11.5 Things - One More Time: Thing 1

Time to jump into 11.5 Things again!! I watched the video of the The Networked Student again and was once more struck by the creators' idea of 21st Century Learning. The video is stressing the idea of "Connectivism" - that learning occurs as part of a social network of many different connections and ties - interesting. I agree that learning can occur in this setting, but it is not the only setting where learning occurs.

One of the key elements of success in this model is for the student to take control of his/her learning. I like the idea! I love it when I have a student that is on fire to learn something new. The challenge for the teacher/librarian is to keep students motivated. The student compiles all of his/her learning materials through web sites, online articles, blogs, podcasts, and video conferencing. The student then creates his/her own representation of the knowledge acquired - blog, wiki, podcast.

The teacher's role is tremendous! The video refers to the teacher as a "learning architect" - great description! The teacher has to guide the students in building their learning network. This will include modeling how to find good information as well as how to check on the reliability of the information found. In addition to the the teacher also needs to show students how to organize information and present ideas for them to share their knowledge.

One comment made in the video that I feel is key is - Information management is and will continue to be our biggest challenge in the 21st century. I couldn't agree more! Students are bombarded with information - much of which is incorrect. Learning to evaluate and organize information is a skill that our students will desperately need for success in the 21st Century.

The librarian will definitely play the role of the teacher. Librarians are already "learning architects" and have been for many years!