WU 6115 -- wk 05 -- Connectivism

This is a mind map of where my mind goes when I am supposed to be Thinking. I started off "old-school" paper based, 8-1/2" x 11" clipboard sized hardcopy. To this day I still have about 8x clipboards in my house for the OCD moments when I have to write something down, music and/or text. I have slowly migrated from hardcopy book format (still my favorite) to more of an electronic digital maintenance filing system. I have previously learned Languages the old-fashioned way which is to learn Grammar 1st and then to compose sentences manually on paper, and lastly the real intention is to learn to Speak the Language.


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That was Then. This is now. nowadays I am more interested in learning a Language by absorption, applying the grammar rules that I am already familiar with and try to make coherent sentences in Russian, Albanian, Spanish and Portuguese. Skype did not "exist" when I was younger, b.c., (before college, before cell phones, before computers, before calculators) Electronic formats online now allow a much richer variety of online Interaction with Speakers of Other Languages, and even other English speakers, one of whom is on active duty in Afghanistan (12 hour Time difference). The Internet has allowed me to collect more than 150,000 Language files. OCD sorted and sifted into an etc. filing system sorted by continent and by Language Family.

The Internet was not originally available when I first started using a computer. 1987. or it did exist but we did not know about it. Google is my home page on all of my 3 browsers. mandatory go to search engine.

There are some particular websites that I enjoy (I have more than 10,000 links saved by now) mainly scribd.com where you can find a lot of information previously in hardcopy format now in digital format. BBC has a Languages Resource page with tons of links to other Languages. and there are so many Internet streaming radio stations that allows me to access all kinds of Languages (that I still don't know how to speak) Tocharian A or B anyone? actually it is an extinct Language.

I was reading an article about a "certain" device (after the 3rd Time I decided to go back to school after a 34 year hiatus) that allowed me to "see" what was written on the whiteboard at school. I have such severe eye strain difficulty that if I do not "hear" what is being written as it is being written then I could not "see" what the info on the whiteboards was in my Russian Language classes. Indeed, after the 3rd time I saw an article about the "Note-Taker" an assistive device for people with severe eye difficulties, I went back to ASU. to finish my degree. Electronic devices has made a huge difference in my ability to participate in the "modern" work place. I ran an professional architectural drafting program for 18 years. This program allowed me to "zoom in" or to "zoom out" as needed.

actually I completely forgot about "online forums" or community of practice as some people like to call them, nowadays. I have learned complete software packages online by participating in world-wide globally accessed forums for specific softwares. AutoCAD, Architectural Desktop, Autodesk VIZ, 3d Studio Max (these are complicated p.o.s.) and Photoshop (FotoChop). back in the day it was $12 a hour to participate online on CompuServe. that was expensive. The Internet has opened a Pandora's box for me. I love getting completely lost (does not take that much) and finding websites that I would otherwise never have found. This can lead to some interesting situations. like looking around a Pakistani website and not understanding a single word.

Skype has allowed me to interact with people and my Friends, in Russia, Ukraine, Byelorussia, Kaliningrad, Albania, Afghanistan, Portugal, England, Spain, Brazil and Columbia that I know of so far. Krasnoyarskii krai is way out in far east and north Siberia, Russia.

when I have questions I usually go to "Google" or if not then I use "duckduckgo" which is a real search engine but it does not track your online activity. Forums are a great place to ask questions. I don't participate in the 3d architectural rendering websites to the extent that I used to. I had a viz2000.com website where I had manually input more than 8,700 external links to other websites that had specific architectural rendering information.

I sometimes learn something when I am not looking for something to learn. when I get so lost that everything looks new (o where o where are my little "breadcrumbs" when I need them the most?)

ok, I am at least bi-polar if not more than that. Old-fashioned, old-school hardcopy format is my background, but now with an expanded field of view the entire world is at our finger tips. a friend of mine suggested that I take a "StrengthFinders" test to find out what my strengths were instead of focusing on how to fix my weakness (too many to mention) I found the book. my Five Strengths according to this test are:

1) strategic thinking (I had to laugh at this) 2) maximizing (mostly creating the best value for someone other than myself) 3) connectedness (this has always been a part of my Life, getting other people connected) 4) life-long learner (hopefully true) 5) input (I just need a certain amount of random input in my Life on a daily basis. I have a need for chaos). buy the book Take the Test. it is very Informative. The test is offered online after you buy the book.

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ok this last part I still got to do some more reading before I can answer this part of the assignment. "In what ways does my personal learning network support or refute the central tenets of connectivism?" TBC brb.