Connectivism & Connective Knowledge

Week 9 is a conference week, focusing on Net Pedagogy. This will be a great opportunity to reflect on how social networks and networked technology impact how we teach and learn. We’ve lined up five excellent speakers for the week:

Martin Weller
Title: Is there a pedagogy of abundance?
Description: In a digital age we have seen a fundamental shift in many of the basic economic models underlying industries as they move from an economic model based on scarcity to one based on abundance. This is a discussion based session in which I wish to explore whether the same transformation is occurring in education, and are our existing pedagogic models based around an assumption of scarcity, rather than abundance?
Time: Wed, November 11. Time conversions (5pm GMT)

Frances Bell
Title: Transparent Teaching and Learning: what remains when the teacher disappears
Description: This session’s deliberately ambiguous title (is it a statement or a question?) encourages us to think about teachers disappearing and appearing. Rather than eliminating teaching and teachers, I recommend that we rediscover what is great about them and how that can work in a changing world. I will deliver a brief paean on teachers and teaching, thinking about why we have them, how they change their practice, and how learning takes place without teaching. I will conclude with a few observations on how teachers applied the theory of connectivism to their practice (from my participation in CCK08). Then the important part of the session will be where participants help answer the questions (using Dave Cormier’s interactive slides approach):

· Do we need teachers? Why? Why not?
· What remains when the teacher disappears?
· What informs teachers’ practice?

I hope you can join us and answer my questions.
Time: Wed, November 11 Time Conversions 2000 GMT

Stephen Downes
Title: Open Education: Projects and Potential [webcast of an f2f presentation]
Description:
The internet offers society the opportunity to provide access to a free or affordable education for all. This concept is known as ‘open education’ and is the subject of various projects, such as ‘Open Education Resources’ (OER) or the Open Courseware Project (OCW). This talk will look at the principle of open education, talk about major projects, describe the role played by educational technology, and outline some of the challenges.
Time: November 12, 10:45 – 11:45 am EST (time conversion)

Stephen Downes
Title: Speaking in Lolcats: What Literacy Means in teh Digital Era [Webcast of an f2f presentation]
Description:
The internet has introduced us to a world in which we can communicate with each other in a wide variety of media. Where formally we could only talk and sing to each other, now we can create videos, author animations, link to videos and images and cartoons, and more, mix and match these in a complex open-ended vocabulary. What it means to be literate in such an information age is fundamentally distinct from the literacy of the 3Rs, and teaching new literacy an evolving challenge for those of us still struggling to learn it. This talk looks at the elements of 21st century literacies, redefines critical thinking for the internet age, and suggests a redefinition of what we think of as ‘core’ curriculum.
Time: November 12: 2:45 – 3:45 pm EST (Time conversion)

Vicki Davis
Title: Differenting Instruction and Global Collaboration
Description: Differentiation may seem easy to those who have art supplies and other tools handy, but how does it look when it goes online and student connections become part of the learning process? Vicki Davis, co founder of the Flat Classroom(tm) Projects will lead a discussion sharing some of differentiation strategies used when global classrooms merge in rich, online learning experiences.
Time: November 12 Various time zone conversions (7 pm, EST…NOT GMT)

Terry Anderson
Title:Distance Education Pedagogy Past and Networked Future
Description: In this session Terry presents and contrast 3 generations of distance education pedagogy. He examines the tools and philosophy of cognitive/behavioural, constructivist and connectivist models.
He begins the session discussing ways that users – teachers and learners, have capacity to socially construct the use and applications of the tools we use. He finally presents an argument for supporting both group and network learning contexts in formal and lifelong education and overviews a possible model for Athabasca University.
Time: Friday, November 13th Time zone conversions 3 pm EST

All sessions will be held here in Elluminate. Discussion will be held in this moodle forum.