Connectivism

It has been quite interesting to see the progression of one learning theory to the next that we have studied this semester. Connectivism is intriguing to me and I still don't know what to make of it. I do agree with some aspects of the theory, such as how we can learn from connecting in to other networks, which has some overlap in the Communities of Practice theory. Perhaps the phrase from the title of one of the readings, "A Learning Theory for the Digital Age," is what makes me critical. I feel as if though it is more of a learning strategy for the digital age, rather than an explanation of how we learning in a hyper technology world. I also disagree with the idea that learning resides in non-human appliances, such as technology. Technology is a tool for learning, yes, but technology IS the learning instrument? No.

That leads me to the Massive Open Online Courses. I need more convincing to understand the excitement about MOOCs. Working in online education, I have been hearing about MOOCs and how they will reshape online learning for so long, but it seems schools are still trying to figure it out, and are working under the idea of "build first and they will come." I believe there are benefits to people from all over the world being able to take free online courses that can benefit them in some way, such as Computer Science based courses, or any courses focused on life skills, which would equate to an online version of a continuing education course. However, I do see some drawbacks too to the idea of large networks of learners. Taking this Adult Learner course via an online MOOC format where I might be one of 10,000 learners would have resulted in a very different learning experience than the one I experienced.

Perhaps after this post, I will tap in to Google and the various technologies at my fingertips to get more perspective on MOOCs...