UNITS 1-6 | Connected Courses

The goal for Connected Courses is to build an inclusive and expansive network of teachers and students, and provide educational offerings that make high quality, meaningful, and socially connected learning available to everyone. The go-at-your-own-pace collaborative course is free and open to all.

Connected Courses was first offered from September 2 to December 12, 2014.

Orientation/Registration/ Move In

Facilitators: Alan Levine, Jim Groom, and Howard Rheingold

Jim Groom, Alan Levine, Howard Rheingold will talk about the how and why of blogging for Connected Courses.

Unit 1: Why We Need a Why

Facilitators: Mike Wesch, Mimi Ito, Helen Keegan

What is, or should be, the future of higher education? What do we stand to lose or gain in pursuing the possibilities opened up by the Web? What are the underlying logics and effects of different approaches to teaching with technology/online?

Unit 2: Trust and Network Fluency (Leveraging your “Why”)

Facilitators: Jonathan Worth, Kira Baker-Doyle

In the quantum learning space where interest is a key driver, how do we employ the same dynamics in our teaching? or How do we leverage the power of open? How do we maintain trust and a sense of security in open networks? How do we build our networks? What is social capital? How do we enable at-large learners to engage in our courses? Where should we teach our classes?

Unit 3: The World Wide Web - From Concept to Platform to Cultures

Facilitators: Gardner Campbell, Kim Jaxon, Chris Mattia, Howard Rheingold, Laura HIlliger

What is this thing called the World Wide Web? What are the values and ambitions that gave rise to its design? If “the medium is the message,” what is the message of the web? What are some threshold concepts that help us to understand what is meant by “the web”? How is it reframing learning and education? What do we stand to lose or gain in pursuing the possibilities opened up by the web?

Unit 4: Diversity, Equity, Access

Facilitators: Lisa Nakamura, Anne Balsamo, Liz Losh

Co-Instructors: Veronica Paredes

Goals / Topics:

Unit 5: About Co-learning

Facilitators: Howard Rheingold, Mia Zamora, Alec Couros

What is co-learning? Why co-learning? How can teachers empower students as co-learners? How does this pedagogy differ from traditional methods of teaching & learning? How does the instructor support a co-learning environment? What obstacles might educators encounter in this paradigm shift? What obstacles might students encounter in this paradigm shift?

Unit 6: Putting it all into practice. Planning the connected course

Facilitators: Jim Groom, Lisa M. Lane, Jaime Hannans, Jaimie Hoffman, Mikhail Gershovich, Alan Levine

F ocus on practical issues, overview of issues in teaching open online classes, reflections on previous weeks’ activities, goals for the future.