The document discusses the creation and nurturing of new learning communities and ecosystems in educational contexts. It emphasizes the importance of connectivism, personal learning skills, and the use of various technologies to enhance experiential learning for K-20 educators. Key themes include the characteristics of learning ecosystems, the role of social media, and strategies for developing and assessing these communities.

1. Fostering New Learning Communities, Nurturing Online Learning EcosystemsJune 19, 2009 #sloancsym #nlc San FranciscoSloan C International Symposium on Emerging Technology Applications for Online Learninghttp://newlearningcommunities.pbworks.comHolly Rae Bemis-Schurtz, M.A. @hollyraeSusan Bussmann, Ph.D. @suceppibNew Mexico State UniversityWe apply these concepts to foster experiential learning for K-20 educators.

2. Consider …Clarity, focus, perspective, adaptation, evolution

3. Influential ConceptsLearning Ecosystems(Gutl & Chang)Connectivism(Siemens & Downes)Bioteaming(Thompson)

4. OverviewNew Learning Contexts & SkillsLearning Ecosystem as a ModelCharacteristics of New Learning Communities (NLCs)Organizational BiomimicryOne to many communicationsSelf organizing, collective leadershipDeveloping NLCsNurturing & Supporting NLCsAssessing NLCs

7. Scoble’s Social Media Starfishhttp://www.flickr.com/photos/dbarefoot/1814873464/The Conversation Prismhttp://www.briansolis.com/2008/08/introducing-conversation-prism.htmlSocial Media Landscapehttp://www.fredcavazza.net/2008/06/09/social-media-landscape/

8. What happens to learning in this context?“Our learning and information acquisition is a mashup. We take pieces, add pieces, dialogue, reframe, rethink, connect, and ultimately, we end up with some type of pattern that symbolizes what’s happening ‘out there’ and what it means to us. And that pattern changes daily.G. Siemens and P. Tittenberger. Handbook of emerging technologies for learning, March 2009.

9. Connectivism‘A learning theory for a digital age’ from George Siemens (@gsiemens) & Stephen Downes (@downes).Influenced by learning theories, social structures, and technologies, such asAffordance of toolsContextual situated learningSocial learning theoryEpistemological viewsEmbodied cognitionNew media theorySystems theoryNetwork theory

10. In a nutshell…‘knowledge and cognition are distributed across networks of people and technology is the process of connecting, growing, and navigating those networks'the knowledge of the network is bigger than any one node Handbook of emerging technologies for learning, March 2009http://ltc.umanitoba.ca/wikis/etl/index.php/Handbook_of_Emerging_Technologies_for_Learning

11. Learning is forming connectionsConnectivism(George Siemens & Stephen Downes)Learning is connecting new experiences within our neural, conceptual and social networksDepth and diversity of the connections is what determines understanding Frequency of exposure and integration with other concepts can strengthen understandingConnections can be strong or weak – different networks serve different needsExpertise (the facility of using networks) is what is needed to learn in this new context

12. New Learning SkillsG. Siemens and P. Tittenberger. Handbook of emerging technologies for learning, March 2009. “New Learning, New Educators, New Skills”

13. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soft_skillsCreated with Wordle - http://www.wordle.net/Soft Skills

14. Flickr Creative Commons Search for ‘early adopters’ or ‘power users’Technology Fluency & Adeptnesshttp://www.flickr.com/photos/hbemisschurtz/favorites/

15. WayfindingWayfinding encompasses all of the ways in which people and animals orient themselves in physical space and navigate from place to placetraditional navigation methods used by indigenous peoples

16. in the context of architecture to refer to the user experience of orientation and choosing a path within the built environment

17. the set of architectural and/or design elements that aid orientation.From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayfinding

18. SensemakingSensemaking is the ability or attempt to make sense of an ambiguous situation. creating situational awareness and understanding in situations of high complexity or uncertainty in order to make decisions. "a motivated, continuous effort to understand connections (which can be among people, places, and events) in order to anticipate their trajectories and act effectively" (Klein et al., 2006a). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SensemakingKlein, G., Moon, B. and Hoffman, R.F. (2006a). Making sense of sensemaking I: alternative perspectives.IEEE Intelligent Systems, 21(4), 70-73.

19. How do you support the development of personal learning skills?

20. Consider the EcosystemA network of living and nonliving thingsEnergy and water cycles continuouslyProducers generate for Primary. Secondary, & Tertiary ConsumersDecomposers recycle and compost for a healthy foundationIllustration by Sabine Deviche (ASU) http://askabiologist.asu.edu/research/ecosystems/index.html

21. Learning Ecosystem as a ModelGutl & Chang, 2008a comprehensive review of the ecosystem model as used to describe highly dynamic learning environments that change organically and oftena model to identify perspectives, relationships, approaches and implementationsassists in identifying pedagogical, cognitive, social, organizational, and technological aspects

22. CharacteristicsOpen and flexible to allow for student's self directionSupport the individual learner and the community in a natural learning processNetwork of learning agents and sources dynamically changes according to situations and context (Gutl & Chang, 2008)

23. from David Armano (@armano)

24. Our working definitionA learning ecosystem is…a framework for understanding new learning environments that incorporate a variety oftools (ie: course management systems, Web 2.0 applications) and multiple touch points (web, client, mobile) that aims to make transparent to the members of the learning community various channels (relationships, pathways, protocols) for learning.

25. So we’ve tried…To establish a framework which shows our ecosystem.The next few slides show this over time.Each is only a snapshot of a dynamic system~ a moment in time.

26. Current Events & TrendsAmbient ConsumptionWidgets & RSSPrimary ConsumptionExternal CommunitiesFacilitation and AssessmentProductionRecomposition

27. Level of learner investment/aka “risk”Ambient ConsumersPrimary ConsumersProducersRecomposersParra, Bemis-Schurtz, Bussmann (NM TIE & iNACOL VSS, 2008)

28. Learner ResponsibilityLearner as LurkerLearner as ConnectorRelationship to RequirementsLearner as ProducerLearner as Recomposer

29. Learning/Course Management System

30. Webconferencing System

31. VOIP Instant Messaging Tool

32. Robust Wiki

33. Blogs

34. Micromedia

35. Robust Wikis

36. Voice Discussion ToolsCollaboration & Interaction Tools Learning & Content Management ToolsLearningEcosystem ToolsLearnstreaming ToolsContent Creation & Dissemination ToolsMultimedia Creation Tools

37. Social Bookmarking Tools

38. Content Sharing Tools

39. Custom Search Tools

40. Lifestreaming Tools

41. Analytic Tools

42. RSS Feed Aggregators

43. Social NetworksExamples of NMSU & RETALearning EcosystemsUsed at various levels, K-20 to foster experiential learning for educatorsShared quickly for reference ;-)

44. Podcasting and Vodcasting for Improved Achievementhttp://pvia.pbworks.com3rd grade Educator Teams implement podcasting in classroomsMentors (RETA Instructors)Facilitated by @suceppib @hollyrae & Bethany Bovard (@tektrekker)