iConnect/ed: my connected learning journey begins

Connected learning was a term that I was previously unaware; both in its meaning and its importance.  Little did I know when I began my “Know Your Child” journey as a Designer, it would take me on a completely new learning path to Education.  Evidently, my vision to help families flourish is significantly entwined with connected learning.  Walk with me as I don my student hat, and learn first by doing.

“For the things we have to learn before we can do them,

we learn by doing them.”

Aristotle, The Nicomachean Ethics

What is Connected Learning?

Connected learning is defined by Kay Oddone (2017) from linkinglearning.com.au as social learning across networked environments.  Through authentic connections there is greater engagement for learning and knowledge distribution. Twenty (odd) years ago when I started my Industrial Design degree, connected learning did not exist.  Computers and the World Wide Web were just becoming accessible to the general public. I recall one of my units was a five week block that taught me how to search the internet.  My experience has shown that children now know how to use complex technological devices before they are even toilet trained.

“Over the last twenty years, technology has reorganised how we live, how we communicate, and how we learn” (Siemens, 2005, p. 1).  With the proliferation of social media and communication channels, the expectation to learn is no longer text on a page, but a plethora of multimedia technologies and visual design at a global level (Cazden et al., 1996).  Through the power of technology, we now have greater opportunity for informal and continual learning, with the ability to pivot and change career direction just as I have (Siemens, 2005).  Connected learning allows the passionate learner to have a voice in a like-minded community, as they learn to trust in themselves (Jones, 2007).  Through positive relationships, it provides a safe, social environment to access, create, contribute, and share information and resources.

With a vision far bigger than me, a connected learning environment is essential for Know Your Child.  As this is something I have never experienced before, the first step was to get connected with an existing community of learners.

My First Step: iConnect/ed

“iConnect/ed” defines my first learning experience with an online connected learning Facebook group, with a focus on education.  This connected learning community is called Early Years Learning Framework: Early Childhood resources and information, but for ease of reference, it will be referred to as “EYLF FB Community”.  It shines a spotlight on the early childhood industry, with the first national Australian curriculum at the very core.  The curriculum framework that early childhood educators use is called the Belonging, Being, & Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia  (EYLF).

This community is particularly relevant to my work with Know Your Child, as I need a strong focus on the EYLF, to design for early childhood educators and families.  In my first Blog post, “Many Hats, Many Possibilities”, I explain my world of juggling roles as a parent, professional, student and volunteer in the community.  This insanity is reduced through purposeful collaboration.  As I write this, it is a combination of three assignments in one (don’t tell my lecturers).  Additionally, it is accomplishing my professional goal for creating the Know Your Child Blog, while growing my knowledge of connected learning, the EYLF, and the needs of early childhood educators.  (Phew!)

The Connected Learning Framework

Understanding connected learning and the EYLF FB Community, is substantiated by aligning with the Connected Learning Framework (Ito et al., 2013, p. 12).  This framework considers the three connected learning principles; Peer-supported, Interest Powered, and Academically Orientated.  Additionally, there are three core properties necessary for a connected learning experience; Production-centred, Shared purpose, and Openly networked. The map below provides a visual representation of this connected learning environment, including the Design Principles (capitalised pink headings) and each will be discussed in turn.

PEER-SUPPORTED is the first fundamental context for connected learning, where the relationships within the social environment are critical to foster engagement (Ito et al., 2013).  People need to feel safe and encouraged to contribute their thoughts and ideas. This is best accomplished when “learners are seen by themselves and by others as knowledgeable” and are given agency to be responsible for co-creating knowledge and providing solutions to problems (Kumpulainen, et al., 2014, p. 10).   The success of a connected learning community revolves around this engagement of their members.  Leggett & Ford (2013) discuss an intentional learner starts with the initial decision to engage.  This is where open and nurturing relationships are essential to promote this first step, and encourage subsequent follow through with a commitment and persistence to learn.  In addition to this, a key Design Principle outlined by Ito et al., (2013, p. 12) that is strongly linked to peer-supported is “Everyone can Participate”. The EYLF FB Community is a free public forum that encourages postive contribution from everyone.

I experienced this first hand sharing content to the EYLF FB Community.  They encourage collaboration from students to professionals, offering equal opportunity for valued contribution.  The community consists of early childhood educators, teachers, childcare and family daycare workers, students, and allied health professionals like Occupational Therapists.  As a student, my participation was welcomed, and my contributions acknowledged by the community.  I was encouraged by this acceptance, particularly being a first-time connected learner whereby the process was somewhat daunting.  This positive experience has affirmed the critical nature for building open and accepting relationships.

INTEREST POWERED is the second crucial context of connected learning (Ito et al., 2013).   Prior to discovering my passion I had never heard of the EYLF, and thus joining a related connected learning group would not have been a consideration.  Now with a goal to make a difference in the early childhood industry, this topic is of great interest to me.  Connected learning occurs around a subject of personal interest, where learners have a desire to engage and learn more (Ito et al., 2013).  Technology has created the resources to fuel a learner’s autonomy to “design and direct their learning” (Goldie, 2016, p. 1066).  I personally have applied this principle within my Master of Education, designing the content of my assignments around topics of interest. Evidently, choosing a community group that focuses on the EYLF is purposeful for my academic, business and professional goals.

Furthermore, the EYLF FB Community I have chosen provides engagement with professionals with years of experience.  This facilitates invaluable connections with real-life application to impact the growth of the members.  As a result, this has expanded my knowledge, whereby Ito et al., (2013) reflects on the importance of these experienced connections to increase learning outcomes.

 “Connected learning is realised when the learner is able to pursue a personal interest or passion with the support of friends, caring adults, and /or expert communities and is in turn able to link this learning and interest to academic achievement, career success, or civic engagement.”

