Keywords social interconnection; Linear thinking; Knowledge management; Systematic thinking; Self-organized evolution
First, from content interconnection to social interconnection.
At the beginning of the introduction of Internet technology into the field of educational application, one of the biggest characteristics that distinguishes Internet technology from traditional learning situations is the ocean of information content brought by the Internet. In recent years, the emergence and development of social software such as blogs have created a completely different situation of online learning, that is, from the original content-based interconnection to the interconnection between people and ideas, from the learning based on resource content to the interconnection learning based on knowledge management and learners' continuous optimization of internal and external knowledge structure networks. The author uses the following figure (figure 1) to show this point, in which nodes with different colors are in different development stages of network education application. In the initial stage of online education application, any node representing different information sources is only the content source of information resources for learners. However, in the stage of people-based social interconnection, each resource content node is no longer just a single node on the learning content level for learners, but belongs to the theme content of a learning community, representing the knowledge level owned and precipitated by the group.
Figure 1 From Content Interconnection to Social Interconnection
At the beginning of the application of online education, people and the Internet did not merge. For learners, the Internet is just a huge content information base. Different learners have not established direct or indirect cooperative sharing and interconnected learning methods through the Internet. On the other hand, learners are no longer individuals outside the Internet in online education applications based on the interconnection of people and ideas. With the help of blog, a network node with powerful identity recognition function, different learners are interconnected in the network, and learning groups are gathered through other ways such as "self-chain, other-chain" and "tag" to form a people-centered learning community with different topics. In the learning community, learners can share information sources, learn from each other, improve the efficiency of information acquisition, promote the spread and transformation of tacit knowledge, deepen the function of topic mining and enhance the possibility of knowledge innovation.
Second, the motivation to develop social network learning ability-independent choice
The biggest feature of people-centered networked social interconnected learning is that all learning behaviors are the process and result of learners' independent choice.
We can learn from our own learning experience. Whether studying at school or going to work to receive on-the-job continuing education and training, we can't choose our inner attitude to deal with the environment, we can't choose everything around us to pay, we can't choose the content of our study courses, we can't choose our study time, we can't choose our study methods, we can't choose our teachers and classmates ... Our learning ability is limited within the prescribed framework.
However, in the network society, connected learning requires learners to make choices constantly, completely independently, how much time to invest, what to study, how to choose their learning partners, including which blog they often read ... these are all choices. Everything about learners is the result of their choices. The process of learning is the process of making choices, and the precipitation of learning path is the witness of the process and result of choice.
The learning of social Internet can start with choosing simple Internet tools. Mastering each social internet tool will further expand the scope of learners' choice, improve the possibility of choice and enhance the complexity of choice, which in turn will promote the continuous generation of learners' choice ability and the enhancement of learners' online learning ability.
The process of learners' choice is the process of interaction between learners and the environment, and the process of "assimilation and adaptation" within learners. Although the ability level of learners in the process of "assimilation and adaptation" can not be measured at present, the level of learners' online learning ability and its advanced law of development can be measured through the changes of learners' choice behavior in the interaction with the environment.
In order to clearly illustrate the development level of learners' online learning ability reflected in the choice judgment, we use the process of children's building blocks to illustrate the introduction of analogy.
For a child who has never built a building block, we provide a bunch of building block elements, including square, rectangle, triangle, semicircle, arch and other colors and sizes. These building block elements will be selected and combined into more and more complex and unique building block works with the improvement of children's hands-on ability and imagination. It may be a small table, a small house, a city.
Similarly, for a learner who has never been exposed to the Internet, when the environmental conditions allow him to communicate and learn through the Internet, the application of various tools and resources in the network will produce more and more learning application effects with the continuous improvement of the learner's ability to control tools and manage resources, so that learners can obtain continuous development and growth.
Choice has created possibilities, expanded the scope and developed the demand, which has long been complicated and put forward the requirements for further development. Accordingly, we regard choice as the driving force for the development of social Internet learning ability, and divide the development of Internet learning ability in networked society into three stages: linear thinking, systematic thinking and adaptive evolution of online learning.
Third, online learning advanced linear thinking.
