Hi - a quick thank you for all participants involved in this online conference. Thank you as well for Sylvia (for initiating) and Paul (for moderating).
I found the conversation valuable a valuable learning experience. There is something unique - and still new enough to be exciting - in being able to dialogue with individuals from around the world. One on one distributed communication has been a reality for many of us for decades. Group-based discussions - with an ease of access that includes most people - is something still emerging. We are building our expertise to function in distributed environments. We've had online communities for years. Those of you involved in these early communities probably encountered a fairly small group of devotees. Technology or skill level prohibited most people from participating. Today, a computer and some basic skills open the door to global conversations.
In Knowing Knowledge, I tried to present this emerging potential for global conversations through a change in what it means to know (or in our conception of knowledge). When knowledge is fluid...and a function of connectedness (and thereby networks...which in turn occur in ecologies), we require a new set of skills. These new skills are already evident in many younger people, but they are also being developed by the established workforce. We started our connectivism online conference on Friday - and the types of participants (educators, administrators, etc.) indicate that we are "re-tooling" ourselves. We are beginning to develop the skills and mindsets to be effective today. Organizations like SCoPE are critical in not only hosting knowledge-based discussions...but (perhaps even more importantly) modeling the skills required, and building the "meta-understanding" of connectedness on a large-scale level.
If anyone would like to continue the conversation, feel free to visit the site (wiki, blog, and book download) at www.knowingknowledge.com
Thanks again to everyone for attending!!
George
