Is it possible for our classrooms and institutions to support this kind (connected learning) of learning?

It is completely possible for our classrooms to support connected learning, but it will definitely need support. The ideas of connected learning and open source have been around for awhile, but they are just now starting to make its way into schools. The reason is that the technology that allows for people to be connected is becoming more widespread, cheaper, and easier to use. There are going to have to be some major changes in the mindsets of educators and students as connected learning becomes more mainstream.

One part of the problem is that most of my students right now are caught between the old ideas of “sit down, shut up, and listen” (I kid you not, they thought this should be one of our classroom norms) and the more discovery-type learning. Part of this comes from the fact that they were taught in the former style all through middle school, if not earlier, and they are hesitant to take risks and make mistakes which is what the latter type of learning requires. I believe that this aspect can be changed easily in our students; I believe they want to learn relevant information in relevant ways.

The second part of the problem is the structure; it is difficult to encourage discovery and self-learning when college websites and YouTube are blocked at school. The people in charge of the structure are still scared of the technology and don’t see the potential in using it to help create life-long learners. What better way to create a life-long learner then to teach them how to find an authoritative answer to almost any question? What better way then to show them that they have the ability to create and add to the abundance of the internet, not just take from the internet? Ideas spur ideas, and we have to let our students know that they are capable of creating new ideas – that the world has always been this way, that it took all different kinds of people to get humans to where they are today, good or bad.

So do I think that our classrooms can support connected learning? Yes! How do we go about supporting connected learning? The first thing that we need to do is to continue to support each other. It is the support of like-minded educators that will allow us to continue on and not feel like we are alone. The second thing that we need to do is keeping pushing the envelope; don’t not try something new because you are the only one or because you think that it might not go perfectly, or one of the countless other reasons that are often too easy to come up with. I feel very fortunate that I am in a district that is supportive of technology and the tools that allow for connected learning to be done easier. But if you are not so fortunate, then you need to continue to pressure your administrators and peers to see the importance of technology, connected learning, and the potential that these can have on our students. I see all these changes coming from the bottom up.

I get excited about the future of education and the collaboration power that my students have and will have power to in the future. We need to make sure that this type of connected learning is supported and well-used in our classrooms and institutions.