January 14, 2013 @ 7:00pm EST etmooc had the equivalent of a “meet ‘n greet” online.  Over two hundred participants were online pumped and releasing a surge of energy and ideas into chat  and Twitter while Alec introduced the course.

I feel exhausted from the hype, the technical difficulties, trying to catch up and thrilled with the interactiveness of the slides.  The ideas appeared so fast from active participant- as though a movie was on fast forward.

People looking for answers….Alec suggesting the “answer section” will emerge; a bit ironic that students in a MOOC are looking for traditional structure.  Even those who intellectually know that a MOOC is not a traditional form or teaching or learning, many seem to grasp onto the security of structure and “syllabus”.  It is apparent that we need to move away from teacher as sage on the stage and look to our peers to reveal questions and create answers and solutions.

I get the sense that collaborative learning is like swimming in the ocean; you don’t have to know everything about the ocean to swim in it. In etmooc, one can walk in, jump into a wave, snorkel…..whatever you’re are comfortable with.  Get in and explore on whatever level you are comfortable with, of course moving towards new waters. Staying in our comfort zone is not what MOOCs are for.  The adage, “you get out what you put in” is probably the essence of our etmooc.

One participant suggested the synchronous sessions as a catalyst for learning.I like that:  catalyst for self directed learning.

Where will we go in the upcoming week?