The “fragmentation” (Siemens, 2014) of our knowledge is an increasingly present factor in learning, and the PLE is an attempt to organize or collate all these bits and pieces we’ve collected in order to draw meaning and connections to the true nature of a PLE. This idea fits well with the theory of connectivism, whereby the learners are actively attempting to create meaning through engagement in networks (Siemens, 2004). Over this past week I began to question whether this fragmentation of knowledge is really such a terrible thing? My own experience with with PLE research was fragmented bits and bites of knowledge, but these tidbits of knowledge gave more depth of understanding than a couple of sources would have provided. In class, my students are now able to quickly look up facts and up-to-date information on their phones, rather than relying on a textbook that was written in 2001 (true). With this a plethora of knowledge available, students must begin to create meaning from all these varies sources or nodes of information, and the PLE allows them to do just that.
George Siemens (2014) speaks of making ourselves vulnerable through learning. “When we engage in learning, we communicate that we want to grow, to become better, and to improve ourselves.” But there is usually “sense of fear” and “vulnerability” when you extend yourself—for example, posting your opinion in a blog post, commenting on another’s post, or hosting a seminar for your peers, are all “vulnerability-inducing expressions.” It seems as if a significant aspect of online learning involves collaborating, sharing, and learning from others, as well as creating knowledge rather consuming it—our learning is essentially more influenced by “the social, identity and emotional factors…"(Siemens, 2014), than we realized. While reading Siemens’ blog post, I was thinking about my own seminar, and the pedagogy and philosophy behind PLEs. This left me in my own “vulnerable” state—on one hand I was attempting to direct [my peers] sense of coherence towards an understanding of PLE, and other the other hand, I was beginning to lose my own sense of coherence about this topic.
As the week progressed, I became increasingly unsure about how to structure my own PLE, as the concept is nebulous in its nature. There seemed to be a lack of clarity in the research about PLEs, some theorist believe the “the term should be rather understood as a ‘concept’ or ‘approach’ and not as a technology” (Fiedler, 2010). Others want to categorize it as a piece of technology (Fiedler, 2010). I was beginning to feel like I just wanted someone to ‘tell’ me what to do, and provide me with the exact tool to use. My initial goal was to use the PLE as a device to allow students to develop their metacognitive skills by way of planning, organizing, monitoring, communicating and evaluating their own personal learning environment. By mid-week, and through a lot of reading and communicating, my goal had crumbled, as I realized what a truly lofty goal this was. I became engulfed in a state of doubt and vulnerability—questioning the exact nature of a PLE—I was looking for an exactness, preciseness, and couldn't find it.
Andrew’s Ferneyhough (2014) optimistic comments (on our community VoiceThread) about developing PLE with students dragged me out of the pit of despair. Andrew commented that PLEs are a perfect fit for students who are “naturally drawn to using programs [web 2.0] in their everyday lives,” and they may force teachers to “challenge [my] definition of representing their own work,” but they also will “force students to look inwardly” (Ferneyhough, 2014). I recognized that I needed to also look inward, to rewind, and release this anxiety about finding the perfect tool for the job. The PLE is not about the “tool,” and it does exactly what it should do—it is “personal to each individual, created by them, owned by them, used by them within their lifelong learning” (Wheeler, S, 2011). The PLE is essentially a user-managed, self-directed, and completely personal learner-centred environment, and ultimately every learner chooses their own path and means of expression. I am back on track with this goal, but I now acknowledge that this is a process that takes time and a lot of scaffolding. What is most important for students of today is that they “…can use a lens for critical and creative thought to look at the landscape around them, bring to bear the existing knowledge they know, but most importantly, to question themselves” (Siemens, 2013).