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Connectivism: Concepts and Principles

for emerging Learning Networks
Ana-Maria Marhan
Institute of Philosophy and Psychology of the Romanian Academy
Calea 13 Septembrie no.13, Bucharest, ROMANIA
E-mail: amarhan@[Link]
Abstract
As social technologies continue to expand in influence, they are reshaping not
only the learners needs, but also the theories and principles of learning
processes design: learning models that have served previous generations are
replaced for greater relevance to presents needs.
Connectivism views learning as a network creation process, and look at how we
might provide 'learning ecologies' to meet the learners needs. The main
connectivist concepts and principles will be further discuss in this paper,
allowing us to examine the extent they can instruct designers to create and foster
effective learning ecologies.

Keywords: connectivism, social software, learning ecologies, networks

1 Introduction
Instant messaging, blogs, wikis, RSS, VoIP, and other social networking applications
are already a steady presence for learners in virtual environments. These are tools
supporting connectivity, knowledge sharing, collaboration, and sociability. As social
technologies continue to expand in influence, they are reshaping not only the learners
behaviour and needs, but also theories and principles of learning processes design and
evaluation.
There are many questions to be explored in relation to learning theories and the
actual impact of the new technologies on learning processes (Siemens, 2005):
How are learning theories impacted when knowledge is no longer acquired
in the linear manner?
What adjustments need to made with learning theories when technology
performs many of the cognitive operations previously performed by
learners (information storage and retrieval).
How can we continue to stay current in rapidly evolving information
ecology?
How do learning theories address moments where performance is needed in
the absence of complete understanding?
With increased recognition of interconnections in differing fields of
knowledge, how are systems and ecology theories perceived in light of
learning tasks?

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Furthermore, our basis for the assessment of the efficacy of technology as a

learning tool should reflect its ability to facilitate the development of connections,
whether those connections are social, cognitive or emotional. In the followings, intents
to explore and reflect upon the impact the new technologies has on learning and
cognitive development through George Siemens concept of connectivism (Siemens,
2003, 2004, 2005).

2 The changing context of learning

Learning is usually defined as a persisting change in human performance or
performance potential which must come about as a result of the learners experience
and interaction with the world. Over the years, nearly every conceivable form of theory
explaining the underlying mechanisms of learning have been proposed: from the purely
peripheral behaviourism of Watson to the strongly centralist position of cognitive
science; from those wholly dependent upon reinforcement such as Thorndikes or
Skinners from those who consider concept irrelevant as Guthries; etc.
Learning is a multi-faceted process: the task determines the approach. Often,
learning theories are presented as being the only solution to a concern, when in fact
even the best theories are only accurate some of the time, in certain conditions. In
certain settings, constructivist learning approaches work well (learning new ideas and
concepts), in other settings, rote learning is needed (often in compliance training).
Experience has long been considered the best teacher of knowledge, states
Karen Stephenson from [Link]. Since we cannot experience everything,
other peoples experiences, and hence other people, become the surrogate for
knowledge. I store my knowledge in my friends is an axiom for collecting
knowledge through collecting people. We can no longer personally experience and
acquire learning that we need to act. We derive our competence from forming
connections.
2.1 Sociable media
While social software has recently emerged as a phenomenon in the tech community,
sociable media has been around since the beginning of the Internet: e-mail, mailing
lists, Usenet, chatrooms, etc. all captured the imagination of technologists throughout
the 1980s and 1990s.
Broadly speaking, the term social software refers not to a single type of software,
but rather to the integrated use of various applications and tools that enables people to
meet, connect or collaborate through computer-mediated communication and to form
online communities. In other words, people form online communities by combining
communication modes:
one-to-one (e.g., email and instant messaging),
one-to-many (Web pages and blogs),
many-to-many (wikis).
Common to most definitions is the observation that some types of social software
seem to facilitate bottom-up community development, where membership is
voluntary, reputations are earned by winning the trust of other members, and the
community's mission and governance are defined by the communities' members
themselves.

