Personal Blogs

Activity 20: Rhizomatic learning

Consider your reaction to the video.

1. Were you convinced by rhizomatic learning as an approach?
2. Could you imagine implementing rhizomatic learning?
3. How might rhizomatic learning differ from current approaches?
4. What issues would arise in implementing rhizomatic learning?

1.    Was I convinced? I’m not sure, but I was definitely intrigued. I can see how RL might be an accurate model of learning, but that doesn’t mean I can see how the approach would necessarily be better than others.

2.    It follows, then, that I have some difficulty imagining how rhizomatic learning could be implemented. But it’s not impossible. I work in foreign language education and there is an approach known as Dogme which emphasizes an open curriculum where learners develop their own materials. I’m not terribly familiar with Dogme, but it’s something I could look into and see how it intersects with RL.

3.    What I see as a major point of departure from other approaches is the decentralized nature of RL. The notion that learning could start from any point in the network is one that could complicate matters logistically, but on the other hand it could liberate people and afford them the chance to really invest themselves in the topic/materials/resources/etc. Learners could really engage in ways that are personal and meaningful, and powerful, to them.

4.    From an institutional perspective, I’m afraid in many cases RL would be a non-starter. Just rejected from the beginning. As a learning model it bumps against too many conventional approaches and expectations that administrators, instructors, and students have. It would take a massive commitment to implement it in any sort of formal setting, I think. The question would be: is it worth the commitment? Probably worth exploring.