Earlier, we mentioned using the process of children building blocks as an introduction to analyze the development level of online learning ability reflected in the process of learners' continuous independent choice and judgment. For children, building a building block, whether following the map according to the sample instructions of possible building block combination patterns or creatively thinking about completing a building block work with certain complexity, requires children to go through the process of understanding individual building block elements and possible simple combinations between individual building block elements. In this process, children learn about the different sizes, colors and shapes of building blocks, and even associate them with real-world objects, such as red round building blocks like the sun, large triangular orange building blocks like pointed roofs and so on. In addition, in the process of understanding a single building block element, children also develop the ability to simply combine several building block elements, that is, to establish the relationship between certain elements and combine simple works.
For e-learners, they will also go through a similar learning stage, that is, the stage of understanding the elements of e-learning tools one by one and simply combining their applications. For example, learn to use instant messaging tools, such as QQ, MSN and so on. Learn to use email sending and receiving tools, such as foxmail and gmail. Learn to use RSS news subscription tools, such as bloglines and topim. Learn to use favorite sharing tools, such as delicious food and 365key. Learn to use community communication tools, such as BBS and mailing list. Learn tools to build a personal BLOG, such as blog. In addition, there are many social networking platforms with different service functions, such as LinkedIn and Orkut. There are also social networking software service platforms based on media types, such as flickr platform with image collection as the interconnection service. Learning and mastering these tools are carried out one by one at the beginning, but using these single and independent tools in learning will lead to the possibility of building a multi-dimensional complex learning space.
It is also a step-by-step process to cultivate the ability to establish contacts between different learning tools, as illustrated by the simplest and commonly used tools word and google. For example, a learner who learns to write a copy in word and search for information in google, when writing an article in word, when he needs to check a piece of information, his first thought is no longer that the original reference book is not with him, but that he will immediately go online to check the relevant content, so we say that this learner has established a linear relationship between word and google.
It is much more difficult for learners to understand and learn this tool element and its simple combination than for children to learn how to build blocks for the first time. Because for learners, every time they master a tool, their cognitive scope is not only the use of the tool itself, but also the use of this tool creates possibilities and alternative space for learners to further expand their learning opportunities, stimulate their interest in learning and expand their learning potential. In short, tools constantly extend learners' cognitive ability. For example, learners will use google, and in the process of searching for information in the future, they will be exposed to more information that attracts learners, stimulates their interest in learning and further expands their learning space; For example, learners can use e-mail and blogs, which provides the possibility of further expanding the scope of communication, and the result of expanding communication provides the possibility of further learning.
For learners, online learning tools enhance the possibility of learning. With mastering more and more tools, learners will have to deal with more and more information. However, if learners only follow the simple linear correlation mode of "writing articles in word and searching information in google when necessary", learners will not be able to cope with the increasing amount of information brought by mastering tools and the more and more complicated problems to be dealt with. Learners need to break through the original linear thinking learning mode based on single tool and simple tool combination, and develop a learning ability that can handle a large amount of information and complex problems, that is, the ability to continuously optimize the internal and external knowledge node networks of learners, and develop a learning ability based on knowledge management system thinking.
Fourthly, the advanced ideas of online learning system.
1. Put forward the systematic thinking learning ability based on knowledge management.
If the advanced linear thinking of online learning is a process in which learners accumulate and prepare "building blocks" to build a multi-dimensional learning space, then the main function of the advanced thinking of online learning system is learning management and optimization based on "building blocks".
In the advanced linear thinking of online learning, when the learner's "building block library" accumulates to a certain stage, the learner needs to constantly sort out and optimize his "building block library". For example, using the examples of word and google mentioned above, when learners encounter problems when using word again, there are more and more efficient ways to solve the problems besides using google to look up information. When solving a specific problem, it is assumed that the learner has encountered it and managed its information. At this time, learners will go directly to their corresponding management information base to extract the answers to the questions, without relying on Google to search for solutions from scratch. On the other hand, if learners do not consciously accumulate, consciously precipitate and consciously manage, the learning efficiency will be greatly reduced, or the overall learning efficiency of learners will not be improved, or stay at the level of simplicity, coping and primitive accumulation. It can be seen that learners need to cultivate the ability of comprehensive judgment and decision-making based on specific problems and multiple options.
