By default, online learning has now taken learning out of the physical context and into the digital. This means that if I want to learn something in an organized manner, I do not have to do so inside of a school's classroom. But this also means that there is potential to learn just about anything, at any time in an organized manner, if someone designs an online learning experience for it. This means that organized learning could be fostered through the lens of all dynamics of life, not just the academic educational dynamic, through online learning.
Online learning is a tool that has expanded the concept of organized learning itself. Because of this, if we talk about online learning for our students in regards to their academic education, shouldn't we also discuss how online learning can be used in other aspects of their lives? Wouldn't this give us a more complete picture of the power of online learning? In higher ed, we could discuss how online learning can be used in residential life, career services, student affairs, and more. In K12, why not talk about how online learning can be applied in parent-child relationships, and neighborhood socialization? (and not just social media). And why not talk about all these things as their own distinct learning opportunities, that need their own research, but actually complete the role online learning plays in the life of a student?
As I read through this week's reading I couldn't help but think these thoughts. It would seem that my sentiments lend themselves at least in the realm of connectivism as fleshed out earlier in the course and within Kop's article. I particularly look at "Connectivists advocate a learning organization whereby there is not a body of knowledge to be transferred from educator to learner and where learning does not take place in a single environment; instead, knowledge is distributed across the Web, and people’s engagement with it constitutes learning" (p. 20). Here we see that there is reference to the fact that learning does not take place in a single environment, but is instead distributed across the web. I agree. Where my thoughts intersect with this theory is how I believe that in the real world, there is knowledge distributed everywhere. A student's knowledge is received and interpreted in many different real-world contexts, and those contexts are interconnected only in that student's life (because it's his or her life!). If these contexts are interconnected, how can we expect that student to fully embrace online learning in one aspect (academic educational content) if they never have to do this for their learning (or what we usually call "growth" and "maturity") in the other aspects?
In reading the article by Mishra and Koehler, I realized that we spend so much time trying to figure out teacher frameworks for online learning, that we miss the opportunity to create general frameworks that would allow anyone, anywhere to further foster the online learning experience for students. So a student would use online learning to learn something about Math as taught and designed by her teacher; but then that student would use online learning to learn more about how to do her chores as taught by her parents. Then she could do an online learning module, put together by the block captain, that allows her to get to know the people that live on her block better.
I'm not advocating that we always spend our time in online learning, but there seems to be so many ways we can use it to expand our learning in all aspects of life. Yet we are so focused on the academic education part of things that we may be limiting what we can truly do with this powerful technological emergence. Because we are in a world now where learning is everywhere, instantaneous, continuous, and on-demand, it has become difficult for me to imagine researching and discussing online learning in education without thinking about the other aspects of a students' life where online learning could also be applied.
My undergraduate major was Sociology. I believe this blog post was the Sociologist in me crying out!
Marcus, I love that you brought up the somewhat myopic focus we seem to have of online learning. This week in one of my yoga classes, the teacher made an announcement that she is teaching an online course on "purpose." This seems totally aligned with what you are talking about. The course is not academic--it's all about personal growth and takes place among a community that does not normally learn or work together. It's not for a school credit, it's for a PD credit... it's just for the participant's own well-being. And they get out of it what they put in. Here's the link. http://www.livingbeyondasana.com/rock-your-purpose/
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing that link Alli! That courses looks very well designed and creative! What would be wonderful is if some researchers looked at what works with this online course and doesn't work, so that other people who want to create intricate courses like this can learn from this example.
DeleteMarcus, I agree that online learning need not be pigeon-holed as simply taking the walls of the classroom away. If you look around you can see that online learning is already everywhere. I have used youtube videos to learn such disparate skills as using specific components of Garageband and bypassing the sensor on my 10 year old car that indicated that my hood was open.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think of the class that we are engaged in, however, I look at online learning in a different way. What I think we are trying to accomplish is the creation of an experience that would allow students to earn credits and degrees online. That requires a much more sophisticated approach that includes delivery of information, assignments, assessments, and interaction with the instructor.
