Identity and #change11

What is the difference between identity, ID, self, ego, me, personality? Do these words connect to the same  ’thing’?

Does identity change when you change role? A role or a social role (also spelt rôle) as a set of connected behaviors, rights and obligations as conceptualized by actors in a social situation.

Identity is an item in psycho-therapy,  fear of loss of identity or fear of disapproval are strong forces in a human mind. Identity is dependence because the other people must recognize and acknowledge my identity.

Identity as a network. No identity without other people, and things. Part of your identity is made by the connections in your network. Your identity is your parents, your friends, your place of birth your university, your colleagues. And the phone you use, the car, the house, your dog, your clothes.

Identity is difference, how to be different in this world with so many people? Leaving marks on the network, connecting in a personal style. The rhizome of your connections is part of your identity. Identity as a way of living, a style of life, a typical way of expressing. Branding is a special way of being different. Are social status and identity  connected?  Identity is a  process of a growing rhizome, in a complex rhizome you could find your singular identity. The more complex the more  a  different identity.

Leaving marks is part of the making of an identity. (footprint, fingerprint, printed papers)  These marks are printed on a substrate. In what way is the substrate part of your identity? What blogs are you commenting, what does your Facebook look like? Reading footprints is subjective,  as Pooh and Piglet show when they are walking in the snow. So who am I? You could  read a part of my  online identity on the marks I left on the internet.

In what way does a text help to make an identity? In what way is your work/text hiding your identity?

Your identity is part of your personality. Is Identity a rhizome of different selfs?  Languge selfs, branded,  cultural selfs? Identity is it your public self?  Is my private secret unconscious self part of my identity?  Culturally, these practices by which we make our digital identities have become part of our embodied lives and of an enmeshed concept of ourselves.

Your identity is like a road or a direction you did choose. Now when you do go that direction you will have to act according to your identity. Identity causes expectations. Is it possible to compose your identity as a work of art, or do other people compose their version of your identity and with that your identity is a social construct?  

Sun flowers, a story #change11

 ’Esse est percipi’ (Berkeley, Treatise concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge, 1790, : § 3) ’to be is to be perceived’. We do make sense of the world that we perceive (connect to).

Van Gogh painted sun flowers. He changed our connections ¹ with sun flowers. After van Gogh sun flowers are not the same.
Sumire Nukina wrote a composition ‘Zonnebloem 1′ (Sun flower 1) for bass clarinet.  And I cannot but connect this to Van Gogh because my teacher did ask “Would a connection exist between van Gogh and this music?”
When I play this piece of music these connections and a load of other connections ² do influence the sound. Playing this music changes my perception of sun flowers because of the story ³  which is in the connections.

Sumire Nukina did make her music on a (not named) painting of Mondrian of sun flowers. http://www.flickr.com/photos/mbell1975/5394496202/
or http://paintingdb.com/view/9211/
or this one http://www.wikipaintings.org/en/piet-mondrian#supersized-still-life-186000
Mondrian painted the sun flowers in 1907 1908. He knew van Gogh.

Connectivism is not only about knowledge. Knowledge (information) is always connected to stories with feelings, value, sense making. Do you think knowledge exists without a ‘knower’? Berkeley meant this connectedness of knowledge and ‘knower’ when he said ‘Esse est percipi’. (van Peursen, Verhaal en werkelijkheid : een deiktische ontologie, 1992) ⁴

The story is a way of sense making, and of connecting knowledge and meaning and sense and emotions and value. An example: Critical Thinking (CT) is on almost all curricula as an unconnected, stand-alone subject. CT without a story is sophism and empty smartness. CT has to be connected to a story to make sense of it and to use it in a sensible way. ⁵
He, Clive Thompson, in a November 2011 Wired article, goes on to say that internet search engines present a “golden opportunity to train kids in critical thinking.” In order to sort through hundreds of search results, students must evaluate information, consider credibility, and ask crucial questions about context and meaning. According to Thompson, these kinds of critical thinking skills are being ignored in favor of preparation for standardized tests. Andrew Neuendorf

¹) meaning, sense, knowledge, attraction.
²) The network ‘Sun Flowers’ is much greater than the things I did mention here: Eating sun flower seeds in a Chinese tea garden, Fields with sun flowers in France, sun flower oil, sun flowers growing in the garden and dead sun flowers in autumn.
³) story = a metaphor to indicate a network of meaning, sense, opinion, facts, value, words, images, attraction, etc.
⁴) tr. Story and Reality. A Deictic Ontology
⁵) Facebook: Scott Johnson, Can’t resist posting this site: http://chronicle.com/article/Beyond-Critical-Thinking/63288 Full of insights into being so critical as to be blind to understanding the depth of human experience. Check out the discussion section at the end too.
Image van Gogh: https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bestand:Vincent_Willem_van_Gogh_128.jpg

Karl E. Weick’s Konzept des “Sensemaking”

Intentionality is the subject in a discussion on Dave’s Educational Blog between Keith Hamon and Frances Bell.

