In the course Unit 3 readings, Dron and Anderson (2014) introduced an informal and formal social learning model. The model shows three elements of collective intelligence: sets, groups and nets. Groups are the most common form—for example, a school class in a learning group. My network map shows the hub of my school group connection is a learning management system (LMS). The LMS links to open educational resources and social media. Sets are part of groups with a shared purpose or interest (Dron & Anderson, 2014). My map shows involvement in sets, such as a student team member, within a class group. My teams mainly connect with Google Docs, Padlet, Instagram and Twitter. As Veletsianos (2016) suggested, hashtags are a way to build networks and share information. In addition, hashtags can provide learners support and opportunities to collaborate on a common topic. For example, I use hashtags to connect, or form sets of people interested in environmental education, conservation, and restoration.
As part of describing a digital model for social learning, Dron and Anderson (2014) related E.O. Wilson’s studies. Wilson was a Harvard biologist who researched the communications and behaviour of ants. The reference leads me to draw on a natural system as an image for my network.
The image above depicts the interaction network of Pseudotsuga menziesii (Douglas Fir trees) and Rhizopogon spp. (mycorrhizal fungus). The symbiotic association improves the survival of trees. The fungal hyphae extend beyond tree roots to connect entire forests underground. The mycorrhizal fungi provide trees with increased access to water and nutrients and protection from root pathogens in exchange for carbon and energy from the trees (Beiler et al., 2015). “Trees share water and nutrients through the networks and also use them to communicate. They send distress signals about drought and disease, for example, or insect attacks, and other trees alter their behavior when they receive these messages” (Magazine, 2018).
Veletsianos (2016) suggested instructional designers can provide learners with opportunities to engage beyond the learning management system and course activities. As modelled by Douglas Fir trees and mycorrhizal fungus, I aspire to build symbiotic learning relationships and comprehensive connections to extend my instructional design into far-reaching networks.
References
Beiler, K. J., Simard, S. W., & Durall, D. M. (2015). Topology of tree-mycorrhizal fungus interaction networks in xeric and mesic Douglas-fir forests. Journal of Ecology, 103(3), 616–628. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12387
Dron, J, & Anderson, T. (2014). Teaching Crowds. Athabasca University Press.
Magazine, S. (2018, March 1). Do trees talk to each other? Smithsonian.com. Retrieved May 8, 2022, from https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/the-whispering-trees-180968084/
Veletsianos, G. (2016). Digital learning environments. In N. Rushby & D. Surry (Eds), Handbook of Learning Technologies (pp. 242-260). UK: John Wiley & Sons.
Hello Jessica,
I love your analogy of the Douglas Fir trees and the mycorrhizal fungus. What a creative way to make this exercise unique to your world and understanding. It reminds me of a book I read a few years ago about called “The Hidden Life of Trees” by Peter Wohlleben. That book stuck with me and I have never walked through a forest since without thinking about being in a community of trees and all the networks that exist between them and other elements below the surface. Thanks for sharing 🙂
I had a similar experience after watching “Fantastic Fungi” on Netflix. The interconnectedness of the forest ecosystem, and the theory that the mycelium acts as the “nervous system” of the forest is a really fascinating idea to consider. My forest walks have not been the same since!
Hello Leah,
Thank you for considering my blog. I’m always happy under the canopy of trees. I hope you are enjoying the leaves emerge this season.
This is really fascinating to consider, Jessica. Your layered approach of interconnected and overlapping Venn diagrams is much closer to how I envisioned my network than the direction I ultimately ended up pursuing.
Did the mapping exercise reveal any insights or surprises in the way you view (or perceive) your networks?
Hello Darren,
Thank you for reading my blog. I have to say I found this activity difficult because I didn’t grasp the purpose. The process felt like a repeat of the Resident / Visitor mapping (I found that process meaningful). I did enjoy linking the image to tree intelligence.
Hi Jessica,
This is so interesting! Love it when you can relate the maps to what you’re doing at work. Thanks for sharing.
Megan