How can learners make the best decision under more and more complicated situations and problems? This is the acquisition and development of systematic thinking learning ability based on knowledge management in the face of complex situations. However, it is worth noting that without the accumulation of linear thinking mode learning and the richness of learners' "building blocks" in early online learning, learners will not have learning needs based on knowledge management, nor will they develop the ability of systematic thinking.
2. Understand the three points of knowledge management.
In order to clarify the problem, here are three key points to understand knowledge management.
The first is the classification of explicit knowledge and tacit knowledge, which was originally put forward by Michael Polanyi, that is, personal knowledge is divided into parts that are easy to express and parts that can only be unexpressed and difficult to spread clearly. For example, books and articles published by individuals are considered to belong to the category of personal explicit knowledge, while things precipitated from personal experience that are difficult to express in similar words belong to the category of tacit knowledge, such as special teachers, whose "special skills" cannot be expressed in words, which is personal tacit knowledge.
The second is about what knowledge management is. Different schools have different specific definitions of it. More popular can borrow the famous Arthur Anderson (Arthur Anderson, 2000) knowledge management definition formula to express, as shown in the following figure (Figure 2):
Figure 2 Knowledge management formula of Andersen Management Consulting Company
According to the original meaning expressed in the formula, knowledge management is a process in which information technology fully combines people with knowledge. Through sharing, the accumulation and precipitation of knowledge will show an exponential effect, that is, the greater the depth, breadth and speed of sharing, the greater the value of knowledge management.
The third is the theory of knowledge management transformation, that is, Ikujiro Nonaka and Tadeji developed the theory of mutual transformation between tacit knowledge and explicit knowledge on the basis of Michael Polanyi's classification of explicit knowledge, as shown in the following figure (Figure 3):
Figure 3 Knowledge Transformation Theory
The theory of knowledge management transformation provides a theoretical process model for individuals and groups to explore tacit knowledge to make it explicit, spread and share, and how to internalize explicit knowledge into tacit knowledge formation ability.
3. Cultivate systematic thinking learning ability based on knowledge management.
By acquiring and using advanced learning tools of linear thinking, learners expand the scope of communication and create complex learning situations. Improving learning efficiency requires knowledge management. From the above three points about knowledge management, it can be seen that learners need to participate in the sharing among groups, sort out and summarize individual learning experiences and achievements, form explicit knowledge, promote the accumulation and precipitation of knowledge in the whole group, and at the same time fully absorb the knowledge of groups and internalize it into personal tacit knowledge. Learners' learning ability in the face of complex situations is reflected in their ability to transform knowledge in interaction with the environment.
While developing knowledge management skills, online learners are also a process of increasing their ability to absorb environmental information and enhancing tacit knowledge. The stronger the learner's knowledge management ability, the greater the space and scope of independent choice, and the greater the freedom of learning.
Tacit knowledge is the knowledge about how learners make the best choice for specific problems in complex situations. How to acquire this tacit knowledge? Cyberspace learning is personalized learning, and it is difficult to have a fixed learning model, because each learner's growth background, learning expectations and learning goals are different, and each learner's choice behavior is different. However, the development of the network is moving from content interconnection to social interconnection, to people interconnection and to ideas interconnection. So for every learner, individual learning is not isolated through social software. By establishing some learning partnerships or joining a learning community on a certain topic, learners can always put themselves in a learning exchange group. In this or that learning exchange group, each learner's tacit knowledge can be active communication through "socialized communication" for other learners to acquire and inherit. Such an open "paradigm" provides a good learning environment for learners to develop tacit knowledge.
In addition, in order to make the best choice for specific problems in complex situations, we need to master the "soft tools" of thinking, which is a "thinking tool" for learning to think systematically and see the world systematically. In this regard, on the one hand, we should expand the knowledge of system theory in the knowledge structure, on the other hand, we should gradually use system thought to guide learning practice and consciously change the system thinking mode.
Internet interconnection, behind providing learners with full freedom of choice, is its uncertainty and complexity. For every learner, by mastering knowledge management skills and systematic thinking mode, it is possible to make full use of the advantages of cyberspace for further independent learning, self-discovery and self-realization.
