Connectivity Takes Time

This week I need to integrate a large dose of honesty... I love technology, but there are so many wonderful tools, who has the time? The time to thoroughly investigate, integrate, and efficiently use them? As I look at my Mind Map I think of all of the other great tools that I haven't included, like MSOutlook (how did I ever manage anything before?), Jing (the best free tool I've found yet), what about the email groups I belong to (thanks to Magnapubs for keeping me updated on all the latest buzz and research in higher/online/distance education), of course Twitter (pointing me to great resources and news updates) and Zotero (keeping me organized where I work). Also, iGoogle to organize my RSS feeds and SlideShare for updates in my area of interest. I barely have time to post substantive threads to our classroom discussion board, let alone maintain all these relationships. I'd love to use this week to have others share how they manage their numerous relationships.

In response to this week's questions, how does this connectivity change how I learn? I'm in a constant state of learning, constantly absorbing, acquiring, and applying new information. I cannot say how this has changed as I grew up in the middle of this technology boom and have incorporated new tools as they've become available and as I've have an interest and time. I love my networks, but how do you effectively use them? How do you avoid getting lost? I've accomplished this by having specific goals when I access these resources. If I can stay focused, I can emerge with the information I need and time left to accomplish my task. When I have a question I access the appropriate tool, but at some point I worry that I won't be able to manage it all and won't know where to go. While searching Google or another search engine may get you started, library resources will serve you better in obtaining scholarly information, but once again it's easy to get lost in the databases without a clear objective. At this time, I use library and above noted networks to glean the information I need, but at some point I worry that it may all become too much to manage. How do you do it?

Resources

delicious.com
diigo.com
facebook.com
jingproject.com
igoogle.com
linkedin.com
lists.asu.edu
magnapubs.com
slideshare.net
sloan-c.org
twitter.com
wave.google.com
zotero.org

Mod3 Need for Interaction

We're human, therefore we're social. It's part of our composition. Does that mean that we naturally seek out others for collaboration? Based on EDUC8440 we'd reminisce about hunting and gathering, agriculture, and industrial ages. It seems that as a species we were much more collaborative earlier on than once we hit the industrial age. Interesting that the assembly line, where one's role was intricately dependent on the person standing before them, was the beginning of an independent streak that we're now trying to undo in our attempt to fight the bigger, nastier problems of today. Rheingold (2005) followed this thought process and acknowledged the importance of collective action in his talk, "Howard Rheingold on collaboration". I agree with Rheingold that we need collaboration, that we need human interaction, but I disagree that evolution has sped up. In our short time in this life, who are we make such an assumptions? Maybe the rapid development of a tool upon its discovery is the evolutionary norm, it's difficult to tell. With technological development, my greatest concern is that we develop and implement without a plan, without consideration of consequence, without thinking about the next step. I hope at some point we slow down upon development of a tool and think through consequences before implementation.

Rheingold (2005). Howard Rheingold on collaboration. Ted. Retrieved from http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/howard_rheingold_on_collaboration.html

ISMS

Learning theories are abundant. With each new idea, new ism, new following, I hope that learners are positively affected. Each of my three children learned to read differently. One with phonics, one with whole language, and the other with a combination of the two methods. They all read. They all had their unique challenges. The pure phonics reader could read upper level texts without understanding their meaning, his ability to pronounce and decipher words in first grade trumped the skills of his older sisters. The whole language learner seemed to struggle with everything; skipping unfamiliar words hoping their meaning would be revealed in familiar words and pictures, and finding the whole process frustrating. The combination reader stumbled early on, but once she caught on she fell in love with reading. Does this say as much about the theory behind the lessons as it does my children? How are we to know?

Educational technology has opened education to a new generation, but doesn't it also cutoff others? Without access, you're left behind. The faster it moves forward, the more behind developing nations become. They invest all of their resources into education, while the US takes them for granted.

I've digressed...isms. Cognitivism, behaviorism, constructivism... which is best? I agree with Karl Kapp, a combination offers the best of all worlds. To assume that the latest technology, discovery, idea trumps those that came before them seems arrogant and ignorant. Many want to throw behaviorism out now that we understand the intricate details of cognitivism, but cognitivism doesn't negate behaviorism. Rather it opens a new understanding, an additional tool.

Malcolm Knowles offered andragogy as an alternative to pedagogy. Understanding the uniqueness of adult learners is crucial for continuing education, but I think with a good understanding of learning styles, behavioral processes, and experience, the atmosphere for learning would be lacking.

Stanley Frielick adds enactivism to the isms and shares his insight to the ism discussion, I recommend you take a look: http://www.flexilearn.com/?p=52