Learning Networks

I have to say it was really interesting to look back and reflect on the network I have started to build throughout this class. There are so many things that I will truly take with me and incorporate into regular practices. I was reminded right away how much I like to write, and how beneficial it is to collect my thoughts. I am also really beginning to see the benefits of sharing those thoughts and connecting with others in a way that I haven’t been able to do in a long time. Throughout this process, I have made a number of changes in my own classroom, and without necessarily realizing it, started to develop lessons that encourage my students to develop their own networks as well. As an online art teacher, there is a significant component missing in this format, the peer critique. I wrote a lot about the benefits of helping bridge this gap using social media, and now I realize that peer critique and connection is not just a necessary part of the artistic process, it is a necessary part in the creation and growth of anything. Challenges help us learn. They either help to get your wheels spinning in a different direction by considering another perspective or work to reinforce what we believe. Challenges don’t have to be attacks, but rather presentations of something else or suggesting a new way of going about something. Being reminded of this and being on the other side of a “critique” has been so refreshing. I see now that everything I am trying to incorporate into my classroom with my own learners, I need to aim to incorporate in my own learning process as well!