitive. The JS name (Java Script) implies that you might have to do some coding, but it's not the case. Check it out!