Connectivism and Social Learning in Practice

This week’s resources in my Masters class were focused on social learning theories and how we construct meaning through our interactions with others and the world around us.  The social learning theories support instructional strategies that incorporate student collaboration, cooperation, and communication.  There are many technology tools today which can facilitate the social learning approach.

George Siemens’ theory of Connectivism is a social learning theory.  He has expressed that knowledge is networked.  In this week’s video, “Connectivism as a Learning Theory” (Laureate Education Inc., 2011), he further details that knowledge resides in the patterns of how different concepts are networked.  Learning is the act of forming networks.  Technology has created a complex environment where information is abundant and networks are rich.  I think modern technology is changing the way our students learn.  Everything is a click away. 

Adopting social learning instructional practices has strong implications for engaging our students in the learning process.  Dr. Orey, in the video “Social Learning Theories” (Laureate Education Inc., 2011), defines SLT to be when students are actively engaged in constructing artifacts and conversing with others.  Collaborative and cooperative learning is a big part of SLT.  Having students build something together is a powerful strategy for learning.  Peers can help each other, and when students are working together as a collaborative team they are responsible for the learning information. 

Dr. Orey talks about the “Jigsaw Strategy” in the “Social Learning Theories” video (Laureate Education Inc., 2011).  I use this strategy in my classroom, and it always produces amazing results.  When I give a small group a short chapter to read together, and a couple of difficult questions to answer, they always come back and make a terrific presentation to the rest of the class about what they learned.  This does cause a deeper understanding of the content (Laureate Education Inc., 2011).  Each time when I listen to my students give their presentation, I think to myself that I could have lectured them on that material and showed a couple of images, but they would not have learned nearly as much.  My students feel empowered and confident when they are presenting their findings. 

This week’s reading included a chapter on Cooperative Learning from Using Technology with Classroom Instruction That Works (Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M. & Malenoski, K., 2007).  The writers stressed the importance  of preparing our students for the fast-paced, virtual workplace in which they will need to have the skills to work cooperatively with others.  Technology has enabled students and teachers to collaborate over the Web using Google Docs, Webquest, Twitter, Skype, texting, email, and sharing bookmarks and Web links.  One exciting way individuals can interact with each other is through multiplayer simulation games.  These games are designed for actual human to human interactions, not with artificial intelligence.  Interactive games can involve complex situations that are close to reality.  I have never tried any of these games with my 2^nd grade class, but from reading about them it seems that this type of cooperative learning would engage students much more than just reading about a particular subject.  Another technology tool that is new to me is VoiceThread.  I am learning that this online collaborative tool can be used to share ideas, solve problems, and give individuals a chance to express themselves verbally or in writing. 

There is a social constructivism vignette in the chapter called Social Constructivism (Kim, B., 2001), which is a wonderful example of how social learning instructional practices can be effective.  A high school English teacher engaged her students in Shakespeare’s Hamlet by splitting them into cooperative groups and assigning each group one act of the play.  They translated their part into modern language and created puppets to perform their act.  This project was successful in getting her students to have a clear understanding of Hamlet, bring students together with diverse interests, and create a finished product.

In conclusion, I have studied behaviorist, cognitive, constructivist/constructionist and social learning theories in my current Masters class.  I think each one of these has an important role in education today, but especially the social learning theories.   

Reference List

Kim, B. (2001). Social Constructivism. In M. Orey (Ed.), Emerging perspectives of

learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved May 27, 2012, from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/index.php?title=Main_Page

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011). Connectivism as a learning theory.

Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_550904_1%26url%3D

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011). Social learning theories. Retrieved from

https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_550904_1%26url%3D

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M. & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with

classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

The URL for my Voice Thread titled "We Need Friends, Not Bullies" is:
https://voicethread.com/share/3133456/