Kupulainen et al., (2014, p. 10 )

ACADEMICALLY ORIENTATED is the third crucial context of connected learning (Ito et al., 2013).  This links directly to my current experience, where Ito et al., (2013, p. 12) highlights,“Learners flourish and realise their potential when they can connect their interests and social engagement to academic studies, civic engagement, and career opportunity.”

I love the word ‘flourish’ that was used, and can personally advocate the benefits when academic, civic and career collide.  This is my world.  The decision to merge my professional development within all three contexts makes life busy, but rich and fruitful.  Additionally, my learning is indeed flourishing,  being embedded with real world context provides an excitement and an in-depth understanding that theory alone cannot provide.

The EYLF FB Community has a strong focus on academic learning, with the early childhood curriculum being central to their purpose.  This common interest sets up an environment of learners wanting to know more, with a natural willingness to share their knowledge.  This demonstrates a key Design Principle from Ito et al., (2013, p.12) “Challenge is constant”.  The benefit of being a member is the frequent exposure to related webinars, conferences, and workshops to increase professional and personal development.  Additionally, members provide a myriad of resources, links and information to enhance learning, with focus on navigating, understanding and implementing the EYLF into practice.

“The convergence of media in cyberspace has radically altered the conditions for teaching and learning”, where the necessary skills to stay abreast with technology are not always present in a traditional learning environment (Don and Anderson, 2014, p. 7).  The sharing of resources, tools and information in the connected learning environment redefines the foundation of “knowledge and knowing” (Kupulainen et al., 2014, p. 10).  Learning does not have to be an educator or expert in front of a classroom teaching curriculum, but rather everyone participating together (Kupulainen et al., 2014).

A PRODUCTION CENTRED environment is the first core property of connected learning, where members actively create and produce content, tools and resources to distribute to learners (Ito et, al., 2013).  In the EYLF FB community, digital files including videos, photos, and documents are created and shared by members.  These are made available for online access as well as downloadable for offline use.  This incorporates resources for classroom activities, templates, training and how-to videos, and webinars.  In addition to this there is opportunity for content curation through discussions, information sharing and blogs.  This further demonstrates a key Design Principle from Ito et al., (2013, p.12) “Learning happens by doing”, where individual participation in knowledge creation creates more purposeful engagement.

I posted the connected learning map I created for the EYLF FB Community environment, providing a different theoretical reflection from a student’s perspective. This hands-on approach to learning encourages greater purpose, understanding and creativity, where the learner’s identity becomes evident in the work they produce (Ito et al., 2013).  Evidently, through the collective participation of members from many contexts and backgrounds, it creates a rich tapestry of knowledge and resources that encourages continual learning.  This flow of information represents principles of connectivism, which Kay Oddone (2017) defines as learning that occurs through connections in a networked environment.  “Learning and knowledge rests in a diversity of opinions,” and by nurturing these connections, learning is ongoing, and knowledge is dynamic and continually updated (Siemens, 2005, p. 5)  In essence, connectivism helps explain connected learning for the digital age we now live in.

SHARED PURPOSE is the second essential context for connected learning  (Ito et al., 2013).   The EYLF FB Community has 2,100 members coming together with a common goal to learn more about the EYLF.  This digital platform provides a means for this community of learners to gather around this commonality, even though differences of geography, age, culture, and backgrounds could potentially preclude this connection.  As Ito et al., (2013) highlights, this convenience provides “unprecedented opportunities for cross-generational and cross-cultural learning and connection to unfold.”  Additionally, a key Design Principle from Ito et al., (2013, p.12) “Everything is interconnected”, is demonstrated through this shared purpose, where there is myriad options for learning, connecting and engaging.  This includes multiple sources, contexts and backgrounds.

To illustrate this diversity of connection within the EYLF FB Community, I posted my connected learning map as a student based in Queensland.  This was then shared by someone from a different nationality and culture in a different state.  Within the same platform we go from student to PhD with Dr Red Ruby Scarlet presenting her Facebook Live Video from Sydney, on policies into practice with over 4,000 views.  Continuing on, we have a childcare centre based in Melbourne, sharing a professional development workshop Bush Kinder – Outdoor Learning Environments. (Early Years Learning Framework: Early Childhood resources and information.)  The digital age of learning is changing the way we discover knowledge, requiring a focus on “critical thinking skills, knowledge creation, and learning through connections” (Starkey, 2011, p. 19). The EYLF FB Community epitomises this shift, with different locations, cultures, topics, ages, contexts, and backgrounds, all coming together as one, with the same shared purpose to learn.

OPENLY NETWORKED is the third essential context for connected learning according to Ito et al., (2013).   Technology crosses boundaries and provides the solution to bring a diverse community together to learn.

“The rapid development of emerging technologies is a driving force behind the evolution of online delivery of courses and has changed the very fabric of higher education”  (Stephens, 2016, p. 295).

As we have explored, this essentially expands further than the traditional educational context of ‘courses’ and ‘higher education’.  Connected learning through the lens of the Ito et al., (2013) framework, provides evidence that an online platform such as EYLF FB Community,  demonstrates a solid foundation of learning.  This is delivered through an abundance of digital tools and resources.  Collaboration starts at the Facebook page, then expands exponentially, across time and space that is the wonder of the internet.  Branching unpredictably across websites, blogs, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, forums, it crosses the path of students, professionals, businesses, and organisations.  This optimises the power of digital learning as we know it in the 21st Century.

With the focus of learning by doing, I have been inspired to take action.  While there is still so much I need to learn, what better way to discover and grow than to immerse myself in my own connected learning community.  In the spirit of we all learn together, (deep breath)…. Welcome to the new connected learning community group for Know Your Child –  Positive Childcare > Positive Families.