In very short: the question is if a node in a knowledge network/rhizome, like you and me, is more than a reacting powerless object of the network/rhizome. (this is too short an abstract of the discussion, you should read it yourself)
This discussion reminds me of the problem of the Collective Unconscious and the Self of Jung. This collective unconscious of Jung is much wider than the personal unconscious of Freud. The collective unconscious of Jung connects us to the history of mankind, the myths and stories of our ancestry.

Karl E. Weick and Sensemaking could shine a light on this subject of agency in a network.

George Siemens mentions the nature of connections. Wonder if we could say that some/all connections are sense-making-connections?
“…Understanding. Coherence. Sensemaking. Meaning. These elements are prominent in constructivism, to a lessor extent cognitivism, and not at all in behaviourism. But in connectivism, we argue that the rapid flow and abundance of information raises these elements to critical importance…” George Siemens.

In therapy Jung tried to make sense in the lives of his patients, it is a nice parallelism.

Image: In Franfurt am Main (Deutschland) you find this statue “Ich” of Hans Traxler. (Ich = I / me). The statue is empty.

Mensbeeld (Imaginem Humana) in a connectivist world #change11

If we want to know more about Connectivism as a theory of learning or knowledge or teaching, we could look at the “view of man” (mensbeeld) that is implied or expressed in connectivist texts.
A mensbeeld we call a set of assumptions and stories that relates to how people view human beings. Mensbeeld is Dutch for View of Man, Imaginem Humana (Latin), image humane (Fr).
Three bits of connectivist text to start with:
“Connectivism presents a model of learning that acknowledges the tectonic shifts in society where learning is no longer an internal, individualistic activity. How people work and function is altered when new tools are utilized. The field of education has been slow to recognize both the impact of new learning tools and the environmental changes in what it means to learn. Connectivism provides insight into learning skills and tasks needed for learners to flourish in a digital era.” [Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age, 2004, George Siemens]
Do people change when their culture changes? (are people autonomous and independent or are they victim of external forces?)
Do humans change their culture?
Is it human destination to flourish?
Has learning ever been an internal individualistic activity?

“This implies a pedagogy that (a) seeks to describe ‘successful’ networks (as identified by their properties, which I have characterized as diversity, autonomy, openness, and connectivity) and (b) seeks to describe the practices that lead to such networks, both in the individual and in society (which I have characterized as modeling and demonstration (on the part of a teacher) and practice and reflection (on the part of a learner)).” [What Connectivism Is, Stephen Downes, 2007]
Is success an important goal of humans in a connectivist mensbeeld?
Are autonomy, openness and connectivity and diversity also part of the connectivist mensbeeld?
“Active MOOC participants are individuals high in the psychological trait of conscientiousness, geared toward duty and achievement” Individual experiences in MOOCs, part 3 diversity openness, Heli Nurmi
How does connectivism deal with uncertainty and questions with no known answer?

“Where structures of connections (ie., networks) differ from sets of observations or measurements is that there is in principle no external entity to which we can appeal in order to check our understanding. In a networked society, every person is a member of the network, and all things being equal, there is not some other networked society against which we can test our conclusions (prior to the days of global communications, societies did test themselves one against the other, but unfortunately though war and other conflict, a solution that was worse than the problem and which clouded their ability to interpret connections in a rational and dispassionate way).” An Introduction to Connective Knowledge, Stephen Downes, 2005
Is being a member of a network a major property of the mensbeeld?
Will humans improve and forget war?
Will there be a future of peace and justice for all mankind?
Is the mensbeeld rational and dispassionate?

” …Creatagogy? This would be based on a pedagogy for human being where learning is viewed as a growth of creativity and capability for people, with technology as affordance, together with digital pedagogy and netagogy. ” Sui Fai John Mak
Is creativity an important trait for the mensbeeld in Connectivism?

