Although not in celebrity limelight as xMOOCs, Siemens and Downes acquired ‘online fame’ blogging on distribution of knowledge and Connectivism as a learning theory of the digital age (Kop, 2008, online). Intensification of learning, knowledge and understanding via the expansion of one’s personal network is the essence of the Connectivism, and its primary characteristics are autonomy, diversity, openness, connectedness/ interactivity (Siemens, 2005; Downes, 2005). Rich debate on MOOCs contributes little to the pertinent questions of the teacher’s role (guiding or facilitating), the teacher’s and learner’s experience, the learners’ prior knowledge and skills and their use of digital technology, amongst others, and yet there is a considerable gap in the research in these areas. I will argue against the Siemens’ premise that “for one to learn one must connect” from the stance that the connection itself does not guarantee occurrence of learning. The clarification of what we already know from the research on online learning (Conole, et al., 2008) and the findings of the empirical studies on participants’ and facilitators’ in cMOOCs (Kop, 2011; Kop, et al., 2011; Mak, et al., 2011, Milligan, et al., 2013) will be used to support the argument.
5.2 Familiarity with technology and prior knowledge
Connectivism is anchored in the Web 2, in interactive Internet, its social networking and collaborative, learner-centred environment (Alexander, 2006; Bacon & Dillon, 2006; Downes, 2006). Affordability of social networking tools have changed the way students learn, communicate and create new artifacts (Braun & Schmidt, 2006; Brown, 2000; Dillon, 2006; Prensky, 2001; Oblinger and Oblinger, 2005). The new generation of students are active p...
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Mak, et al. (2010) study with PLENK2010 and CCK11 cMOOCs found that contradictory to more autonomy, openness and diversity of the course, more problematic learning is, more connectedness, and more support is needed. Lack of support, high a cognitive load, poor prior knowledge, and undirected novices; learning how to survive in an increasingly demanding learning environment managing hundreds of messages (Brennan, 2013, online) it could be a scenario for failure (Table 3).
As discussed above, the literature showed that more studies are needed on learners use of technology and their preferences, on the skills they bring to the course and on their perception of experts; what I mean hear is not any expert but teacher(s), irreplaceable in such online learning environment of “freedom and chaos” where there is no certainty that if “one connect one will learn”.
After assessing Gregory’s essay, it is obvious that Gregory’s ability to adjust to anything that is thrown at him and his ability to work with anyone heightens his marketability to be chosen as a student for MOOC. Being flexible and having the ability to work with any kind of person is a big advantage because he can respond well to the pressures of this course. He can overcome many of the challenges that the massive open online course has to offer in order to get his training. For example, In Gregory’s essay he mentions how he would “...volunteer work at a summer day camp for kids…”, and exhibited “...dedication to student council” , while also “...enthusiastically devote time to service projects through Junior Civitans that help the community” (Gregory 14, 15). This also shows that Gregory is the best candidate to enroll in a MOOC- massive open online courses. In another article title “The Year of the MOOC” by Laura Pappano the author informs the readers
This perspective explains social networking as a way for society to develop social qualities through interactions with others and this method of interaction is commonly accepted and promoted among different cultures, social and education backgrounds irrespective if negative or positive. For instance, social networking can provide a parent a way to communicate with his or her child’s teacher without having to schedule around work or home
The efficiency of online learning versus face-to-face instruction is a growing controversial topic. In his article, “Can You Be Educated from a distance?”, James Barszcz weighs the benefits and disadvantages of online education. In his essay, he discusses the fundamentals and overall quality of distance education, as well as the rationale behind the growing trend. He argues that observation of teachers and social aspects of traditional learning are important for true education, rather than simply obtaining information. Barszcz uses thorough juxtaposition between distance and traditional classrooms unbiasedly so the differences between the two types of education are easily seen, while constant use of studies and surveys add justification to his argument.
Empiricists and rationalists have proposed opposing theories of the acquisition of knowledge, which appear unable to coexist. Each theory holds its own strengths but does not demonstrate a strong argument in itself to the questions, “Is knowledge truly possible?” and “How is true knowledge obtained?”. Immanual Kant successfully merged the two philosophies and provided a convincing argument with his theory of empirical relativism, or what some may call constructivism. His theory bridges the gap between rationalism and empiricism and proves that empiricists and rationalists each present a piece of the full puzzle. In order to truly understand Kant’s epistemology, one must first review and understand both empiricism and rationalism on an impartial basis.
Caruso, C. (2008). Bringing Online Learning to Life. Educational Leadership, 65(8) 70. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
environment where increased critical thinking and collaboration are possible. A study done by Annetta and Jackson shows that students who participate in social media as part of a class feel more connected to their peers that those students who do not participate in social media type education (Annetta, Jackson, 2011). Social media allows students to not only group themselves with peers who are similar, but also to enhance and link existing peer groups. In addition to enhancing established peer groups, social media can bridge the diversity that exists in classrooms by establishing a “neutral zone” in which students can interact with one another. For many
The web is no longer a read only product, it now has the ability to be interactive and particpatory. Users are able to interact over the internet with each other with instant messaging and emails and use social networks to share news, videos, and photos with others, bringing people with common interest, opinions, and experiences together and closer. Some of the most popular social networks include Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn. Currently social networks are mostly used to keep in touch with friends, colleagues, peers and family, there are far more benefits, that the social media platform can provide. This paper explores the topic of social media in modern education. There are benefits and disadvantages to social media being used in the classroom setting, and they are discussed in detail through the paper.
