Connectivism and other learning theories - Module 4

At risk of sounding like a fence sitter who is unable to make up my mind, I find that after a lot of reading, note making and watching of videos, I still have one metaphorical foot very firmly rooted in each camp. I don’t think that there is one single theory which can be applied to all forms of learning, for all ages and at all stages, and I strongly believe that at different stages of cognitive development and maturity, there is a place for Behaviourism, Constructivism, Cognitivism and Connectivism. I see that effective teaching, particularly in this ‘digital age’ requires elements of all the major learning theories – with different focuses at different stages of education, and for children with different styles of learning.


A simplified definition of a learning theory is provided by Duke, Harper & Johnston (2013) as a theory that provides a description for how learning essentially occurs. The theory of connectivism doesn’t, to me, describe how learning occurs. It describes how learning develops and how knowledge grows and changes with time, but I don’t believe that it describes the mechanism by which learning occurs. Whilst the 8 principles of connectivism as outlined by Siemens (2005) have a definite place in secondary and tertiary education and workplace and vocational training, I believe that for primary teaching and early secondary, a mixture of constructivist and behaviourist techniques are most appropriate and that the principles of connectivism should be used to “inspire teachers and learners to make changes in their practice” (Bell, 2011). I also strongly agree with Duke, Harper & Johnston (2013) that children require core knowledge in order to understand and process any information - I feel that for children to “evaluate the worthiness of learning” (Siemens,2014, January 21) and develop “The ability to draw distinctions between important and unimportant information” (Siemens, 2005), they must first learn basic skills and knowledge. In the video, Siemens discusses how learners in a tertiary environment are virtually unknown to their teachers/professors and how his theory of connectivism can assist in creating meaningful learning from activiate participation and active engagement (Siemens, 2010, June 15). Whilst this may be true for a tertiary environment, the first of the Australian Professional Teacher Standards is to know students and how they learn. Secondary teachers will generally have student information and background which will assist us to create the active participation and engagement that Siemens discusses in his video.


For science education, there is a definite place for both direct instruction and discovery learning and I believe that our Australian curriculum and assessment requirements call for the use of both behaviourist and constructivist approaches. Many students arrive at school with partial knowledge or misconceptions about scientific facts and processes. These alternative conceptions can be very difficult to shift and can present a real barrier to learning (Tytler, 2012), thus the constructivist approach of constructing new ideas on top of old ones is particularly appropriate. The 5E Method (Bybee, 1997) is based on the constructivist approach but can be used to incorporate direct instruction, inquiry based learning, collaborative and group work. Students can direct their own explorations, use and build on prior knowledge and experience, to construct their own meaning and continually evaluate and assess their understanding.


Connectivism, whilst a useful tool, does not, in my opinion supersede existing learning theories and does not stand alone as a learning theory. As stated by Roblyer & Doering (2014, p60.), the future of technology integration is “merging the two approaches”. Whilst models and theories are useful, the strategies that are adopted should be based on the topics to be learnt and the specific instructional needs identified for particular students and situations.

References

Bell, F. (2011). Connectivism: Its place in theory-informed research and innovation in technology-enabled learning. The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 12(3), 98-118.

Bybee, R. W. (1997). Achieving scientific literacy: From purposes to practical action. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Duke, B., Harper, G., & Johnston, M. (2013). Connectivism as a digital age learning theory. The International HETL Review, 4-13.

Roblyer, M. D., and Doering, A., H.(2014). Integrating educational technology into Teaching (6th Ed.). Harlow, Essex: Pearson

Siemens, G. (2005). Connectivism:  A learning theory for the digital age. International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning, 2(1), 3-10.

(2014, January 21). Overview of connectivism - Dr George Siemens - YouTube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yx5VHpaW8sQ

(2010, June 15). George Siemens - Connectivism: Socializing Open Learning - YouTube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqL_lsogeNU

Tytler, R. (2012). Constructivist and socio-cultural views of teaching and learning. In G. Venville       & V. Dawson (Eds.), The art of Teaching Science for middle and secondary school (p. 23). Crows Nest, Australia: Allen & Unwin.

 (n.d.). Teacher Standards. Retrieved from https://www.aitsl.edu.au/teach/standards