(to be continued)

Ethics of connectivism in #change11

A MOOC is an attempt to apply connectivist theory. A MOOC is not only an applied epistemology and way of organizating learning, but also an ethic community.
Connectivism is about knowledge that exists in connections. Connections between people and their devices, and connections between information and knowledge components, etc. Without connections, no knowledge.
A MOOC is a way of learning. For higher order learning one needs attention. Alexandre Jollien, Le metier d’homme, éd. Du Seuil, Paris, (I did enjoy this little book) on attention and why we need other people. Jollien says autonomy does not imply non-connectedness. In his view connections, supportive human relations are crucial to autonomy. Heli: Psychological autonomy is a broader concept
Connectivism needs an ethics on connectivity and participation. I do not want to reopen a discussion on “lurking”. I do not want to make accusations. But without people investing time and attention in sharing knowledge a MOOC would be a dead environment.
A MOOC needs connected people.
An understanding of the complexity of social, conceptual, and biological connections along with the complexity of human needs and the diverse circumstances generating and emerging from these connections is an emerging process for connectivist understanding.

The ethics of connectivism is not an ethics of law and law-enforcement. The connectivist ethics is not of commandments, rules and accusations. In my view connectivism and philosophy of life do connect perfect.
The ethics of connectivism does not want to oblige people to connect, but to tempt, to invite, to seduce, to persuade to connect and to learn. If you want to enjoy the MOOC than you could help us by connecting. You could help us by making the MOOC a happy environment that fosters learning. We would love to share your enthusiasm and your company would make us happy.

Sui Fai John Mak: why do people leave the course (MOOC)? Could be a lack of motivation, due to the lack of connections, engagement and feedback when learning online.

In a MOOC are technical ways to connect. Howto connect to MOOC’ers.

Look at: http://www.fullcirc.com/2012/02/14/relating-community-activities-to-technologies/

Music and Art and Learning and Teaching in #change11

• Some music is composed  or “invented” by a composer and the sounds are produced by a (group of ) musician(s) and people are listening to the music. Handel ‘Largo’ – The London Symphony Orchestra
• Some music is invented and produced by a musician or a group of musicians, for listener(s). God bless the child Eric Dolphy
• Some music is made by the audience for the audience.
• Some music is not invented, not produced as music, but is heard by somebody.. Is this music?
• Some music is not perceived.

This list has a connection to teaching and learning. (Is teaching an Art or Applied science?)

Music is a selection of sounds, a choice from all possible sounds. John Cage’s 4’33 is an example of this.

What would happen if we made software (maybe it does exist somewhere) to select sounds in a clever way. The software selects sounds with help of some rules and clever heuristics.
If the sounds were played by a computer would that be music?

If we did the same trick with software to write a novel, with help of smart heuristics, analytics of masterpieces of literature. Would the result be literature? art? a story? Would the computer beat the ape / monkey?

Theodore Roszak (‘The cult of information, the folklore of computers and the true art of thinking’, New York, 1986) does not believe computers are thinking machines. Processing information is not thinking. Thinking, creativity, dreaming, fantasy, are humane processes, and Roszak expresses fear we will forget the differences between thinking and processing information.

image: Master of Female Half-Lengths [Dutch Northern Renaissance Painter, active ca.1530-1540]

Jung, Introversion, #change11, epistemology, education, labeling

In ‘Psychologische Typen’ C.G.Jung explains his opinions on introversion in more than 400 pages. When we use the label ‘introvert’ we should think of this ideas of Jung.  The label is shorthand for a very complicated story about people and their behavior.  Jung does ask his readers to be very careful with the types, because it is a complicated matter.

In the blogpost on introversion an image of a Tarot card “the hermit” was added.
Jung did write the book on ‘Psychologische Typen’  as a psychiatrist, he needed background to his thoughts on therapy. Jung did  philosophical, not psychological research, the book is full of literature and poetry.  Jung did no empirical studies, he used his experience as a psychiatrist.  The opinions of Jung as a psychiatrist and Tarot both are not modern science. Maybe the difference is psychiatrics (in the way of Jung) is a narrative discipline and Tarot is a narrative.

Labels like introvert  or ADHD, or smart are very dangerous, because they are shorthand words. Most labels are shorthand for a load of books and discussions on a subject.
Jung does name different introvert types which are very different from each other. Just looking a little bit closer at Jung his thoughts on introversion will show this.

Jung saw 4 types of introversion (see diagram),  and he stresses that these types never occur in a clear and ideal way. Jung explains these 4 types always exist in pairs or combinations (page 336). He mentions the combination of the thinking introvert with the intuitive traits. These combinations always cause struggle and change in the mind.  Keep in mind Jung had a very complicated (complex?) view on human psychology and these types are only a small part of it.

The Tarot card of the Hermit is also a shorthand of a lot of stories on human life and types. And like different psychiatrists have different opinions on the human psychology (Freud, Jung, and others) books on Tarot do tell different stories on each card.

By the way: Jung used a kind of ‘rhizomatic’ analogy in his description of consciousness. Jung uses an image of a sea of the unconsciousness with islands of consciousness. These islands do appear on the surface and disappear below the surface in a kind of dancing.  Like shoots of a rhizome do grow and appear above ground, and die and disappear.

Personal learning, a History of Little John and his Cabin #cck11 #change11

Once upon a time a little boy did not want to go to school. He did not like school.

Of course you go to school John, said his mother. And so little John in the  morning left the house, but he did not go to school. John went to the wild lands beyond the school and built a hut of branches and reeds. When school finished little John went home.

The next day he said “Mom I will not go to school today.” His mother said: “Of course you go to school.”
And the boy went to his cabin and built a kite.
He wrote in his diary and made drawings. Until it was time to go home again.

The next day Little John said nothing to his mother.
He went to his cabin and made a  door for his cabin.

He had to draw a bunny that came to his cabin.

That was hard, but he could do it.

Obviously had had no crayons.

When his cabin was finished he went to the library and got a good book.

Little John read the book in the sun in front of the hut.
Robinson Crusoe is an exciting book, and he returned home  that day almost too late.

But one day little John  came back home and his mother looked serious and said, “the teacher of school has called and asked if you really are ill. I want you to go to school tomorrow, because if you do not go to school you will learn nothing “.

I like this little story.  I would like schools to change to places of fun and learning whatever you like to do. Places where creativity and pleasure are not thrown out.

12 reasons not to engage in a MOOC #change11

He, who is saying that? Not engage in a MOOC? What is wrong with MOOC’s?

1. In a  MOOC you will meet so much interesting subjects and ideas for study. And that will cost so much time and energy.

2. You will end up with a list of new books and websites you really must read.

3. In a MOOC you will meet people will different views, and opinions, and  that will cause uncertainty. Maybe you will have  to review some of your views and opinions.

4. If you engage in a MOOC you will cross borders and enter the unknown, and you never know what that will bring you.

5. In a MOOC you will learn to use all kind of digital media, and that will cost time and energy. And after the MOOC you could even feel obliged to use these skills.

6. Learning to know the problems of other people  could put your own problems in another perspective.

7. Joining a MOOC is contagious, once you start one MOOC you might become addicted.

8. MOOC-ing is a mass experience, if you do not find your way in chaos and abundance, you will get lost in the masses, masses of chances and opportunities.

9. Investing time and energy in a MOOC pays back, but the payment will be unexpected. You will be richer after the MOOC in some way.

10. You will go through a period of severe after-MOOC-shock when it is over.

11. You will discover the world out there is much bigger, you will never be the same because of that that broader overview.

12. You might even discover unknown parts of your Self, and that could be surprising!

13.  You might try to publish your views and ideas, on which other people could ask weird and unexpected questions that will make you think.

14. A MOOC might cause severe uncertainty and strong emotions.  In the first weeks of a MOOC you will feel alienated. And only if you go on trying you will discover the promised land of the MOOC.

15. …

How to evoke more comments on your #change11 blogposts

It is not easy to remain motivated for writing a blog when nobody comments. Why do some blogs get commented and why yours not?
In a Mooc most people only read and lurk (of 1600 persons some 50 did engage in publishing in Plenk Mooc.
It is like dating you must invest some time and effort to date your readers and to seduce her/him to comment. Why is blogging so important? (Stephen Wheeler)
* Ask questions in your blog. Just stating a fact or an opinion does not invite responses or comments. If you would like somebody to comment on your blog, ask questions.
* Be personal. Share something personal, because people like to connect to a human being. Do share a problem, because people like to help and write solutions.
* Try something creative, try to make people think ‘Wow, awesome” Some people will want to share this feeling and comment. I do like lúcidaTranslúcida’s choice of pictures
* Do not post your blogpost at once. Save the draft and read it after an hour and make it better. Quality will make people comment.
* Put different arguments in your post, and wait for the discussion to evolve. End the post with “I would like to read your comment on this”. Paul Prinsloo does do this.
* Link in your blog to other bloggers. Most blogs do automatically message this to the owner of the blog.
* Do comment yourself on blogs of other people, and leave a URL of your own blog. Make your blog known. Cry out on Facebook Twitter that you did write a post and would love comments.
* Think of a fascinating tittle for the blogpost.