I am a Distance Learning Developer at De Montfort University, Leicester, England, UK. I am just about to finish my dissertation for a masters degree in the field of interactive and collaborative learning. During the course of my study have been captivated by connectivism and the use of web 2.0 tools to help make connectivism the ‘learning theory for the digital age’ :-)
Connecting, socializing, interacting, collaborating, sharing etc etc make learning enjoyable. I am participating in the course to get a deeper understanding of the theory, to learn from the experiences of others, to be enlightened as to the use of new technologies (as a by product of participating) and to explore ways to facilitate the type of learning mentioned above.
In order for this course to be successful I need to participate. Like Nancy White mentioned, due to other committments it will be a tough ask – (could have done with a month later start to finish off my dissertation), but as Nike say ‘just do it’.
My blog will outline my study over the past year or so - http://learnadoodledastic.blogspot.com/. My prime interest, because I think it is the most beneficial to negating any isolation associated with distance learning is the use of online synchronous classes, supported by social software. In my role of developer I have the opportunity to work with lecturers at my university to explore the best ways to integrate new technologies and principles of connectivism and online community into their teaching and learning.
Hi Steve,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comments. I fully agree that socializing/interacting and collaborating make learning more enjoyable. The task Stephen and I are presented with during this course is to provide enough proof (and enough of a networked learning experience) for learners to decide yes/no about connectivism as a framework for ongoing planning and implementation of technology in the learning process. We'll see how we've done by week 12!
George