I have recently started to get more familiar with some collaborative tools such as Zoom and Slack. I find them very useful for working purposes, and I will explore them further to learn how to use them more efficiently. This course has also open my eyes for Twitter as a learning tool, since tweet-chats are used as one of the learning activities. So far, I have not actively participated, but I have read the tweets of others. Perhaps, that makes me a silent learner in this sense. Silent learners are those that do not show visible active participation in course activities, and include those who prefer writing before doing things (https://nvl.org/Portals/0/DigArticle/15285/NVL_report_Silent_learners.pdf). In most circumstances however, I do not view myself as a silent learner as I am convinced that collaboration is needed to build new knowledge.
Indeed, in the OECD Future of Education and Skills 2030 (https://www.oecd.org/education/2030-project/),
it is stated that in the future we have to use collaboration to build on
existing knowledge to build new knowledge. I definitely agree that most
innovative ideas emerges from collaboration, not from individuals.
Moving back to my previous reflections on Twitter as a
learning tool, social software has been suggested to narrow the gap between
formal and informal learning (Dron, J. & Anderson, T. (2014). Teaching
crowds: Learning and social media. Athabasca University Press). In the paper by Dron and
Anderson, the authors suggest that social software can encourage active
learning, building expertise and social capital. Furthermore, it is easy to
use, and supports creativity, and may therefore be useful for learning.
The use of tweet-chats for learning purposes is a new arena
for me, and may require some more exploration before I will use it. However,
Twitter may be useful to develop my Personal Learning Network (PLN). A first
and simple step is to follow people that I think may be interesting for my PLN,
and try to interact with them through Twitter.
I want to conclude this blog topic with some thoughts on
what have moved my own thoughts on online collaborative learning forward. Being
part of the ONL PBL group has made me realize how important it is to really
collaborate, not only cooperate. Indeed, we learned from the webinar that collaboration
is a key aspect in the 21st century skills. By really collaborate;
we create synergies by building on to each other’s ideas and knowledge. Finally,
I want to emphasize that several soft skills, such as dealing with emotions,
are crucial elements needed for successful online collaboration (https://blog.jostle.me/blog/6-collaboration-skills-and-how-to-foster-them).
As a teacher, it is easy to oversee these skills, and perhaps the need for
students to reflect on the learning process, which is indeed important. This
topic has definitely moved my collaborative skills and my online literacy forward.