online social learning practices - benetec slides

Online Interaction:

a lever for

Social Learning

Nancy White

Full Circle Associates

Social learning is learning that takes place at a

wider scale than individual or group learning, up to a societal

scale, through social interaction between peers. It may or may not lead to a change in attitudes and behaviour. More specifically, to be considered social learning, a process must: (1)

demonstrate that a change in understanding has taken place in the individuals involved; (2) demonstrate that this change

goes beyond the individual and becomes situated within

wider social units or communities of practice; and (3) occur through social interactions and processes between actors

within a social network (Reed et al., 2010).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_learning_(social_pedagogy)[1] Reed, M. S., A. C. Evely, G. Cundill, I. Fazey, J. Glass, A. Laing, J. Newig, B. Parrish, C. Prell, C.

Raymond and L. C. Stringer. 2010. What is Social Learning?. Ecology and Society 15 (4): r1. [online] URL:http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol15/iss4/resp1/

In other words, learning

with and fromeach other

in the contextof real work, life, etc.

Strategic Opportunity:

EVERYWHERE…

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mrbultitude/66756603/in/photostream/

Strategic Value

StrategicForm

Options

Strategic Practices

Three strategic perspectives:Part 1 - Value

ComplianceEmergent, adaptive learningTeam learning/doing

Communities and… the broader strategic continuum

LeadershipLevel of formalityDesign & facilitation repertoireLifecycle practices Measurable

Harnessing Latent Microexpertise -- The project must allow even the

narrowest of expertise. A 3rd-year algebra teacher might not have the broad expertise of an experienced math education researcher, but that 3rd year teacher might have small elements of expertise that exceed that of the recognized experts.

Designed Serendipity -- The project needs to be easy to follow and encourage

participation from a variety of experts. You want problems to be seen by many in the hopes that just a few will think they have a solution they wish to contribute.

Conversation Critical Mass -- One person's ideas need to be seen by others so

they create more ideas, and the conversation around all the contributions keeps the project going.

Amplifying Collective Intelligence -- The project should showcase the fact that

collectively we are smarter than any one individual.Those are all great characteristics of any project. But what makes this any different than any traditional, offline project? Nielsen offers several suggestions. Unlike a large group project with clear divisions of labor, technology allows us to divide labor dynamically. Wikipedia certainly would not have grown the way it did if labor had been divided statically between a set of contributors. Also, networked science uses market forces to direct the most attention to the problems of greatest interest. Lastly, contributing to an online project rarely feels like committee work, and participants can more easily ignore poor contributions or disruptive members.

Nielsen’s:Reinventing

discoveryhttp://blog.mathed.net/2012/08/nielsens-reinventing-discovery-2005-in.html

Poor Collaboration - Breakdowns, Ideals, and CultureRypple recently published an infographic on collaboration, called Is Poor Collaboration Killing Your Company….

Biggest breakdowns (based on 1,400 people):- 97% - a lack of alignment on objectives- 92% - deadlines impact bottom-line results- 86% - lack of collaboration or ineffective communication

How employees want collaboration to work:- wider decision making involvement- issues are truthfully and effectively discussed

Creating a strong collaborative culture:- 1. encourage people to share ideas- 2. build brainstorming into each project- 3. log important communications- 4. limit group sizes- 5. resist the urge to direct

Michael Sampson on

the cost of poor collaboration

Technology has changed what it means to

“be and learn

together”

Strategic Value

StrategicForm

Options

Strategic Practices

Part 2:Form

ComplianceEmergent, adaptive learningTeam learning/doing

Communities and… the broader strategic continuum

LeadershipLevel of formalityDesign & facilitation repertoireLifecycle practices Measurable

Think beyond the

classroom

http://www.flickr.com/photos/h-k-d/4777491309/

Go Solo?

Thinking, my tasks, exploring…

Pairs, triads and very small groups?

Reciprocal Apprenticeship (Levy)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/zachstern/87431231/

Fly with the flock?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/odreiuqzide/3184901242/

Roam the network?

How to

decide

Use very small groups where they are

useful focused tasks

Use communities where they are

useful were learning needs depth, trust and focused practice

Use networks where they are useful

where diversity, diverse time cycles, scanning, curating and scaling are

essential

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cynefin

Cyn

efin

Jabe

Bloomhttp://blog.jabebloom.com/?p=27

Networks(sometimes paired w/ small groups and communities)

TeamsSometimes Communities

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cynefin#Description_of_the_framework

Just do it!CBT, CD-ROMs, etc.