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2.2 Learning as community development

The traditional, top-down view of learning, where a person is given a teaching
position is changed, through the effective use of communications technology, to an
apprenticeship model, where the mature learner chooses the right teacher.
Communities formed by bottom-up processes are contrasted to the less vibrant
collectivities formed by top-down software, in which users' roles are determined by
an external authority and circumscribed by rigidly conceived software mechanisms
(such as access rights).
It is therefore a total shift in the balance of power that. It depends totally on
learners being mature enough to take advantage of it, and teachers being mature
enough to accept that their position is fixed only while they are useful to the learners.
What is needed, at all levels of education and learning, is an emphasis on developing:
mature learners, who know how to learn, how to manage information, who
to ask, how to find out, and what questions to ask.
mature teachers, who know how to learn, but also know how to coach and
mentor.
systems and environments that can be used to support learners in their
learning process. It's not about creating "programmes", it's about creating
"environments" within which a "learning ecology" can flourish.

3 Learning Ecologies
In his article on Growing up digital, John Seely Brown (2002) proposes the concept of
ecology as a metaphor to describe a complex learning environment. Knowledge is
more than static content. It's a dynamic, living, and evolving state. In this view, an
ecology is basically an open, complex adaptive system comprising elements that are
dynamic and interdependent constantly evolving and largely self-organising.
A learning ecology is an environment that is consistent with (not antagonistic to)
how learners learn. In other words, it is about the creation and delivery of a learning
environment that offers opportunities to students to receive learning through methods
and models that best support theirs needs, interests, and personal situations. In such a
learning environment, the instructor plays the role of gardener. A learning ecology
must also enable people to connect to each other, to self-organise, to form discussions
groups or communities of practice where people can share insights and explore
learning topics.
3.1 Specific features
An ecology, as a knowledge nurturig environment could be described by the several
characteristcs (Siemens, 2003): informal, not structured (the system should be flexible
enough to allow participants to create learning according to their needs); tool-rich
(offer many opportunities for users to dialogue and connect); trust (secure and safe
environments are critical for trust and comfort to develop); consistency and time (to
create a knowledge sharing ecology, participants need to see a consistently evolving
environment); simplicity (great ideas fail because of complexity); simple, social
approaches work most effectively (the selection of tools and the creation of the
community structure should reflect this need for simplicity); decentralized, fostered,

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connected (as compared to centralized, managed, and isolated); high tolerance for
experimentation and failure.
A challenge for creating effective learning ecologies is the creation of enhanced
information navigation models that simplify and facilitate learners locating and
accessing contextually relevant instructional content. In John Seely Browns opinion,
the new literacy, the one beyond text and image, is one of information navigation. I
believe that the real literacy of tomorrow will have more to do with being able to be
your private, personal reference librarian, one that knows how to navigate through the
incredible, confusing, complex information spaces and feel comfortable and located in
doing that (2002).
In other words, knowing what and how is complemented with knowing
where. Knowing where to find needed information is valued above possessing
information, due to how quickly information evolves and changes. The designers role
in this domain of learning is to create the construct and opportunities for learners to
pursue and provide for their own learning.
3.2 Design challenges
The challenge for developing a learning ecology is to define and create an environment
that balances the many resources and methods people may apply to their learning. The
learning environment should enable instructional design and content elements to be
dynamically reorganised into a diversity of pedagogical models that adapts to varying
learning needs.
In brief, various components should be present in a virtual learning ecology
(Siemens, 2005):
a space for masters and apprentices to connect;
a space for self-expression (blog, journal);
a space for debate and dialogue (listserv, discussion forum, open meetings);
a space to search archived knowledge (portal, website);
a space to learn in a structured manner (courses, tutorials);
a space to communicate new information and knowledge indicative of
changing elements within the field of practice (news, research).

4 Learning networks
A network can simply be defined as connections between entities. In the context of a
learning ecology, a network represents a way to organize a learning community,
resulting into a personal learning network. A network consists of two or more nodes
linked in order to share resources. A node is a connection point to a larger network.
Learning communities, information sources, and individuals can all be classified as
nodes.
The unique needs of each learning experience drive the selection of the learning
approach and method. When designers understand how learning occurs, they can foster
connections, and make existing connections explicit. The intended task of learning
must be matched with the right approach and the right.

