Hi Jeffrey,

I do agree with you about Connectivism. Would it be possibe to combine this perspective with the concept of “social presence”? This concept has been developed and discussed by many researchers in the field of e-learning. I guess that you are familiar with it? If not, there is an article that is informative, which I can recommend (and if you need more, I have a lot of references): “Presence: Concept, determinants and measurement” by Wijnand A. IJsselsteijn, Huib de Ridder, Jonathan Freeman, and S.E. Avons. They shortly define the concept of presence as “the sensation of ‘being there’ in a mediated environment” – and then the personal is important, and the network a mediator.

Lately I have come to wonder a lot about the constructivism paradigme. I guess I have always thought of myself as a constructivist, perhaps with a touch of poststructuralism. Now I wonder what is really constructed, how it is constructed, and by what means, and also the question about reality, where it is, if it is (of course it is, to some extent, but to what extent? Who decides?). Are there other ways to think about language and mediation other than as constructions? What are your thoughts about this? I know this is a large question, probably connected to a personal ontology, and I do not expect an immediate or extended answer…

When it comes to my blogging, I can assure you that all my posts on research are and will continue to be in English. I use my mother tongue only when I write about issues concerning politics in my own country, or about literature or language. This means, as you may have seen, that it’s been a while since I last posted anything about research. Nothing new there. The reasons behind are several, but mostly it has to do with these facts: a) I do not feel that it is appropriate to reveal, at this stage, the results or issues from the project I am working in, as it involves a lot of other people, some of them young and vulnerable, and b) I have been so new to the project, that it has taken a long time to become familiar with the theoretical foundations on which the project is built. Summary: I have not been able to focus on and single out things to blog about. But some of my areas of research are touching yours, and it would be great to blog about it. It will come, and I will give you a notice.