Connectivismo

                        Laura Rial, Gabriela Varela, Mariana Tomás

Text 1

Connectivism was introduced as a theory of learning based on the premise that knowledge exists in the world rather than in the head of an individual. Connectivism proposes a perspective similar to the Activity

theory of Vygotsky as it regards knowledge to exist within systems which are accessed through people participating in activities. It also bears some similarity with the Social Learning Theory of Bandura that proposes that people learn through contact. The add-on "a learning theory for the digital age", that appears on Siemens paper  indicates the special importance that is given to the effect technology has on how people live, how they communicate, and how they learn.

 

                                                                           Aspects

One aspect of connectivism is the use of a network with nodes and connections as a central metaphor for learning.  In this metaphor, a node is anything that can be connected to another node within a network such as an organisation: information, data, feelings, images. Connectivism sees learning as the process of creating connections and developing a network. Not all connections are of equal strength in this metaphor; in fact, many connections may be quite weak. The idea of organisations being cognitive systems where knowledge is distributed across a network of nodes can be traced back to the work on the Perceptron. This metaphor is directly borrowed from Connectionism, "a paradigm in cognitive sciences that sees mental or behavioral phenomena as the emergent processes of interconnected networks of simple units" (reproduced from Connectionism).

This network metaphor allows for a notion of "know-where" (the understanding of where to find the knowledge when it is needed) to supplement to the ones of "know-how" and "know-what" that make the cornerstones of many theories of learning. 

Principles of connectivism

§  Learning and knowledge rests in diversity of opinions.

§  Learning is a process of connecting specialized nodes or information sources.

§  Learning may reside in non-human appliances.

§  Capacity to know more is more critical than what is currently known

§  Nurturing and maintaining connections is needed to facilitate continual learning.

§  Ability to see connections between fields, ideas, and concepts is a core skill.

§  Currency (accurate, up-to-date knowledge) is the intent of all connectivist learning activities.

§  Decision-making is itself a learning process. Choosing what to learn and the meaning of incoming information is seen through the lens of a shifting reality. While there is a right answer now, it may be wrong tomorrow due to alterations in the information climate affecting the decision.

Text 2:

Description of Connectivism

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Connectivism is a learning theory for the digital age. Learning has changed over the last several decades. The theories of behaviourism, cognitivism, and constructivism provide an effect view of learning in many environments. They fall short, however, when learning moves into informal, networked, technology-enabled arena. Some principles of connectivism:

§  The integration of cognition and emotions in meaning-making is important. Thinking and emotions influence each other. A theory of learning that only considers one dimension excludes a large part of how learning happens.

§  Learning has an end goal - namely the increased ability to "do something". This increased competence might be in a practical sense (i.e. developing the ability to use a new software tool or learning how to skate) or in the ability to function more effectively in a knowledge era (self-awareness, personal information management, etc.). The "whole of learning" is not only gaining skill and understanding - actuation is a needed element. Principles of motivation and rapid decision making often determine whether or not a learner will actuate known principles.

§  Learning is a process of connecting specialized nodes or information sources. A learner can exponentially improve their own learning by plugging into an existing network.

§  Learning may reside in non-human appliances. Learning (in the sense that something is known, but not necessarily actuated) can rest in a community, a network, or a database.

§  The capacity to know more is more critical that what is currently known. Knowing where to find information is more important than knowing information.

§  Nurturing and maintaining connections is needed to facilitate learning. Connection making provides far greater returns on effort than simply seeking to understand a single concept.

§  Learning and knowledge rest in diversity of opinions.

§  Learning happens in many different ways. Courses, email, communities, conversations, web search, email lists, reading blogs, etc. Courses are not the primary conduit for learning.

§  Different approaches and personal skills are needed to learn effectively in today's society. For example, the ability to see connections between fields, ideas, and concepts is a core skill.

§  Organizational and personal learning are integrated tasks. Personal knowledge is comprised of a network, which feeds into organizations and institutions, which in turn feed back into the network and continue to provide learning for the individual. Connectivism attempts to provide an understanding of how both learners and organizations learn.

§  Currency (accurate, up-to-date knowledge) is the intent of all connectivist learning.

§  Decision-making is itself a learning process. Choosing what to learn and the meaning of incoming information is seen through the lens of shifting reality. While there is a right answer now, it may be wrong tomorrow due to alterations in the information climate impacting the decision.

§  Learning is a knowledge creation process...not only knowledge consumption. Learning tools and design methodologies should seek to capitalize on this trait of learning.

What is it? 

Text 1 - Teoría del aprendizaje basada en que el conocimiento existe en el mundo en lugar de la cabeza del individuo. 

Text 2 - Es una teoría del aprendizaje para la era digital. Las teorías del conductismo, cognitivismo, constructivismo y ofrecer una visión de efecto de aprendizaje en muchos entornos.

How is it different from others?

Text 1 - Es diferente a la teoría de Ausubel quien considera que el niño tiene conocimientos anteriores

Which are its principles?

Text 1 - 

El aprendizaje y conocimiento se basa en la diversidad de opiniones.
El aprendizaje puede residir en dispositivos no humanos.

La capacidad de saber más es más importante de lo que se sabe.

Capacidad para ver conexiones entre los campos, ideas y conceptos es una habilidad básica.

La toma de decisiones es en si misma un proceso de aprendizaje. 

Text 2 - 

La integración de la cognición y las emociones en el significado de decisiones es importante. El pensamiento y las emociones influyen entre sí.

El aprendizaje tiene un objetivo final - a saber, el aumento de la capacidad de "hacer algo".

El "conjunto de aprendizaje" no es sólo la habilidad ganando y la comprensión - de actuación es un elemento necesario.

El aprendizaje es un proceso de conexión de nodos especializados o fuentes de información. Un alumno puede mejorar exponencialmente su propio aprendizaje al conectarse a una red existente