Lesson 1 Discussion Summary

Thanks for your active contributions in Lesson 1 discussion!  We had good interactions in our discussions in the topics of Connectivism, ONLE, & PLE.

Here are some reflections to share with you to help you to enhance your further learning:

1.     Lesson 1 discussion feedback & grade posted. See your e-mail for the details. If you have any questions, contact me within two days; otherwise, it is assumed you agree with the received grade.

2.     Connectivism, PLE, and ONLE are new learning theory, new learning paradigm, and new learning environments.  From epistemology and ontology aspects, it seems that they are effective to human learning; however, different generations perceive new digital media differently.  Taking previous learning paradigms to examine and to frame new ones, it is hard to understand why younger generations learn differently.  Are new digital media (Web 2.0) just tools or they are attitude?  Are we open minded enough? We need to remember that not all online technologies are considered as ONLE/PLE technologies.  ONLE/PLE technologies generally have the features of open, networking, and social.  They provide users with different degrees of designs on these three features.  It is important for us to learn integrate different Web 2.0 tools to enhance effective ONLE/PLE instructional strategies.

3.     One concept we need to clarify: it is not all online learning is considered as ONLE/PLE.  It is important to understand the differences between ONLE/PLE and other types of online learning.  Connectivism is the learning theory that ONLE/PLE is built upon.  Frequently, Web 2.0 tools are integrated to deliver ONLE/PLE instructions because Web 2.0 tools have the characteristics of open, network, and social.

4.      "ONLE/PLE instructional strategies" are the keys in our class.  I would like to remind us to think what effective ONLE/PLE instructional strategies are that we can integrate to support our Connectivism instructions via multiple Web 2.0 tools.

5.     Unfortunately, our Lesson 1 discussion did not set any new records in comparing to previous semesters.  In fact, our average posting was the lowest one historically.  Let's set our mindset differently, our contributions to lesson discussions is more than just our own personal learning.  Your active and interactive lesson contributions to lesson discussions enrich ETC655's ONLE and support future 655 students' learning.  Remember, current 655's ONLE was created by previous students. Shouldn't we do the same thing for the upcoming students?

a.     Class average: 8.42 (Highest: 25; Lowest: 4)

b.     Historical Average: 11.90 (Highest: 15.33; Lowest: 8.42)

c.     ETC655 Lesson Discussion Statistics at: https://sites.google.com/site/etc655/discussion-analysis