Anne's Network
This may seem a bit limited, but much of what I do in terms of interpersonal communications is somewhat limited: I do not participate on social networking sites due to security considerations at work, so most of my online interaction is strictly within the Walden learning community and the associated resources. Within this subset network, there is a large amount of give and take, as the learning environment is very conducive to collaboration and cooperation.
On a personal level, my family communicates with me mostly from them to me (sometimes they listen, but not always). Ed does not listen at all, nor do the cats. Most of my conversations with all of this group are one-sided (although at least the cats are good listeners!).
In the workplace, I give out far more than I receive in terms of information...this is a culture thing and although many of us are working on changing this model, it's a slow go.
The give and take model also applies when dealing with friends: information goes in both/all directions.
Reflection:
My network as it exists now has significantly changed my learning processes, because I am much more "just in time" oriented. I'm not sure what I ever did before I had Internet access, a laptop, and a smartphone, but I most definitely do not want to go back there ever again! Search engines are my tools of choice--the ability to find almost anything online is both a blessing and a curse, but I have used some of my extant skills to apply a certain degree of skepticism to anything I find online. The phrase "Trust but verify" comes to mind here!
When I have a question, I will do an online search--I am likely to do multiple versions, using different search engines and rewording my query to provide some degree of accuracy and focus. Once this is done, I usually have a pretty good idea of what I need to know about this particular topic. To keep it sorted out if it is that kind of information, I use Zotero (a free online research tool worth having!). I am a visual learner, so I learn from reading and viewing. If it is worth knowing, I can integrate it into my memory (or at least know that I can always get back to it should that be necessary).
Not all data is worthy of this after being looked up: over dinner last Saturday night there was a discussion about nuclear materials that turned to Madame Curie, and then my memory was called into doubt because I pointed out that she named the element Polonium after her native country of Poland. I was informed that she was French by my husband. I could not let that go unchallenged, so I pulled out my phone and googled "Madame Curie"--the Wikipedia entry that came up cites her full name, Marie Sklodowska Curie, and states her Polish birth and upbringing. No need to bookmark that or flag it in Zotero--it is SO good to have this kind of resource available.
Posts
2 comments:
Anne,
I really like your focus on "trust but verify." It is critical students are able to sift through the piles of useless or incorrect information on the web. This holds true for all the connections students could make. I also love Zotero and have no idea what I did without it.
When you talk about how your learning has changed, can you be more specific or in-depth? I get that we can connect to more information quicker, but how does that translate into different learning. Hypothetically, let's go back to the pre-internet dark ages. Lets assume you were at an industry conference that was hosted by a library, and included all the top minds, instructors, and students. In that pre-web environment you had access to all the best information as soon as you could possibly want it. In that far-fetched yet feasible scenario woudl your learning be as it is now, or as it was then?
Finally, up until tonight, I also carried my phone where ever I went. Unfortunately, I carried mine too close to the pool. :( Any recommendation for a new Verizon Windows Mobile Device?
Brad
Anne,
Your post made me think of Mentoring. I don't think I put that on my mind map. I have had period in my life where I have had wonderful people to learn from. I have also had periods where I could not find anyone to fill in the gap. At those points, I turned to books written by professionals. I then moved to watching videos and reading information on the web.
The more I learn, the harder it is to find mentors. I think that one of the reasons I have come back to school is that I like being surrounded by people that extend my thinking and are deep thinkers. Having said that I have been pleased with the interaction and collaboration of the on-line community.
I think that the fact that we can interact whenever it is convenient allows for more information to be shared and digested. A typical classroom is limited to the time in class and it is hard to go back and revisit topics because you were onto a new topic at the next class. Also with on-line discussion, you have a written history of the learning. It is almost like a portfolio. It is a great network for learning.
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