4.1 Self-organisation
Learning networks are self-organizing systems. Self-organization can be defined as the
spontaneous formation of well organized structures, patterns, or behaviours, from

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random initial conditions. Learning, as a self-organizing process requires that the

system (personal or organizational learning systems) be informationally open, that is,
for it to be able to classify its own interaction with an environment, it must be able to
change its structure.
On a personal level, self-organization is a micro-process of the larger selforganizing knowledge constructs created within corporate or institutional
environments. A designer or instructor can influence the creation of new nodes, but the
receptivity (and the nature of the existing learning network within a learner) will
determine how effectively new information is integrated.
4.2 Networks, Small Worlds, Weak Ties
Albert-Lszl Barabsi sates that, within a network, nodes always compete for
connections because links represent survival in an interconnected world (2002,
p.106). This competition is largely dulled within a personal learning network, but the
placing of value on certain nodes over others is a reality. Nodes that successfully
acquire greater profile will be more successful at acquiring additional connections. In a
learning sense, the likelihood that a concept of learning will be linked depends on how
well it is currently linked. Nodes (can be fields, ideas, communities) that specialize and
gain recognition for their expertise have greater chances of recognition, thus resulting
in cross-pollination of learning communities.
Weak ties are links or bridges that allow short connections between information.
Our small world networks are generally populated with people whose interests and
knowledge are similar to ours. Finding a new job, as an example, often occurs through
weak ties. This principle has great merit in the notion of serendipity, innovation, and
creativity. Connections between disparate ideas and fields can create new innovations.
4.3 Chaos and adaptive networks
Chaos, as a science, recognizes the connection of everything to everything. Unlike
constructivism, which states that learners attempt to foster understanding by meaning
making tasks, chaos states that the meaning exists the learner's challenge is to
recognize the patterns which appear to be hidden.
Networks are adaptive: they constantly adjust and transform in reaction to the
world around. Nodes within the network continually update themselves, accruing
ongoing benefit to the entire structure. In a sense, we can see this phenomenon in the
field of human knowledge growth over the last half-century. The dramatic
advancements of science and society can largely be attributed to the increased capacity
of people and organizations to connect with each other.
Meaning-making and forming connections between specialized communities are
important activities. Chaos is the breakdown of predictability, evidenced in
complicated arrangements that initially defy order. This highlights a real challenge:
sensitive dependence on initial conditions profoundly impacts what we learn and
how we act based on our learning. Decision making is indicative of this. If the
underlying conditions used to make decisions change, the decision itself is no longer as
correct as it was at the time it was made. The ability to recognize and adjust to pattern
shifts is a key learning task.

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5 Connectivism
George Siemens (2004, 2005) proposes connectivism as a theory of learning that takes
into account the way how learning is influenced by the new learning technologies. He
starts from the observations that previous theories of learning behaviourism,
cognitivism or constructivism -- were created during a time when learning was
happening in different technological contexts. It is therefore compulsory that learning
models that have served previous generations are replaced for greater relevance to
presents needs, which include technology and connection making as learning
activities. As a learning theory, connectivism provides insight into the dynamics of
networks, environments, and ecologies that supports a continual learning process. In
this view, learning is strongly a networked process where a learner aggregates external
contents into a holistic representation.
5.2 Principles of connectivism
Connectivism integrates principles explored by chaos, network, and complexity and
self-organization theories (Siemens, 2005). In this view, learning is a process that
occurs within nebulous environments of shifting core elements not entirely under the
control of the individual. Learning is a process of drawing connections between
seemingly disparate pieces of data in order to form a more complete comprehension of
a subject; nurturing and maintaining connections is needed to facilitate continual
learning; ability to see connections between fields, ideas, and concepts is a core skill.
Learning (defined as actionable knowledge) can reside outside the learner (within nonhuman appliances as an organization or a database), is focused on connecting
specialized information sets, and the connections that enable people to learn more are
more important than their current state of knowing. Capacity to know more is more
critical than what is currently known. Know where replaces know what and know
how.
Connectivism is driven by the understanding that decisions are based on rapidly
altering foundations: new information is continually being acquired. Consequently, the
ability to draw distinctions between important and unimportant information is vital.
The ability to recognize when new information alters the landscape based on decisions
made yesterday is also critical. Decision-making is itself a learning process. Choosing
what to learn and the meaning of incoming information is seen through the lens of a
shifting reality. While there is a right answer now, it may be wrong tomorrow due to
alterations in the information climate affecting the decision.
5.3 Network Learning and the Individual
Individual is the starting point of connectivism: personal knowledge is comprised of a
network, which feeds into communities, organizations or institutions, which in turn
feed back into the network, and then continue to provide learning to individual. This
cycle of knowledge development (personal to network to organization) allows learners
to remain current in their field through the connections they have formed. Landauer
and Dumais (1997) note that people have much more knowledge than appears to be
present in the information to which they have been exposed; moreover, some
domains of knowledge contain vast numbers of weak interrelations that, if properly
exploited, can greatly amplify learning by a process of inference. The value of pattern

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recognition and connecting learners own small worlds of knowledge are apparent in
the exponential impact provided to personal learning.
One of the biggest challenges of connectivism is a real simple fact: learners cannot
be expected to function in new spaces and structures without developing required
skills. They need to know whats important (filtering information, or relying on trusted
filters); to seek out and re-purpose learning and knowledge and apply to new spaces; to
balance work, life, and value the learning and knowledge of each domain. These are
functions of the new skills needed.
The network itself is the critical learning element. Connecting learners to networks
and communities ensures that knowledge is relevant and current. Within social
networks, hubs are well-connected people who are able to foster and maintain
knowledge flow. Creating, preserving, and utilizing information flow should be a key
learning activity. Knowledge flow can be contrasted to a river that meanders through
the ecology of a learning community. In certain areas, the river pools and in other areas
it ebbs. The health of the learning ecology depends on effective nurturing of
information flow. Their interdependence results in effective knowledge flow, enabling
the personal understanding of the state of activities organizationally.

6 Conclusions
Connectivism is a powerful idea. John Seely Brown (2002) presents an interesting
notion that the internet leverages the small efforts of many with the large efforts of
few. The central premise is that connections created with unusual nodes supports and
intensifies existing large effort activities. This amplification of learning, knowledge
and understanding through the extension of a personal network is the epitome of
connectivism.
A real challenge for any learning theory is to actuate known knowledge at the point
of application. When knowledge, however, is needed, but not known, the ability to
plug into sources to meet the requirements becomes a vital skill. As knowledge
continues to grow and evolve, access to what is needed is more important than what the
learner currently possesses.
The connectivist view of learning as a network creation process significantly
impacts the way learning is designed and developed. While the act of learning is seen
as a function under the control of the learner, designers need to shift the focus to
fostering the ideal ecology to permit learning to occur. By recognizing learning as a
messy, nebulous, informal, chaotic process, we need to rethink how we design our
instruction. Blogs, wikis, and other open, collaborative platforms are reshaping
learning as a two-way process. Instead of presenting content/information/knowledge in
a linear sequential manner, learners can be provided with a rich array of tools and
information sources to use in creating their own learning pathways. Many in education
are beginning to venture into this transitory stage. There is a clear movement from
formal, rigid learning into an environment of informal, connection-based, networkcreating learning. The instructor or institution can still ensure that critical learning
elements are achieved by focusing instead on the creation of the knowledge ecology,
while the links and connections are formed by the learners themselves.
The developing structure of technology, neural research, institutional
reorganization (from hierarchy to network), and social impact of learning under new

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ideologies, is evolving too rapidly to be effectively detailed as this is what it is

(Siemens, 2004). The moment this declaration is made, the environment has shifted.
Those theorists most closely aligned with the new landscape are also those who most
readily acknowledge that the process is one of coming to know, rather than of
knowing. Learning is an in-process activity; knowing is no longer a destination, but a
process of walking in varying degrees of alignment with a dynamic environment.

References
Books:
[1] Barabasi, A. (2002): Linked: the new science of networks. Cambridge, MA,
Perseus Publishing.
Journal Articles:
[2] Borown, J. S. (2002): Growing up digital: how the web changes work, education,
and the way people learn. United States Distance Learning Association: USDLA
Journal, 16, 2. [Link]
[3] Landauer, T. K., Dumais, S. T. (1997). A Solution to Platos Problem: The Latent
Semantic Analysis Theory of Acquisition, Induction and Representation of
Knowledge. [Link]
[4] Siemens G., ( 2003). Learning Ecologies, Communities, and Networks: Extending
the Classroom. [Link]
[5] Siemens, G., (2005). Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age.
International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning, 2, 1.
[Link]
[6] Siemens, G., (2005). Learning as network creation. Learning circuits.
[Link]
Technical Reports:
[7] Saveri, A,. Rheingold, H., Vian, K., (2005). Technologies of Cooperation. Institute
for the Future, Palo Alto, CA.
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