2006 Network Planning Forum

Invitation to participate in the Connected Learning Community

Mon, 24 Jul 2006 16:41:14 +0930

by Sean FitzGerald

All the action for the CLC has now moved from this planning forum to the CLC blog where I've been adding posts explaining how to participate.

Suggestions include:

If you haven't already done so, select and set up an online presence (such as a blog), and start posting. I've added this guide to choosing an online presence on the wiki.
Subscribe to the blog's news feed - http://clcommunity.blogspot.com/atom.xml
(see this post for suggested methods for reading news feeds).
Add some comments to the blog posts (don't forget to link back to your blog/online presence if you aren't with Blogger)
Add the CLC blog to your blogroll or website.
Add your details to the members page of the wiki
Join our Frappr map (and add a pic of yourself to the group photos).
Tag relevant resources with 'clcommunity'.

I'll be running an Elluminate session on choosing an online presence and participating in the CLC on 1st August and there will be a f2f meeting and social gathering for the CLC on the 2nd August. More details on the blog.

The online presence was going to be at edublogs.org, but...

Tue, 13 Jun 2006 09:58:16 +0930

by Sean FitzGerald

It was decided that the best tool for the official online presence would be a blog, and, under my recommendation edublogs.org was initially chosen.

So I set up a blog there - http://clcommunity.edublogs.org/

However, once I took a look at the admin interface I realised it posed too many limitations for an official blog.

I should have read the FAQ a little closer beforehand!

The biggest problem was that we cannot access and modify the template, and since we wanted to gradually show how to aggregate content to a blog by tweaking the template over the coming weeks, this was a problem.

Edublogs.org may, however, suit individual participants for their personal online presence if they aren't interested in tweaking their template. It comes with a built-in links and blogroll manager, which would be good for anyone who doesn't want to get their hands dirty and add links by tweaking code.

The good news is that we got an advertising-free wiki out of it
- http://clcommunity.wikispaces.com/ - as Wikispaces has a deal with edublogs.org to provide advertising-free wikis to edublogs.org account holders (Wikispaces will remove ads for education-oriented wikis - just send them an email).

I also tried Wordpress.com - the official hosting service from the people who make the Wordpress software used at edublogs.org.

I set up - http://clcommunity.wordpress.com/

This was better, as several of the built-in themes allow you to add 'widgets' to your sidebar, making it easy to add flickr badges, del.icio.us link rolls, RSS feeds etc. without needing to tweak the code.

But it still doesn't have the full access to the template which we needed in order to demonstrate how to add content from other services.

So it looks like it's back to good 'ole Blogger - it's easy to use, it's familiar, many of the facilitators already have an account - so it's easy to add them as co-authors.

Most importantly - we have complete access to the template, which is critical if we are going to model the process of adding aggregated content to the blog to create a Personal Learning Environment.

So here is our new blog - http://clcommunity.blogspot.com/

I've added my observations to a page on the new wiki where we can review various tools that can be used as an online presence - http://clcommunity.wikispaces.com/onlinepresencereviews

Please feel to add your own reviews and comments.

I've also added the starting post of this thread as a tutorial/guide on the wiki - http://clcommunity.wikispaces.com/choosinganonlinepresence. I'm yet to add the hyperlinks (would like some help with that if anyone has the time).

btw - if you would like to have a look at the admin interface of either the edublogs.org blog or the Wordpress.com blog, send me an email and I'll send you the login and password.

Re: We finally have a name - welcome to the 'Connected Learning Community'!

Fri, 09 Jun 2006 17:05:25 +0930

by Wendy Zammit

Hi Joanna and Anne,

I agree. At first I liked the idea of communities but then I thought it would give people the wrong idea. They could think we're an umbrella organisation which will direct them to a community.

But I celebrate the fact that even after we had made a decision people were willing to sit with a new idea. That speaks volumes

Wendy

Re: We finally have a name - welcome to the 'Connected Learning Community'!

Fri, 09 Jun 2006 16:28:03 +0930

by Joanna Kay

HI Everyone,

I think Anne's point is really relevant...."I am happy with Connected Learning Community because we are a community about connected learning, and I think it is inclusive of exploring various arrangements and implementations of learning communities using web 2.0 tools" and I agree.

