Yesterday morning I attended Dave Cormier’s excellent session on rhizomatic learning as part of #etmooc. I first heard of the rhizome concept last year and was instantly drawn to it as a metaphor for connected learning. Although I’ve done a couple of short formal courses since returning from maternity leave, the majority of my learning since returning to work has been rhizomatic – seeing a point of interest, moving to it and making connections around it. It certainly works for me. I loved the concept of rhizomatic learning helping to prepare for uncertainty. I think it is intended to mean in the sense of there being no right answer and a task never able to be fully completed but it also to me represents nodes of connections and information to which I can turn in moments of need. I also realise that, like many, I find I need some structure in my learning to give it a focus – hence attending the webinar sessions in this MOOC which help make sense of material I’ve collected through other channels.
Another topic was the different degrees of complexity in which new knowledge may be used, introduced using the Cynefin framework. I found the diagram particularly helpful:
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The thought I’m left with and need to reflect on is how to create a rhizomatic learning space for students in my current role as a freelance eLearning developer. As I don’t really have contact with the students in most cases, and often have to design assessments to fit with institutional requirements, I feel at first glance that my options are limited, but really it’s probably more that my thinking is limited. I’m going to seek inspiration from other MOOC participants. I feel I’m not contributing to anyone else’s learning but perhaps by posing a question I can stimulate a discussion which prompts good learning.