Ah but Bryan, I argue with you that because knowledge is everywhere now, and we are learning all of the time and this characterizes the world we live in, we need to give careful consideration for the teaching and learning that happens even outside of that learning which occurs for credit.
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ReplyDeleteI agree with Bryan! The reason we have this focus in our modules on taking the physical classroom into the online realm is precisely because we are thinking about a system in which learning concepts, assignments, assessments, and other integral parts of a formal education remain as important as using the affordances of various technology tools for an enriched cognitive experience for the learners. Researchers like Mishra et al work on frameworks that would allow other researchers to take the conversation forward, especially about teacher learning. On the other hand, I do agree that chores can be taken online too. (I learned to fold a fitted sheet online!) There are several bloggers / you tubers that shot to fame through their reviews of beauty products or political commentary …that inform and teach people new things. Informal learning online is definitely more the norm than the exception these days.. with ‘google’ (almost) all things are possible. And which is why we need to harness the power of informal learning to help students engage better with the formal part of their education by making the right connections.
I agree with you that there is plenty of teaching and learning that is occurring online outside of the academic space, such as on YouTube. However, my issue is the tremendous amount of attention given to the academic space when trying to figure out best practices, etc. in online learning. I think that's the beginning of the problem. At the root of things, we are still trying to recreate what we know as "formal education" in an online space. Instead, this is the opportunity to redefine learning and look at how it is happening everywhere, and what are the best practices everywhere. Because the "4 walls" have been (digitally) torn down, to perpetuate learning in the online space with a similar mindset as we did in the physical space seems kind of contradictory to me. To not look at learning as a universal phenomenon that is occurring everywhere and can be studied in all contexts to inform best practices in teaching and learning just seems so... limiting.
DeleteLast semester I had a counseling course in addictions and wellness studies. One of the highlights was learning that AA and NA meeting occur online. While, perhaps there are some HIPAA and other considerations, the winning point remains the accessibility, success rate and privacy participants can create by being able to attend a support meeting at any place of their choosing.
ReplyDeleteHowever, on the better sites offering this counseling and support service, much like our class objectives, it is very detailed. I think there are tiers to online services, as there are in life--or sports. At a professional level there are greater expectations and demands than at an intramural, junior or community league level. This does not discredit those levels or tiers, simply it speaks to the demand or expectations of consumers. We are charged with educating generations, not just the current younger one and so our use of technology must be more detail-infused.
That's fascinating to hear about the AA and NA online meetings. Perhaps researchers interested in pushing forward online learning can take a look at how online counseling and support is being done and these tiers you mention for an example of best practices for learning online in non-academic contexts?
DeleteI agree with you Marcus - the different expectations of learning can be confused for students of any age. Why can't similar methods apply to academic subjects and folding fitted sheets? Bryan is of course right that there's a difference between DIY instructional videos and credit-bearing courses, not least of which that there is often a cost and formality that goes along with the second. But I see your point, that digital learning could apply to many areas that it right now doesn't.
ReplyDeleteOr, maybe it's that digital learning is itself an outlier right now, at least in the K-12 environment. Kop describes the connectivist view that learning does not take place in a single environment but instead exists where students interact with material across the web. This is certainly true of many online or blended courses. But it does not apply to a majority of face-to-face classes, which exist in the world of high-stakes testing. For these classes, knowledge transfer from teacher to student is critical. Online connectivist learning, for all its benefits, has a lot working against it in the public school system.
You bring up a good point and makes me think about the place of online learning in general. Is it really something for the K12 space that is dominated by standards that severely limit the potential for online learning? Is it better to have mediocre online learning experiences, rather than no online learning experience at all?
DeleteAgain, this is why I feel we need to expand the conversation to look more at learning outside of the academic contexts. The possibilities of learning has greatly expanded with emergence of new technologies. Yet the research, case studies, etc. are heavily focused on looking at online learning through the lens of the limiting scope of education. Frustrating.