To me, 'Communities' suggests that the network will be purely focussed on creating online communities......whereas Community suggests a broader focus - looking at connected learning and all the concepts and tools that come with it.

Just my two cents

Have great weekends,

Jo Kay
http://jstuffed.blogspot.com

Re: We finally have a name - welcome to the 'Connected Learning Community'!

Fri, 09 Jun 2006 13:05:25 +0930

by Sean FitzGerald

Simon, I actually like the name 'Connected Learning Communities', unfortunately a decision had to be made, it has been made, and processes have already been put in place and work has been done, including creation of a blog and a wiki.

It's a shame you hadn't suggested this a few days ago as it may very well have been accepted.

What I like about the name it is that it shifts the emphasis from "connected learning" to the process of creating connected learning communities.

It also speaks to the idea of linking in with other communities.

I think the project is evolving to be about exploring creating online learning communities based around personal learning environments using Web 2.0 tools and this name reflects that well.

On the other hand, as Anne says - the project isn't just about this - it's also about connected learning, networked learning, personal learning networks, Connectivism and exploring the use of Web 2.0 tools in education.

When I imagine what people think when they see promotional material for 'Connected Learning Communities' is they will think its just about that single topic.

Your suggestion raises some tricky, subtle issues about inclusion and exclusion for me. (It's funny how a slight change in a name can trigger a whole thought process - evidence of the power of brainstorming and community development in action!)

It would be a shift from the 'Connected Learning Community' to about 'Connected Learning Communities'.

'Connected Learning Communities' describes a topic, whereas 'Connected Learning Community' circumscribes a group of people.

Even though the network/community is open to anyone to join, calling it a 'community' implies an inside and an outside. By using the word 'community' the notion of 'not-community' is introduced.

Also, with other networks like the OMN there is a strong sense that one joins and becomes a member by subscribing to the EdNA group. This is achieved through the technical features of the group.

With the netowrked/connected learning model there is no such thing - people read the blog or subscribe to the feed if they want and become self-declared members of the network/community by the virtue of the fact they are participating by linking or commenting etc.

There really is no sense of 'joining' like there is in the OMN. You just 'become' a member.

In fact, in practice in the rest of the web the idea of being a part of anything isn't really entered into.

Having said all that, at the end of the day I can live with 'Connected Learning Community', but if there is a strong feeling that 'Connected Learning Communities' is a better name than 'Connected Learning Community' then I'm prepared to put in the work to re-do what I have done so far.

As for the issue of the online presence - I've explained several times that the whole idea of this project is to show teachers how to create personal learning environments and form personal learning networks using loosely connected Web 2.0 tools on the open web so they can further explore the use of Web 2.0 tools for education by using them (and not just talking about it), and that using a prescribed suite of integrated tools would defeat the whole purpose of the project, so I don't know what else to say.

Re: We finally have a name - welcome to the 'Connected Learning Community'!

Fri, 09 Jun 2006 11:28:44 +0930

by Anne Paterson

Simon,

I was interested in your suggestion of another name for the community. Personally, I am happy with Connected Learning Community because we are a community about connected learning, and I think it is inclusive of exploring various arrangements and implementations of learning communities using web 2.0 tools

You commented

"So please, please, please, could we, before we run off and use edublogs.org, because they're there, could we please consider what combination of tools might encourage general communities to discover one another and be connected."

I mean, this moodle might not be much, but it's what this community has discovered and learnt to use (a bit) up to today.
The url - http://www.groups.edna.edu.au - says it all."

The Network is exactly about considering, learning about and applying the combination of Web 2.0 tools and social software that we can use as part of a Personal Learning Environment.

I agree with you that the edna groups moodle has been a useful starting point for our network, but I would much rather use the Web 2.0 tools from a central prescence that is open on the internet for others to link from or too. On moodle we can only talk about the development of PLEs using Web 2.0 tools rather than actively learning by doing.

