EME 6414 - MJW

  There was a strong focus this week on informal and formal learning for me. The beauty of social media platforms is that offer opportunities for both depending on the target audience, context, triggers for learning and the objectives of the learning activity. The functionality of social media platforms is powerful in terms of addressing a range of leaning needs; however, it also requires skills operators who can select the right platform and structure the learning content coherent (relative to the platform) in order to achieve the stated objectives.

  As defined by Krutka, Carpenter, and Trust (2017), PLNs enable professionals to develop communities of practice through the use of Social Media Platforms. Professional development (PD) can represent more of an informal approach to learning where participants are driven by curiosity and interest of shared concept or issue. PD sits with the adult education sphere where learners are able to make informed decisions about the direction of their knowledge developed relative to their own specific content or development objectives.  

  I agree with Greenhow and Lewin’s (2016) view that social media bridges the formal and informal learning divide. Depending on the context and the objectives of the learning activity, social media platforms can support both formal and informal learning. These platforms certainly reflect the methodologies of constructivism and connectivism. Formal learning examples tend to be more structured and examples include: in YouTube, providing students with playlists aligned with objectives; and using Linkedin Learning which offers certified courses. Informal learning is freer and is driven by curiosity, interest and social interaction, examples include: providing a prompt that facilitates further investigation; and exposing learners to podcast materials that stimulates ideas and inquiry.  

I  though this week’s readings provided some good insight relative to: produsage (creation and consumption of content) and how traditional educational models must adapt to this shift by embracing participatory, collaborative, and open approaches to learning; the differences between digital natives and digital immigrants (a good use of phraseology); and the myths about digital natives.   I thought that article by Kirshner about digital natives was spot on and I really appreciated the perspective. Key points I took from this article include: the myths about digital natives are not supported by research (i.e., they are gifted with the ability to multitask); proficiency with technology does not equate to deep knowledge or critical thinking skills; humans are not capable of true multitasking (they switch between tasks which results in impaired performance); and the enduring importance of developing critical thinking, information literacy and attention management skills. The technol...

  Entry 3 – Reflection   This week’s topics and objectives have provided a good starting point for this subject. The objectives have framed the scope of Web 2.0 technologies (i.e., hat they are and what they are not). There is a clear alignment between Web 2.0 and the platforms that support it intent.

  Entry 2 – Blogs and Web 2.0   From what I understand at this stage, Blogs are a primary example of what Web 2.0 technologies are about. Blogs allow users to create and publish their own content which also facilitates ongoing interaction. Blogs promote participation and provide a platform to share knowledge. Blogs also support multimedia interaction, facilitate various information feeds, they also support community engagement.

  Entry 1 – Web 2.0   From what I understand at this stage (early doors), Web 2.0 is characterised by interactive sites and platforms that facilitate participation, collaboration and content creation. Web 1.0 technologies (i.e., static websites) provided limited functionality that supported interaction. Web 2.0 has a focus on the generation and sharing of content through aligned platforms (i.e., blogs, wikis). Other characteristics include: the hosting of content via cloud based services; real time interaction; and the sharing of media.