scary world of letting go, snow and akoh
TRANSCRIPT
Title of
presentation
umanitoba.ca
The Scary World of Letting Go: Critical Decisions in an Open Consultation Process
Overview
• Aim: Needs analysis of blended learning in a self organizing context
• Approach: Open Space Technology (How it Works)
• Opportunities to experience OST (you will try it)
• Debrief your experience• Share our experience
Aim: Our problem
• We wanted to identify the key factors that would contribute to the development of a program specifically targeting blended learning
• We were seeking an emergent response to blended learning.
• We wondered if we could get valuable information through an open self organizing framework
Who are we?
• Through a show of hands– Faculty members– Administrative staff– Instructors (college or university)– K-12 educators– Training developers (commercial or NFP)– Technical support staff– Other
Your turn to Experience Open Space Technology
How it works: Open Space Technology •Bulletin Board
•On a post it, write your response to the question (issues and opportunities)•Read your post it to the group then post it in the market place
•Market Place•Organize the initial thoughts• Break into small interest groups to discuss further•Record the results of these small conversations to be shared later
Rule of the Feet
If at any point you feel you are not learning or contributing to a
conversation, feel free to move to another group.
What is your current thinking with respect to the future and quality of Open Education Resources?
Debrief Participant Experiences
• What were the tensions you felt as a participant in this process?
• How do you feel about Open Space Technology as a teaching method?
Our Experience (Research Findings)
• Tensions in our narrative– Although we both align with constructivism, encouraging self
organization of learning was difficult – Concerns about quality and relevancy of information arose
• Johnson (2001) makes the case for the effectiveness of self organization using the metaphor of a community of ants– This metaphor held true for us– The “plants” were not necessary, however the group relied on
some key more knowledgeable others within groups– Emergent information from groups provided valuable insights
into future program planning– We observed tensions within the participants however informal
evaluation rated the experience as quality learning
The research method: narrative inquiry
• Much of the work on MOOCs focuses on quality, accreditation, technology, student experience…
• But one of the limiting factors in the introduction of open courses is instructor’s faith in the process
• Using the narrative allowed us to examine this tension.
Title of
presentation
umanitoba.ca