This is a more general discussion about Education and the Guiding Question: How is Education co-constructive?
9/4/12
As a first stab at the idea, I'd say it is so in 2 ways at least: 1) that we construct knowledge but with collaborators, not in a vacuum; and 2) that knowledge is connected to collaborators and these can be all manner of things, not just people. An example would be a network and database such as ARCGIS.
I feel it is important to say that the idea of 'education' is a co-construction of a society about what it values its members to be like, what skills they need to survive and thrive, and what goals they value. The individual has very little to do with it. "Education' is about society. In that sense it is constructed through laws and values in a collaborative fashion. This is distinct from 'learning' which is about the learner and is learner centric. The learner may discover in their 'education' that 'education' is not good for them in some way. Much like the forced schooling of native Americans, which forbade them the use of their language, and destroyed their culture.
The topic I am considering is the use of restricted non open sourced peer reviewed material as a basis for scholarship. If it is behind a money or status firewall is it the sole legitimate repository for information? Or is it in fact biased for just this reason, out of date and incomplete? Why does an author choose to do that with their work when we have creative commons? I understand the issue of intellectual property and the need to keep confidence, but in the interchange of ideas, limiting diversity and access, limits the insights. At very least I will consider peer reviewed open access repositories. There are such fine ones such as Plos, "an interactive open-access journal for the communication of all peer-reviewed scientific and medical research". Along with this list from the University Library at Boulder, Colorado. Of course there are many others comming out all the time. I have my eye on The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning.
This really matters in my subject area, connectivism and design based learning in hybrid learning environments. Just in time learning is critical, urgent. Much of the content produced prior to ubiquitous broadband (web 2.0) is being redefined in the context of a connectivist epistemology. Discoveries are erupting at a break neck pace. Walled gardens are proving less agile.
9/4/12
As a first stab at the idea, I'd say it is so in 2 ways at least: 1) that we construct knowledge but with collaborators, not in a vacuum; and 2) that knowledge is connected to collaborators and these can be all manner of things, not just people. An example would be a network and database such as ARCGIS.
I feel it is important to say that the idea of 'education' is a co-construction of a society about what it values its members to be like, what skills they need to survive and thrive, and what goals they value. The individual has very little to do with it. "Education' is about society. In that sense it is constructed through laws and values in a collaborative fashion. This is distinct from 'learning' which is about the learner and is learner centric. The learner may discover in their 'education' that 'education' is not good for them in some way. Much like the forced schooling of native Americans, which forbade them the use of their language, and destroyed their culture.
The topic I am considering is the use of restricted non open sourced peer reviewed material as a basis for scholarship. If it is behind a money or status firewall is it the sole legitimate repository for information? Or is it in fact biased for just this reason, out of date and incomplete? Why does an author choose to do that with their work when we have creative commons? I understand the issue of intellectual property and the need to keep confidence, but in the interchange of ideas, limiting diversity and access, limits the insights. At very least I will consider peer reviewed open access repositories. There are such fine ones such as Plos, "an interactive open-access journal for the communication of all peer-reviewed scientific and medical research". Along with this list from the University Library at Boulder, Colorado. Of course there are many others comming out all the time. I have my eye on The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning.
This really matters in my subject area, connectivism and design based learning in hybrid learning environments. Just in time learning is critical, urgent. Much of the content produced prior to ubiquitous broadband (web 2.0) is being redefined in the context of a connectivist epistemology. Discoveries are erupting at a break neck pace. Walled gardens are proving less agile.