I guess the best place to begin my second post is by discussing the idea of collective intelligence. Unfortunately, I missed last weeks lecture, so I looked up Wikipedia for a quick definition - the irony!
While I understand the whole concept of collective intelligence is based on the idea that the end result of collaboration is supposed to be greater than what would otherwise be achieved by an individual, I'm not sure that this is for me, on a personal level at least. Perhaps it is a little egocentric of me, but I don't think I would get the same level of satisfaction from creating a collablorative work as I would from creating something on my own, even if it were of a lesser quality. While every creative process involves degrees of collaboration, even if only through internalising other's thoughts and ideas, I know the final product is mine. I have gone through all the neccessary processes of knowing, understanding, analysing, synthesising and evaluating to come to my final product. If this isn't as good as it could have been, had it been a collaborative work, at least I know I have learnt from the process. I can do better next time.
Hang on....I guess this is an indirect form of collaboration itself, isn't it? I have collaborated with other's ideas and end products to inform my future thinking. (I think I have just had a reflective moment - something that, along with blogging, still sits uncomfortably with me. Maybe I'm finally getting the hang of this.)
Like most things, I believe the tools of collective intelligence such as wikis, have its place. I can definitely see me using it in my classroom. However, using it will depend on what I ultimately want to achieve. But how do I determine individual growth and learning on a collaborative work? I am a definite proponent of collaborative work but I think the satisfaction lies in what you personally make of the process. Perhaps for me then, it is more about how collective intelligence can lead to personal achievement.
This is a far more complicated concept than I realised when starting this entry and far too thought provoking for a Sunday morning. Who knew I would have so much to say!
Trudy, I think there always has to be a place for individual effort, even if it's a case of the individual analysing and synthesising others' ideas to form a new work. That's precisely why books (or e-books) will remain important: they're long, reflective texts structured in the mind of single individual and offering a unified perspective on the world.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, there are times when pairwork / groupwork / teamwork (as it's often known in work environments) is called for. It comes down to the context and what needs to be achieved. Getting the balance right is key.
Trudy
ReplyDeleteI love this post, reflects my thoughts exactly.
We are getting there though...........
OK, so now I am quite embarassed by the ignorance of this post. I now have a very different understanding of how the notion of collective intelligence fits into the scheme of education today. I guess my original point of view was quite competitive in nature. I am not normally a competitive person (or am I) but guess my many years being educated in a competitive environment have taught be to be so. Has much changed? That;s what Naplan is about isn't it? If we focus more on collaboration rather than competition, on the intrinsic rather than the extrinsic, then we will all definitely be better off. I think we still have a long way to go though!
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