5. Advanced adaptive evolution of online learning
The adaptive evolution of online learning is a leap in online learning ability on the basis of the first two advances. Without the cumulative learning of "building blocks" based on social tools, it is impossible to leap to "building blocks" learning based on knowledge management system thinking. Similarly, without the foundation of the first two stages, learners will not jump into the advanced learning stage of adaptive evolution. Different advanced levels represent learners' different levels of judgment and choice and different levels of online learning ability.
1. Establish a greater learning network relationship.
What are the characteristics of adaptive evolutionary learning? The learning network relationship built by learners on the basis of the first two advanced levels can be continuously expanded in a holographic way, forming a larger but orderly personal learning space network relationship. Different sequence levels of learning network represent a state in the adaptive development of learning network relationship structure.
Why is it asserted that learning in the adaptive evolution stage will form a larger but orderly relationship network structure? Let's analyze the possibility.
First, learners continue to use the skills of acquiring social tools in the first stage and constantly expand their learning boundaries. In evolutionary terms, we can regard the mastery of every new learning tool on the Internet as a "mutant gene" in the personal online learning system, which will bring changes and improve the learning possibilities for learners.
Secondly, learners' knowledge management ability and systematic thinking mode can be "copied" when expanding their knowledge in other fields, avoiding the requirement of "building blocks" for optimal management of learners' knowledge management and systematic thinking ability from scratch. This "replication" result of knowledge management ability and systematic thinking ability greatly expands and enriches the network structure of learners' learning space.
For the above concept of "copy", here is a little explanation. As mentioned above, the mastery of the first batch of advanced online learning tools has created a complex situation of online learning choice. The knowledge of how learners choose specific problems in complex situations is tacit knowledge, which has been internalized into learners' personal ability based on knowledge management. As an internalized personal ability, when learners expand and go deep into different knowledge fields, their knowledge management skills and systematic thinking mode can be copied for learners themselves, that is, in the process of learning knowledge in different fields, the knowledge management skills and systematic thinking ability needed by learners do not need to start from scratch, but can be directly copied in dealing with knowledge learning in different fields. This is very important. That is to make learners unconsciously expand their knowledge structure, but from the perspective of lifelong learning ability, we know that it is difficult for a person to engage in only one job, involving only one aspect of knowledge in a field, not to mention that knowledge itself is constantly changing from old to new. Therefore, this kind of direct copying and migration of knowledge management ability and systematic thinking ability in the face of new situations has greatly improved learners' learning efficiency.
2. Adaptive evolutionary learning network relationship structure.
System structure determines system function. If the learning social relationship network gradually built by online learners is regarded as a system, then the structure in this network relationship determines the current learning state of learners and the behavior state of learners' choice and judgment.
When learners leap into the third advanced stage, knowledge management and systematic thinking ability in different fields are constantly "copied" to form many learning community subnets, which are directly related to each other through learners.
However, with the expansion of learning community subnets, learners need to develop the ability to manage and participate in many different learning community subnets, that is, each learning community becomes a building block with different sizes and colors in the building block component library. At this point, the learners' knowledge management ability has also risen to a higher level, and they have obtained the ability to optimize the management of "building block component library" based on different learning communities. Then for the online learning system, there is stratification, that is, there is a sudden change in relationship and structure, forming a two-level online learning relationship system. This process will be repeated with the improvement of learners' learning ability, forming a self-organized evolutionary system and learning sequence.
In the stage of system adaptive evolutionary learning, for learners themselves, their ability to construct and manage knowledge can develop adaptively. Learners' tacit knowledge about how to manage knowledge becomes very rich. Not only the ability of knowledge management began to evolve adaptively, but also the ability of learners to interact with the environment showed a continuous evolution.
Abstract of intransitive verbs
Network-based learning is completely different from traditional learning, especially the application and development of social software, which can help learners to establish or integrate into a certain communication community. The purpose of three-level classification is to reveal the law of learning progress in the networked society, so as to help and inspire more learners who want to use online learning. With the development of online learning, it not only expands the learning social network and learners' knowledge structure, but also makes a corresponding leap in learners' thinking ability.