Yet another theory on how to teach students...
However, this theory seems to be the way of the future. Being able to connect with others from across the world in seconds and having diverse opinions/understandings and your fingertips is now available to us. I believe that true learning must come from experience, whether this be from within the classroom to walks in nature to viewing a computer screen. Connectivism provide students with the opportunity to experience diversity in a way that has never been seen before. No longer do you have to either know someone or travel across the sea to learn about British opinion on the latest hot topics. We can experience this as simply as opening up a web browser and searching.
Students and teachers alike will benefit from having this connectivity in the classroom. Teachers could get ideas from fellow colleagues while students can get immediate feedback on their work/ideas. I will definitely try to implement this theory in the classroom!
I agree with you David, true learning should come from experience. Being able to FaceTime someone in another country just to get their viewpoints on an event is incredible. Students would find themselves learning more than if they were to be lectured to, and it will help them to engage more in the learning as well. As you stated, "Connectivism provides students with the opportunity to experience diversity in a way that has never been seen before". I feel as though it is really important to bring diversity to the classroom, because it helps students to understand something from a different opinion or view. Students will be able to learn something on a topic they may not have known otherwise. Using the internet, students will be allowed to give and gain feedback from those around the world. Being able to see all these diverse viewpoints is important to a child's overall learning experience. What one child thinks in one state may be completely different to that of another child in another state. It makes the learning occur more than just in the classroom setting. How did you feel about the fishbowl activity? I think it was seriously interesting to see how hard it was to multitask. Being able to listen while engaging in the group chat was difficult for me. However, I did find it important for student to bring their differing ideas to the group discussion. It led to more engagement and understanding of the topic being talked about.
ReplyDeleteThis idea is so great! I agree that meaningful learning comes from experience. This is such a vital component that has been somewhat ignored in education up until recently. I do not think that all teachers value the richness of learning through real experiences. The idea of being connected across borders and cultures is soooo wonderful! Like we discussed in the end of class, we need to open our minds and come up with different ways to approach assignments and instruction.
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