Open

I want to dedicate this blog post to the idea of "Open"

Open access--

Free
Available
Accessible
Online


Those are words that describe, that have described the concept of Open to me.  But since participating in this MOOC, I've realized there is more to the concept than those words.

There is a feeling, and I can't say it is all positive.  I feel the looseness, the difficulty that a lack of a definite space, like a classroom has, which clearly defines the learning/teaching space.   I tend to organize my life visually--visual clues everywhere, reminding me of what I must do.  But the online course is not something visible to me, unless I seek it out.  It requires some new learning skills: organization and synthesis for example.  I mentioned this in the first post.  But, after the first blackboard, or should I say enjoyable whiteboard lecture by Alec, I realized when I saw the school classroom with the walls coming down, that there is something I treasure in the closed-in-ness of the classroom.  Something that, I think, can be reclaimed in the open blogosphere/twittersphere, etc... if careful attention is given to centralizing, to focusing content, to the tools used in a MOOC.  I think this MOOC is very well put together, and a blog aggregate is an amazing way to bring thoughts and people together.  The synchronous sessions are another way to bring people together: blackboard sessions and timed tweets with question lead discussion, are convenient ways of bringing a large number of people together in discussion. The tweet sessions add a social dimension, and the blogging adds depth.  I have really enjoyed this experience...despite the feeling that "the wind is at my back," in this climate of open learning. 

Thanks so much to the organizers.