Connectivism Reflection

My learning changes on a constant basis.  I find online learning more challenging than the traditional classroom for two reasons.  In the traditional classroom the information is relayed through a lecture/presentation, and I have physically present people with whom to converse and extend my knowledge.  In the online setting, I still have people who extend my knowledge, but the interaction is delayed by one to three days.  While I find online learning beneficial and a necessity for my life right now, it has challenged my learning.  As a visual/auditiory learner, I have had to really  challenge myself to make my own connections within the texts.  I love to read, but I learn best through the other venues.  Connectivism says that learning changes through diversity and will change to stay up-to-date.  I feel that the diversity of people (some in classroom education/some in the business sector) and the diversity of technology has changed my learning network.  I have made connections with people and thought processes in the class which have enriched my knowledge.  Also, I have learned and utilized many new technologies, keeping my learning up-to-date, that have given me connections in my education and that I will use in my high school classroom to help with student learning.  As I grow more into an adult learner, I have become more intrinsically motivated to learn and have surrounded myself with professionals and technologies that allow me to learn and grow.  Also, by expanding the way I learn, I have increased my capacity to learn (Davis, and Kelly-Bateman, 2008). In our online classroom setting, I learn best through the video lectures because the actually facilitate my connections more.  I just learn better through those avenues.  The discussions and blogs, while helpful, are delayed in stimulating my thought processes.  In my own learning, if I don't know the answer to a question or have questions about something, I  immediately get logged into a search engine or article database.  While I don't make connections as quickly through reading, I am efficient in researching topics and skimming for my answer. If that doesn't help, I look to the professional in my network for the answer.  Finally, my personal network supports connectivisim in that I have diversity in the way I achieve knowledge, have made connections to personal experiences, and have stayed up-to-date in my information.  I don't feel that my network really refutes connectivism.  I  need to continually reflect on my learning and the way I achieve it to stay current in education.  I connect to the concept of connectivism (Davis, and Kelly-Bateman, 2008).
 Davis, C., Edmunds, E., & Kelly-Bateman, V. (2008). Connectivism. In M. Orey (Ed.), Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/index.php?title=Connectivism