How the Learning Theory of Connectivism Stimulates Learning

Of the four main learning theories we discussed in class by Bates in 2014, I was unable to decide on which theory best fit my learning style, until we were introduced to connectivism in week 6. Connectivism, as a whole I feel to not only be the best fit for myself but also as the best fit generally when compared to the other theories we have learned about. From having been in a variety of online classes this past year and a bit, I have had the opportunity to experience all five of the learning theories we’ve learned from the different teaching approaches that my professors have taken to deliver online education. While I can see how different people can benefit from the four main learning theories of behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism, and social-constructivism; I have been able to note that the general class engagement and information retention has been greater in the courses that have used a connectivism approach to how online learning is delivered.

What makes connectivism so effective is when the general understanding about how learning is a chaotic process which is not defined by how an educator transfers knowledge to the learner but rather how the process in which the learner is able to engage with the information is not only understood by the educator but also from the student (Weller, M, 2020, CH.17). Additionally, when the four components of aggregation, relation, creation and sharing is used appropriately by the educator the learners are able to get a stronger and intrinsic understanding of the material they are being presented with.

Though I feel connectivism to be the most effective learning theory in terms of being able to stimulate learning in a broader range of people, it has three main flaws which can seriously hamper a learners ability to retain information. The first flaw is self-directed learning, which refers to the learners being able to be autonomous in their learning (Weller, M, 2020, CH.17). The second one is presence, involving the learner to maintain a connection with the other learners in the class which involves large time consumption and availability (Weller, M, 2020, CH.17). The final flaw involves the learners having a large range of literal competencies to be able to critically assess the information that they find through the large amount of resources which is known as critical literacy (Weller, M, 2020, CH.17).


To conclude, through my experiences with online learning, connectivism, while it has its flaws, has proven to be the strongest learning theory for myself as well as many of my peers in my cohort.