Social Media has become a very essential tool in the society; in addition, it has a huge impact on communication and learning process. Social media is defined as websites and applications used for social networking. “As of September 2013, seventy-one percent of online adult use Facebook, eighteen percent use Twitter and seventeen percent use Instagram, twenty-two percent use PInterest, and another twenty-two percent use LinkedIn. (PewReasearch, 2013). In addition, "Between February 2005 and August 2006, the use of social networking sites among young adult internet user ages eighteen and twenty-nine jumped from nine percent to forty-nine percent. The usage of social media had grown drastically.” On social media sites like these, users may develop biographical profiles, communicate with friends and strangers, do research, and share thoughts, photos, music, links, and more” (Socialnetworking.procon,2012). Social media has impacted everyone in several different ways. In this present time, majority of college student use Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Social media has a bold impact college student's grades, social interactions, and the teaching and learning process.
Online education is a booming trend in the education world. It is something different than the traditional classroom. It is allowing student around the world the opportunity to get an education. Online education allows student to have a more proficient and cheaper way of learning. Having multiple ways to give a student an education allows all learning types to find their own way of learning. Education changes lives but it can be difficult for students to get to a classroom to sit through an hour class 4 times a week, this can be for many different reasons. There are many doubts about online education, but this a new world without borders it is a new opportunity for people from all over the world to get an education.
Constructivism is a defined, when referring to the learner, as a "receptive act that involves construction of new meaning by learners within the context of their current knowledge, previous experience, and social environment" (Bloom; Perlmutter & Burrell, 1999). Also, real life experiences and previous knowledge are the stepping stones to a constructivism, learning atmosphere. (Spigner-Littles & Anderson, 1999). Constructivism involves the learner being responsible for learning the material and, not necessarily, the teacher (Ely; Foley; Freeman & Scheel, 1995). When learning occurs, the goals, values, and beliefs of the individuals need to be linked to the new data. Also, in constructivism, the person, who is taking in the knowledge, can somehow filter, amend, and reformat the information that he or she feels is important to the schema (Spigner-Littles & Anderson, 1999). A constructivist learner uses the creative approach to apply their own meaning to a topic using the social and cognitive circumstances around themselves (Bloom; Perlmutter & Burrell, 1999). A short and sweet summary of constructivism is "how one attains, develops, and uses cognitive processes" (Airasian & Walsh, 1997).
Some students within society need to have online learning to complete college degrees due to their lifestyles. While it is good to have online learning as an option if one chooses, it should not be the only option available to some students. Some may argue that online education is not creating discrimination within the educational environment. Furthermore, some may suggest that online learning is benefiting our students in society. There has been a breakthrough in time and geographical limitations of education via online courses (Ho, 2009).
“Social interaction and social presence are addressed by allowing users to collaborate and communicate with peers either using the system or external applications for online collaboration or communication.” (Kozuh) In other words in order for social interaction to occur Kozuh does a terrible job explaining that the subject or in this case college student has to present or interact with the system in order to have success on online collaboration. If students do not use the school sites then it is a waist of time and money for the school to have them. Social media like Twitter or Facebook is being used as a tool to connect students with their professor in a more modern and up to date. Every school campus offers student’s sites in which they are able to connect with other students and professors, but the sites that school offer are not very common. R. Junco, G. Heiberger and E. Loken, the authors of the article “The effect of Twitter on college student engagement and grades” discuss their semester long study on whether or not Twitter could be used to improve the learning of college students. The author’s main arguments is that by incorporating social media like Twitter into the curriculum would improve the ways that the students interact with their classes and professor, which would help them get the most out of their classes. By having students feel more comfortable and know
With the advent of modern technology, a forceful impact of this technology has been observed in nearly all walks of modern day life. With the increasing access to these facilities, the lives of modern-day human beings have changed so dramatically that in many cases a reversal towards the old ways of life seems apparently impossible. Similar is the case with the process of education. In general the concept of e-learning has modified learning modes and behaviors to a much greater extent. It has...
A lot of different courses are offered over the internet. Some of these may be the right choice for certain students. One problem I see with this is that when the student has a question or does not understand something, they would have to research it instead of having a person to person interaction with the teacher. Also the teacher may sometimes offer examples that come from personal experiences. Computers cannot take the place of a human being.
Technology has had a large impact on the field of education. The proliferation of multimedia resources and limitless amounts of information available through the Internet has fundamentally affected the learning process. Students no longer search through cards and stacks for magazine articles; almost everything is at the click of a finger. Multimedia resources are increasingly utilized in the classroom to help instruct students. Some professors are making conscious efforts to use new technology, so as to introduce and familiarize their students with it. The significance of technology in education is now being elevated to a new plateau. Education through the Internet, the great equalizer, may make it more widely distributed through the phenomenon of online courses. It is the thesis of this paper that online courses are not an effective means to educate traditional undergraduate college aged students (people from 18-22 years old).