Stephen, you discussed some important points. I agree that thoughts and ideas that shared on social media often not well articulated, this is a valid point. However those who take time and share their thoughts responsibly in different settings create unique opportunities for themselves and others to engage in dialogue, reflect, and learn.

I read somewhere that in 50’s Germany, some newspaper had a tradition of keeping some extra white space above and below articles ( in the arrangement of the articles on pages) before sending it to the typesetters. The idea was tat the first persons who will be reading the article would be the typesetter and they wanted to give them a chance to jump in and discuss their impressions in the same place !

hypothes.is, reminded me of this. It is very convenient to have the original thesis and reactions to it overlayed onto the same page. I think I will enjoy this digital tool.

I think I have a fair understanding of the issue you raise about power relations and classical authority of the “Teacher” in classrooms. And I wholeheartedly believe in a need for change. But then the difficulty, in my opinion is STEM. Science seems to be, by its nature, an authoritarian field that gives ultimate power to reason and logic. So it becomes very convenient that its education becomes mostly teachers feeding information (Truth) to students. And then, of course, the notions of community building that you refer to in your post becomes so sparse in engineering classrooms.

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I’m a runner and a blogger as well, and I really appreciate this perspective. Personally I find it much easier to forego blogging than to miss a run. Running always revives and centers me, while with my blog I have to be in the right head space to want to write. Thanks!

Thank you for your thought Britton! I think your concerns regarding online courses are valid, students may miss opportunities to enhance their soft skills, and of course the extent of effectiveness of learning subject matters is under question. Despite all shortcomings, online courses might provide access to many who do not have access to face-face education for a variety of reasons. It can also provide meaningful resources for professional development an life-long learning.

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Thanks for this reflection on how networking supports your scholarly community. I think this one of those “forest vs. trees” issues. We’ve been accustomed to thinking about research and scholarly production as being the solitary endeavor of talented and hard working individuals, but in fact we are social creatures, not islands. We are hard wired to collaborate and share, and we get further, faster when we do.

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Wow! Everything I wanted to say has been addressed in this terrific comments. So I’ll just add my voice to the chorus applauding the graphics. Thanks for this very thoughtful reflection.

Thanks for this, Sogand! I really appreciate the care and research that went into this. And judging by the quality of the comments you received, your points really resonated with your readers.

Thanks for giving this a try, Ashley! I appreciated having the opportunity to read your post, and get some insight about your past experiences (and changing ideas ;-)) about blogging. If you are indeed reluctant to speak up in class, I hope the blog will provide a more comfortable forum for you. Oh, and the networked learning thing is slippery. Basically networked learning emphasizes developing and maintaining connections between people and information, and communicating to support learning. It usually destabilizes hierarchies (instructor-student; knowledge production-consumption) and should democratize the production and dissemination of knowledge.

Double down on that last sentence (for why else are we here)? A student from last semester recently sent me this: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/04/why-its-time-to-rethink-the-meaning-of-work/
Enjoy!