Connectivism - the learning theory for the digital age

As a mother, I am a practicing connectivist. I no longer know more than about five phone numbers – they are all stored in my mobile phone. My ability to recall the directions to a friends new house is almost non-existent, but I can get the directions and a map via the GPS function in my phone in seconds.

The connectivism theory suggests that knowledge is not just about what exists in an individual’s head, but rather there is knowledge and learning in the world around us.  This can be through other people and importantly through the internet and other technologies.  With information at our fingertips, do we need to keep information in our heads? Or just know where we have to go to get that information?

Siemens believes the pipeline is more important then what is in the pipe. This is an interesting thought and one that is challenged in the academic world. It does seem strange to think there is no purpose for our students to KNOW and be able to RECALL what they know in assessment.

Of course it is important for students to learn basic fundamental knowledge in the k-12 years. I believe the academics that sit around the table to determine the base knowledge requirements of our children are far more experienced than I and if they decide that we have fundamental learning requirements as young people, then I am happy to support them.  Further, asking our students to KNOW and RECALL information is one of the best ways to assess the level of understanding a learner has of a subject.

It is up to us as teachers to educate using effective strategies to ensure our students have a deep level understanding of certain topics and encourage them to be effective decision makers and effective at connecting topics, ideas and concepts. Further our students need to know where to go to get the required information for future use. Siemens suggests that when knowledge, is needed, but not known, the ability to plug into sources to meet the requirements becomes a vital skill. As knowledge continues to grow and evolve, access to what is needed is more important than what the learner currently possesses.

To some extent I agree with the idea of connectivism – like I said earlier – I am a practicing connectivist (I like sounding that out over and over again). Like many others though I probably see connectivism as more of an encompassing view that should be embedded into teaching strategies. So as I ponder how much knowledge or information our brain can actually hold, I suspect that in my classroom, students will see that I will be open to technologies and will embrace them.  Further and most importantly students will see that I will be the learner also.