Learning Networks

"The Transformation of education taking place is not a function of increased access to information. It is a function of increased participation in intellectual work -- in advancing knowledge, in applying skill, in exercising judgment."
Robert O. McClintock
Director, Institute for Learning Technologies
Teachers College, Columbia University

If I were the only living organism on Earth, my interaction with any of the other Earth objects(s) would still compose a learning network. In the context of this paper, Learning Networkscan be understood as the integration of pedagogy and digital networks. Distance Learning is terminology in common use today that, in general, refers to the Learning Networks discussed herein. Information networks and digital networks are used interchangeably even though there are concrete and complex differences. Since it is NOT our purpose to discuss technology itself, but to infer its effects on epistemology, the differences between information and digital networks is unimportant.

Introduction

In primary and secondary education, five contact hours per day, eight months a year, means that the educator and learner are contacted only about 10% of available time. Post-secondary contact hours are significantly lower. It seems obvious that the vast majority of all learning takes place when learner and educator are at a distance. So, why does "Distance Learning" seem to be a recent topic in education?
Distance learning, as a topic in education, is undergoing revision because it is increasingly apparent that computer networks and digital information make intellectual resources available at any place at any time. This information revolution challenges traditional curricula ideas such as textbooks, classrooms, contact hours, and the limitations they impose. No educator alone will determine how or what technology will be integrated into classrooms, but we call all help determine how it will be used.
Distance learning is any formal approach to learning in which the majority of

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instruction occurs while the educator and learner are at a distancefrom each other. At a distance allows for another approach to consider what are contact hours. Distance learning also allows for others methods to consider as a formal approach to learning.
Integrating technology into classrooms is not a recent problem. Computer technology in education has been a serious topic for at least thirty years. Integrating this technology in classrooms and curriculums is problematic. Many projects aimed at training teachers to use computer technology seem not to be very successful. It may not be the technology that is at fault.
Pedagogy has simply not embraced computer networks as a basic tool of learning. But, we are beginning to see real evidence around us every day that the World Wide Web is beginning to change educator's lives. This can provide the energy necessary to bring distance learning into education's mainstream. Through instructional technology, distance education delivery systems and learning styles, complex philosophical issues such as multi-culturalism can be addressed.
Learning has never been a problem in education. The concern is always to what extent do educators contribute to the learning process, pedagogy. In all of education's history, there has never been a technology introduced with more potential to affect educator contributions than computer networks (information networks). Information available anywhere, anytime can increase contact time way beyond what is possible in traditional classrooms. It will be possible to combine distance teaching with distance learning This is a formal approach to learning in which the majority of instruction occurs while the educator and learner are at a distance from each other. This approach must go beyond "integrating technology" into the curriculum. Some approaches to moving beyond integrating technology are described here in Learning Networks.
It is believed that the implementation of technology will be crucial in improving classroom learning by changing the processes of learning. An alternate viewpoint is that technology is a tool, nothing more, and can only minimally impact the quality of learning. However, this new learning domain facilitates learning interactions more effectively and has the potential to develop new forms of educational interactions. Because it appeals to a variety of learning styles, students will learn more effectively than they would if they had access to just one medium.

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