A learner is like a Tree

A learner is like a tree.

Have you ever seen a tree growing at a 90 degree angle and wonder just why and how it did that?
A tree follows what it needs - water. A learner does the same thing - they follow what they need. They look up information when it is relevant, they learn as they come across a problem. The Connectivism article says that "Learning is about behaviour change" which relates very closely to a tree changing its direction of growth to take in the water it needs to sustain itself. Learners adapt their way of learning with each new piece of technology coming out. Before this advance technology if people wanted to know something they either had to look it up in a book or ask people until they got their answer. Nowadays, information is at the learners fingertips through technology; they just need to know how to find it. Learners have adapted to their environment.

"Knowledge flow can be likened to a river that meanders through the ecology of an organization. In certain areas, the river pools and in other areas it ebbs. The health of the learning ecology of the organization depends on effective nurturing of information flow." This quote from the Connectivism article ties in well with the tree analogy. If learners are trees, then knowledge is the river. Learners are connected by knowledge and share interests with each other. They follow the water to make connections with other learners, usually using technology. Humans need interaction to grow in knowledge so they naturally connect with other humans. George Siemens says "Learning and the act of knowledge creation is a function of a network where it is the aggregation of activities of many individuals that generates meaning, more useful knowledge." Humans are attracted toward each other and toward knowledge, just like trees are attracted to water and intertwine with other trees.


References: 
Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age
The Conflict of Learning Theories with Human Nature - George Siemens