Estimated reading time: 1 minute, 54 seconds
Hello?
Why again were you taking that cMOOC? You liked the topic? Oh you wanted some good readings on the topic? You could have googled those.
Oh, you were interested in listening to experts talk about a topic? You could have searched YouTube for those.
But the real end goal of doing any connectivist-type experience for me is err to make connections… Lasting ones, hopefully, building into my PLN.
I often sign up for cMOOCs and have a lot of praise for the kinds of activities they suggest and readings they offer. Those are all valuable. I’m not discounting them.
But the real end goal is meeting people I can continue to learn from for many more years to come (I hope).
I came into #ccourses following people like Terry and Kevin, admiring some of the facilitators like Howard and Alan and Jim and Mia (and getting to admire others like Mimi and Gardner and Jonathan Worth). I found people I already knew and loved like Simon, and got to know better ones I had liked before like Mia and Susan, Alan and Howard.
And met a lot of wonderful new people I hope to stay in touch with: three Lauras 🙂 another Maha 🙂 Tania 🙂 Jeffrey 🙂
And I know I’m gonna miss someone if i keep going on like this, so just stop already with the name dropping, just keep using the hashtag. Coz it’s just the beginning as Laura Ritchie said
Every connected learning experience is like… A new boost in the curve or something? Like you’re gathering momentum and pulling new people in and finding new places and new conversations. Every educaitonal experience actually should> be like that. We should no lose our connection to our teachers and classmates coz a semester is over (we often don’t). Every conference should be about meeting people and keeping in touch, not promptly forgetting about them. I regret every conference I ever attended where I did not make lasting connections. But I am proud to say that almost 10 years after finishing my masters, I am still in touch with one tutor and one friend (that’s not bad). But social media helps a lot with these things now, doesn’t it?
And that’s why connected learning experiences are great for this kind of thing…
@Bali_Maha I agree! Cause reality is most everyday people have no clue of what a MOOC is…thanks for the post.
Oddly though we seem able to share thoughts without much difficulty, the cMOOC gives us access to independent minds working on puzzles we may never have even run into, let alone thought of. The power to accept diversity, to see (somehow) into the unfamiliar.
I am happy to have met you and everybody else on #ccourses Maha and will connections live. Communication intensity and frequency does go through phases , it goes quiet and slows down a bit sometimes but then it picks up again 🙂 such is life I think. But, we can pump up the volume every now and then and invite new friends and old to join the hashtag dance, or is it a concert? 🙂
I have been thinking about how the past year has transformed (such a punk word) my learning life. I am unlearning so much and really beginning to understand how important it is to play with others in the big sandbox of cMOOCs and other informal spaces. During my holiday break I will be busier than ever–I have a couple of todo items with you, for example
😉