It is not a matter of using edublogs because they are there but a matter of identifying an appropriate platform that can be connected using social software. By using edublogs we will be able to learn by trialling and modelling the use of rss feeds, blogrolls and other links that will encourage communites to discover one another and be connected.

I hope this helps, it makes no sense to implement this network through moodle.

Re: We finally have a name - welcome to the 'Connected Learning Community'!

Fri, 09 Jun 2006 09:54:08 +0930

by simon fenton - jones

Nice name, although I would have preferred the plural. Communities.

But on "we've decided to go ahead and set up our online presence at edublogs.org". You are joking right?

At 11.30, you said, "personally (I) like this (CLC) term because the project is about making connections, both in terms of technological aspect of connections using links and comments and RSS feeds etc. and in terms of forming connections with, and between, people."

But earlier on, at 9.20 you said, "This makes me realise I've focused too much on pushing a student or learner centred focused perspective when talking about the move away from a teacher-centred approach.

This of course smacks of the type of problematic individualism that is rampant in our culture already, where the individual is left to fend for themselves, living and dying on the strength of their own resources and capacities.

Instead it really is a shift of responsibility from the teacher to the community, with shared responsibility for learning." which is nice.

Followed by Robyn, "we've moved from teacher centred to learner centred to community centred haven't we?"
Followed by Leonard, who's still talking about rugged individualists, while his intermeshing shows he's thinking about working between groups - "the *way* we can apply that learner-centricity now includes opportunities for intermeshing learners with each other and the wider world".
Followed by Vicki, " the context and resources and feedback now come not just from the teacher, but from the community as well"

So please, please, please, could we, before we run off and use edublogs.org, because they're there, could we please consider what combination of tools might encourage general communities to discover one another and be connected.

I mean, this moodle might not be much, but it's what this community has discovered and learnt to use (a bit) up to today.
The url - http://www.groups.edna.edu.au - says it all.

Re: We finally have a name - welcome to the 'Connected Learning Community'!

Thu, 08 Jun 2006 13:17:50 +0930

by Delia Bradshaw

A toast!

åååååå

We finally have a name - welcome to the 'Connected Learning Community'!

Thu, 08 Jun 2006 11:23:51 +0930

by Sean FitzGerald

Thank you again for your input and suggestions on the process of deciding on a name for the network.

We needed to move on to the next phase of the project and get our online presence happening, so the facilitators got together and decided on 'Connected Learning Community'.

This name emerged from our discussions here, so it would not have happened without your input.

The connecting/connections/connected theme was pretty popular.

I personally like this term because the project is about making connections, both in terms of technological aspect of connections using links and comments and RSS feeds etc. and in terms of forming connections with, and between, people.

It also speaks to the process of gaining knowledge and understanding by forming connections within our own minds between discrete pieces of knowledge.

And we've decided to go ahead and set up our online presence at edublogs.org. More about that later.

Re: What and where will the official project/network online presence be?

Tue, 06 Jun 2006 18:04:48 +0930

by Joanna Kay

HI All,

This is a really interesting discussion - I've been thinking about my own personal preferences for online spaces alot lately. So here goes... my two cents....

I tend to agree with Sean - when it comes to my own learning - tools like Yahoo and Google groups don't really cut it for this project - too group-centric.

Although I have a Wiki, Flickr space, Google Groups account, Delicious, Magnolia, SuprGlu.... it's on my blog where the most satisfying learning and reflecting seems to happen. Being able to create my personal online learning space on Blogger has been a great experience.

In terms of how we connect together... it might be interesting to explore tools like FeedBlendr (http://feedblendr.com/) which allows you to mix up as many RSS feeds as you like into one... which could then be published to a myriad of spaces (start pages, blogs, wiki).

I also started using Feed Digest yesterday to aggregate both mine and Steven Parker's blogs to one of our new project blogs - see: the Metal:ED Blog. (Look towards the bottom of the Right-hand menu). This was really easy to use, and is a neat way to connect our work together and keep our spaces current and content-rich.

Regards,

Jo Kay
Teaching and Learing Resource Unit,
TAFE NSW - Illawarra Institute
Email: joanna.kay@tafensw.edu.au
Personal Site: http://jstuffed.blogspot.com