Draft by Adriaan Boiten

Non-linear learning and the Internet

For this I have to explain one of the characteristics of the internet: the hypertext.

The internet consists of millions of on-line pages that are linked with eachother via hyperlinks. This makes reading and learning a much more autonomous process than in the analogue world of books, courses, libraries. E.g. books guide the reader through the sentences and pages, from the beginning, through the discourse, to the conclusion. The content is readily presented to the reader.

Hypertexts give the readers freedom to browse the information and let them go their own way (through association and interest) by clicking on the hyperlinks offered in the text itself. So, the learning experience is non-linear. It is more like looking at a map or a painting, or visiting a garden. The reader may follow one of the multiple paths that are offered and builds his/her own learning experience.

In 1945 Vannevar Bush introduced this new way of collecting pieces of useful information from the vast store of human knowledge, and he thought it was the only way for humans to make something sensible out of the fast amount of information. He made use of the notion that human thinking works by way of association and formulated a theory to connect information in a way that suits our thinking. He called this MEMEX (Memory Extension). In doing so he described the PC, internet and hypertext:

"Consider a future device for individual use, which is a sort of mechanized private file and library. It needs a name, and to coin one at random, 'memex' will do. A memex is a device in which an individual stores all his books, records and communications and which is mechanized so that it may be consulted with exceeding speed and flexibility. It is an enlarged intimate supplement to his memory. It consists of a desk, and while it can presumably be operated from a distance, it is primarily the piece of furniture at which he works. On the top are slanting translucent screens, on which material can be projected for convenient reading. There is a keyboard, and sets of buttons and levers. Otherwise it looks like an ordinary desk."

The reader "builds a trail of his interest through the maze of materials available to him."

The implications are great: "Knowledge is valuable and grows by an evolutionary process. The evolution of knowledge in society is affected by the media. A suitable hypertext publishing medium can speed the evolution of knowledge by aiding the expression, transmission, and evaluation of ideas. The direct benefits of using a hypertextual medium should bring emergent benefits, helping to form intellectual communities, to build consensus, and to extend the range and efficiency of intellectual effort." (Drexler, 1995)

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Non-Linear Learning

Now the computers migrate from the office and home into the classroom, they bring with them many opportunities for educators. The conventional linear learning practices have been challenged by new ways of learning: non-linear learning. In educational settings we can use the internet for instructional delivery, communications and searching.

To prevent that readers get lost in cyberspace or suffer from cognitive overload, the web designer comes in hand. His task is to present the material in a coherent way. He gives the reader a clear navigation through the hypertexts. "Each place should behave exactly as expected, each path should be clearly marked, and a few familiar paths should suffice for all." (Bernstein, 1998).

But Bernstein also makes clear that some chaos is needed: "Today's Web designers are taught to avoid irregularity, but in a hypertext, as in a garden, it is the artful combination of regularity and irregularity that awakens interest and maintains attention."