networked possibilities
alec couros - siast - september 2008

I am part of all that I have met.
tennyson (1842)

old world networks
and new social affordances

object centred sociality
what is your social connector?

network visualizations
illuminate our connections

technical affordances
expand our possibilities

personal engagement connectivism
immersion multiliteracies experiential
access social learning
web 2.0 sharing democratic media
creativity influences conversations
authenticity
open copyleft
constructivism
collaborative
freedom
small tools,
collective constructionism
loosely joined
student-centred transparency

Shifts In ET
(Leionen, 2005)

Shifts In ET
Objectivism
Cognitivism
Constructivism
(Schwier, 2007) Social Learning

Shifts In ET
Group growth
Individual growth
Objectivism
Cognitivism
Constructivism
(Schwier, 2007) Social Learning

typical teacher network
(Couros, 2006)

the networked teacher
(Couros, 2006)

Access to
high quality
multimedia.
‣Google Video, Youtube, Blip.tv,
Viddler.
‣Archive.org,
Creative
Commons, OER Commons,
CCMixter, United Streaming,
TED Talks.
‣Ustream, Seesmic, Stickam.
‣Skype,iChat, WizIQ, Elluminate,
Adobe Connect.

Easy publication
to a wide
audience.
‣Blogger, Wordpress, Edublogs.
‣Wikispaces, PBWiki, Wet Paint.
‣Google Video, Youtube, Blip.tv,
Viddler.
‣Ustream, Seesmic, Stickam.
‣Lulu,
Scribd, Creative
Commons

Choice of
content
licenses.
‣Full Copyright
‣Copyleft and Public Domain
‣Creative Commons (share alike,
attribution, non commercial)
‣Against DRM
‣Practical Modifiability
‣Related Rights
‣Access Control Prohibition

Greater access
to tools and
connectivity.
‣Free and open source software,
greater bandwidth, wireless
access, free services, and
reduced hardware costs have
contributed to greater access.

Instantaneous
connections to
people.
‣Instantmessaging and video
conferencing.
‣Existingsocial networks or
create your own.
‣Web conferencing tools.
‣Presence notification and
microblogging.
‣txting

Tools for debate,
challenge, and
engagement.
‣Access to text and multimedia
publication allows individuals to
read, create, remix, mashup,
and respond to cultural, political,
and economic events.
‣Mainstream media is attempting
to respond to democratic media
by creating feedback
mechanisms (e.g., surveys,
contests, interaction)

Sharing of and
creating new
culture.
‣The World is Flat (Friedman).
‣A number of flat classroom
projects been initiated to make
classroom walls transparent,
while bridging communication
among students.
‣Tools necessary exist and are
relatively easy to use. Practice is
the most difficult to change.

Simulations and
3D virtual
environments.
‣Second Life, Edusim, and other
3D environments allow for the
exploration of simulated worlds.
‣Individuals can communicate
and collaborate with each other,
and interact with objects in each
virtual world.

Time/Place
Shifted Personal
Learning
‣Tools exist today for individuals
to learn outside of the constraints
of time and place.
‣Through RSS tools and tagging,
individuals can aggregate
personally relevant information.
‣Availability
of laptops, wifi, and
unfettered access is especially
important for this transformation.

Giving Voice
and Creating
Audience
‣Individuals are using the tools of
the Internet to (re)claim their
voices, find a niche, and build
audiences/markets that never
existed.
‣Analysisand critique of types of
these phenomena include: Cult
of the Amateur, The Long Tail,
and Here Comes Everybody.

Potential for
Mobile Learning
‣Mobile technologies are
becoming more sophisticated,
allowing more capacity and
bandwidth.
‣The Apple iPhone and Nokia
N95 have pushed the boundaries
of smart phones.
‣Handheld devices will soon
bridge the gap through Internet
telephony.

Specialized
Search and
Analysis
‣New search mechanisms have
evolved to help uncover patterns
in the expanse of information.
‣Search visualization, natural
language processing,
personalization, custom
searches, vertical search, social
input, human input, and semantic
search are some of the
developing areas.

Check
these out ...
Current to future understanding
of technology in the teaching,
learning, and in general society.

Blog
Wiki
Tweet
Connect
Gather
Synthesize
Personalize
Create
Remix
Share
Repeat

case of eci831
open, connected, social

participants
grad students
assistants
guests
anyone

format
synchronous
wiki portal
blogging
google groups
other tools
tagging

synchronous sessions
open or free tools worked best

activities
guests
hands-on sessions
student-driven topics
collaborative wiki
personal projects
blogging
experimentation

second life
immersion

al upton and censorship
currency

feedback
students
outsiders
via. multimedia

voicethread
perspective of participants

mindmap
the big picture

Implications and cautions
for teaching and learning?

Beware the “Creepy
Treehouse”

“Any institutionally-created, operated, or
controlled environment in which participants are
lured in either by mimicking pre-existing open or
naturally formed environment, or by force,
through a system of punishments or rewards.”
~ Jared Stein
Beware the “Creepy
Treehouse”

“Education ... has produced a vast
population able to read but unable
to distinguish what is worth
reading, an easy prey to
sensations and cheap appeals.”
~Trevelyan (1942)

Contact:
alec.couros@uregina.ca
http://educationaltechnology.ca
skype: aleccouros
twitter/delicious: courosa