Last week in my Media and Digital Literacy class we explored the new learning theory of connectivism. Connectivism is not a simple theory and does not describe one way in which students learn, rather it can be used to describe many different ways of gaining knowledge. Older learning theories were thought up in a time when knowledge was not growing at the rate it is today and this is why teachers of the future need to consider the connectivist approach to learning. In this approach students learn by connecting new knowledge to previous knowledge in order to gain a more in depth understanding of topics. Students allow their knowledge to grow by choosing what to learn and the meaning behind this new information, and as well they learn by acquiring knowledge from others and adding on to this information with their own experiences and opinions. Knowledge is continually being expanded on, re-organized, and re-thought as new knowledge becomes available.
As I read the article on connectivism I was left a little perplexed as to exactly what this theory entailed. However, after watching the videos on the same subject my confusion was quickly cleared up as I made connections between the ideas brought up in the videos and ones spoken about in the article. I was also able to use some of my own previous knowledge on the older traditional learning theories (behaviourism, cognitivism, and constructivism) to understand the reasoning for the development of and use of connectivism in the classroom to support learning. Funny how by actually using a connectivist approach I was able to understand the learning theory of connectivism. This is an approach that I hope to use in my own classroom by allowing students to build on the understanding and knowledge of certain topics by hearing and considering various perspectives about a particular idea.
As I read the article on connectivism I was left a little perplexed as to exactly what this theory entailed. However, after watching the videos on the same subject my confusion was quickly cleared up as I made connections between the ideas brought up in the videos and ones spoken about in the article. I was also able to use some of my own previous knowledge on the older traditional learning theories (behaviourism, cognitivism, and constructivism) to understand the reasoning for the development of and use of connectivism in the classroom to support learning. Funny how by actually using a connectivist approach I was able to understand the learning theory of connectivism. This is an approach that I hope to use in my own classroom by allowing students to build on the understanding and knowledge of certain topics by hearing and considering various perspectives about a particular idea.