Connectivism: a novel learning theory in a digital age?

People involved in the creation of instructional or developmental environments traditionally recognized and applied among others, constructivist, behaviourist or cognitivist pedagogies. These learning theories, although underpinned by different paradigms of thinking, are all underpinned by the concept of transactional distance (Downes, 2006). The latter implies that for learning to take place, a physical or metaphorical space, representing a channel of communication, should exist. None of the mentioned learning theories is sufficient to represent the nature of learning due to knowledge diffusion in the online world (Cormier, 2008). Moore contributed to the development of learning theories by arguing that interaction improves the effectiveness of communication – knowledge exists and diffuses through negotiation and communication (Farrell, 2001). As learning takes place via communication, improved interaction in effect would exert a positive influence on learning processes.

The advancement of technology has reorganized how people interact and communicate, therefore influencing how we learn. Learning has changed to a continual process in which knowledge is transformed into something of meaning through connections between sources of information and the formation of useful patterns, which generally results in something that can be acted upon appropriately, in a contextually aware manner (Siemens, 2004). Learning therefore encapsulates various meanings for different people. In contradiction to traditional theories, learning can result from any form of social interaction. Learning can therefore be envisaged as connectivity, because people derive skills and competencies from forming connections with outside sources while focusing on connecting specialized information sets.

Connectivism is driven by the understanding that decisions are based on rapidly altering foundations as new information is continually being acquired. Learning needs and theories that describe learning principles and processes, should be reflective of underlying social environments (Siemens, 2004). In contrast with traditional learning theories, connectivism does not necessarily imply a transactional medium of communication where signals are transferred between the sender and the receiver. This raises an alternative question (Downes, 2006): If there is no causal connection between a teacher and a learner, is it possible that learning can take place? Connectivism, however, does not necessarily imply that all other learning theories are obsolete. It only provides alternative means for learning as it does not reduce the transfer of information between senders and receivers to a physical substrate (Downes, 2006). People can still learn by applying the traditional learning theories, but the fundamental insight, aligning with the assumptions underpinning connectivism, is that any form of learning, including personal development and professional growth, relates to people’s ability to construct their own social networks that integrates with their personal learning environments within they foster and sustain the flow of knowledge (Siemens, 2004).

The strength of connectivism as a learning theory lies in the fact that it does not “over-write” any other theory. Connectivism integrates principles form various pedagogies to provide a novel way of learning by recognizing the formation of connections on various levels (i.e. cognitive, social, emotional, neural), enabling people to manage the abundance, as well as exponential growth, of information. Pedagogy are currently challenged by the ephemeral nature of knowledge in the online world. Personally I view connectivism as a learning theory, underpinning the development of integrated knowledge networks while reducing information to emergence, that is the understanding that emerges from various people interacting and producing unexpected outcomes.

Bibliography
Cormier, D. (2008, June/July). Rhizomatic Education: Community as Curriculum. Retrieved October 05, 2009, from Innovate, Vol 4(5): www.innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=550&action=article
Downes, S. (2006, October 16). Learning Network and Connective Knowledge. Retrieved October 12, 2009, from it.coe.uga.edu/itforum/paper92/paper92.html
Farrell, L. (2001). Negotiating knowledge in the knowledge economy: Workplace educators and the politics of codification. Studies in COntinuig Education , 23 (2), 201-214.
Siemens, G. (2004, December 12). Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age. Retrieved October 7, 2009, from Elearning space. Everything elearning: http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm.