Connectivism, PLNs, CoPs – in a few words
The purpose of this Week 1 assignment for EdTech 543 was to create a non-linguistic representation based on my understanding of the three main topic areas – connectivist learning theory, personal learning networks (PLNs) and communities of practice (CoPs). I created this graphic of concentric and overlapping color sections with faint lines spreading out from the center of the image. It looks a bit like a colorful radar screen and I thought that was a good analogy to what we are learning in this course – how to develop an internal radar for new ideas and how to evaluate and share information through social media and knowledge networks.
Each main color section represents the connections and interactions stemming from an individual’s PLN and spreading out to communities of practice and the larger space of all knowledge available to us through a variety of tools. According to Couros, connectivist theory stresses the development of meta-skills of evaluating and managing information and network connections (2010). I wanted to represent this idea with an image that could show a meta-view of connection levels and the varying types of intensity and interaction that can be found in each level. The graphic appears concentric but information and connections can actually move in either direction – between the PLNs and CoPs as well as the specialized nodes and fringe connections at the outer edges. The variety and intensity of colors represent the diversity needed at each level for learning and knowledge creation. Color tint and opacity also represents the blending of new ideas and information to create original digital content in both the PLN and CoPs levels.
The graphic contains layers of browns orange, tan and green colors – these are connections with more intense and dynamic interactions happening in the PLN and CoPs layers. Couros defines a PLN as a space where all the social capital and connections converge and allow the individuals to develop and facilitate their own Personal Learning Environment. Thus, the PLN area at the center of it all, represents a trusted “inner circle” of practitioners that know each other’s skills and areas of expertise well. Diversity, to a certain extent, is important in a PLN, but not so much that strong bonds and bridges can’t be built between areas of expertise and content. There is constant sharing and interaction in the PLN through social media tools such as blogs, wikis, image and video sharing and social bookmarking. The relatively solid color of center area in the graphic represents this consistency dynamic found in productive PLNs.
The CoPs area of the graphic represents the wider variety of communities, interests and practices that are available immediately outside of the PLN. According to Jane Bosarth,
“communities of practice are focused around practice, not a hobby, like stargazing, and not a community in the sense of location like a neighborhood- but people working to improve practice and enact more skillful work.” (2010, pg 149)
As the colors layer and blend, they create new colors, tints or shades that represent skillful intent of CoPs. The analogous color blends and variations in the CoPs area are also meant to be reflective of Wenger’s idea that learning is not just for the individuals within a CoP, but also for the community as a whole – this results in enhanced practices and a more effective CoP overall.
There are several distinct slices in the graphic where it appears that a member of the inner PLN could bypass the CoPs all together and venture out to the less focused and intense (teal blue) connections that are on the fringe of the image (and the fringe of our areas of work or interest). I wanted to be sure that I somehow represented a healthy practice of seeking out new and seemingly unrelated content (beyond our favored PLNs and CoPs) that could be brought back to the group, evaluated and integrated if found useful. This would represent the pure exploration of that outer space of knowledge connections and sources with no other goal than to find interesting things to bring back and share or discard as desired. Siemens reminds us of the importance of these weak ties or connections made at the fringe of our networks when he states “Most of the revolutionary ideas of today at one time existed as a fringe element.” (2004).
References
Bozarth, J. (2010). Social media for trainers: Techniques for enhancing and extending learning (pp. 149-150). San Francisco: Pfeiffer.
Couros, A. (2010). Developing personal learning networks for open and social learning. In Veletsianos, G. (2010). Emerging technologies in distance education (pp. 109-128). Athabasca University Press. Retrieved June 30, 2015, from http://www.aupress.ca/books/120177/ebook/06_Veletsianos_2010-Emerging_Technologies_in_Distance_Education.pdf
Siemens, G. (2004). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. Retrieved June 29, 2015 from www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm
Wenger, E. (1999). Communities of practice: learning, meaning and identity. New York: Cambridge University Press.
July 4, 2015 @ 6:55 pm
Renee,
This is amazing! I am so impressed. I love your visual representation. I struggled with finding pictures for mine, but I love what you did. I can see how they all overlap and effect one another. I love the idea of the blending colours! I can see how it relates to the concepts especially with the Communities of Practice and Personal Learning Network. There are overlaps, but more that than, sort of a seamless blending from one concept to another. Love it!
July 5, 2015 @ 4:49 pm
While I was initially impressed by your visual representation, I am even more impressed by your explanation of the visual itself. I especially like how you stress that when the connectivism theory is looked at closely, connections are made with varying intensity. The fact that your colors appear with varying degrees of intensity matches your analysis perfectly. This bleeds into your acknowledgement that the PLN is the hub of successful CoPs and connectivism. I’m sure we will explore the more practical application aspects of PLNs, but do you have any personal experience that would lend itself to suggestions about being a successful PLN?
I also appreciate that you point out the importance of seeking new, and at times, non-related content. I think so often we get stuck in our own areas of expertise and as a result we aren’t willing to experiment with anything new or go outside our comfort zones. The fact that many of our weak connections evolve into “revolutionary ideas” should serve as a powerful platform for why we should seek to connect networks beyond what is familiar to us.
July 5, 2015 @ 8:12 pm
Thanks for the question Megan. I think one thing that really works well is being consistent with communicating and sharing often within a PLN. We have a mini-PLN for this class, so that can get a little weird because we don’t have a lot of people in our personal group, but I suggest that we start to just post and share as much as possible with each other and others in the class FB page and see what bubbles up in conversations. I think a more permanent PLN situation might call for deciding on a consistent “place” to post ideas to – a group blog, a wiki, a group page, a hashtag- just so you aren’t missing something someone Tweets or posts in the stream of things. I think eventually you settle on what works for everyone in the PLN and then figure out a routine or habit of sharing and communicating.
Personal Learning Networks, CoPs Connectivism: Creatively Explained | User Generated Education
August 16, 2015 @ 3:35 pm
[…] There are several distinct slices in the graphic where it appears that a member of the inner PLN could bypass the CoPs all together and venture out to the less focused and intense (teal blue) connections that are on the fringe of the image (and the fringe of our areas of work or interest). I wanted to be sure that I somehow represented a healthy practice of seeking out new and seemingly unrelated content (beyond our favored PLNs and CoPs) that could be brought back to the group, evaluated and integrated if found useful. This would represent the pure exploration of that outer space of knowledge connections and sources with no other goal than to find interesting things to bring back and share or discard as desired.(http://edtech.reneephoenix.com/creative_express/) […]
CoPs, Connectivism and PLNs – Rain Drop Music – Julian Elorduy: EdTech Learning Blog
June 12, 2016 @ 7:19 pm
[…] Phoenix, R. (2015). Connectivism, PLNs, CoPs – in a few words. Retrieved June 12, 2016, from http://edtech.reneephoenix.com/creative_express/ […]