Communities, simulations, online interactive meetings

Networks,CommunitiesScenarios, case based learning, experimentation

NetworksEmergencies

Strategic Value

StrategicForm

Options

Strategic Practices

Part 3: Design & Practices

ComplianceEmergent, adaptive learningTeam learning/doing

Communities and… the broader strategic continuum

LeadershipLevel of formalityDesign & facilitation repertoireLifecycle practices Measurability

Don Tapscott, Open Cities Collaborative

Design Repertoire

• Formal programmatic efforts to change behaviors work mostly on the

rational side of human behavior

• Informal experiential efforts can capture the emotional side

• Programmatic change takes more time & costs more and encounters

more resistance than "viral" change

• You need both over time

• A "viral" effort usually begins with a few respected "master motivators”

• Insights & approaches of the motivators work best in experiential settings

• Experiential momentum sustained informally & formally

• The most important lesson: importance of cross-organization energy & its dependence on the informal

Balancing Formal & Informal

From : http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2010/04/spreading_critical_behaviors_v.html

Community activities

oriented to …

Base material from: Digital Habitats:

Stewarding technology for communities© 2009 Wenger, White, and Smith

activitiesoriented to …

Base material from: Digital Habitats: Stewarding technology for

communities© 2009 Wenger, White, and Smith

With only one meeting a year, large size and diversity, KM4Dev focuses on enabling individual participation.

Community knowledge wiki, content management system to bring together resources.

Email list is core of community activity

Once a year and only about 10% do/can participate.

When funding allows. E.G. supporting ShareFair

Informally via the email list by asking/answering questions.

Relationships mostly via meetings and core group.

Strongly external – all resources public/shared.

While everyone pays attention to the community, no centralized efforts…

Example: KM4Dev www.km4dev.org

global knowledge sharing network

activitiesoriented to …

Example: The Environmental Resource Network

drawn from the book “Red-Tails in Love: Pale Male’s Story -- A True Wildlife Drama in Central Park” by Marie Winn. Vintage Books, 2005

Monthly meetings with everyone at the university concerned about the environment, shared calendars

Awareness events, orientation for environmental student groups, workshops

Inviting experts to monthly meetings/events/workshops

Twitter, Facebook, email list, member directories

Public. Minutes are shared. Network is accountable to all students who pay a levyMembers connected

through a shared interest

Anyone with an interest in the environment can be a member but the network targets active student groups, rss

Blog, website,

Bump into another member? Have a conversation, emails

activitiesoriented to …

Base material from: Digital Habitats: Stewarding technology for

communities© 2009 Wenger, White, and Smith

Compare: KM4Dev www.km4dev.org

and Environmental Resource Networks

FAO’s “Nine Keys to a

Successful Thematic Knowledge

Networks

enable people to…• discover &

appropriate useful

technology

• be in and use communities & networks (people)

• express their identity

• find and create content

• usefully participate

Facilitation & other roles

facilitators

community leaders

technology stewards

network weavers

Independent thinkers

curators

moderatorsFor example see: http://wenger-trayner.com/blog/leadership-groups-for-social-learning/

Let’s Look at (online)Meetings

Facilitating Online Meetings

• Why? purpose

• Who? + needs & contexts

• What? activities

• How? tools and practices

• Measure? metrics

http://www.flickr.com/photos/iain/71753848/

Rules of Thumb

• Good meeting practices

– “A bad meeting offline is even worse online!”

• 60-90 minutes of endurance

• 7 minute chunks of attention

• Multiple modalities (especially visuals)

• Interactivity

http://www.flickr.com/photos/amberandclint/3266859324/sizes/l/

Talking & Meeting With Video

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Interactivity

• Using web meeting tools and features– Polls

– Whiteboard

– Hand raising/speaking order

• Using process– Maps

– Chairs

– Provocative questions

– Just Three Words

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kt/146500920/

We can use images to help us

establish context, make meaning and create

memories to continue our

experience…

BE

VISUAL!

Learning how to not screw up communicating together online all the time….

With the whiteboard circle tool, put a dot in your “home” location

http://www.austinkleon.com/2009/07/27/how-to-draw-faces/

http://www.davegrayinfo.com/2010/10/28/drawing-facial-expressions/

How to draw faces? Check out Austin Kleon and Dave Gray

AFTER!

Social reporting

http://community-roundtable.com/2010/01/the-value-of-community-management/http://tomhumbarger.wordpress.com/2009/01/13/the-importance-of-active-community-management-proved-with-real-data/

Facilitation & Management

Glenda Eoyang

Observe. Don’t waste a good surprise. Pause and wonder when something unexpected arises. It may be the weak signal foreshadowing something important to come.

Connect. Nothing co-evolves in isolation. The key is connecting in inquiry

with the environment, with current and historical patterns, and with other thoughtful people.

Question. Our assumptions blind us to the world around and lock us into

our long-held problems and their failed solutions. A good question can break through the expected to discover the possible.

Try it out. Of course expectations based on past experience will make us

question anything we haven't experienced. To see something new, we really have to see it. Try a new idea out, see what happens, adjust and try again. We call this adaptive action. Reward thoughtful risk taking.

http://bit.ly/lPyXxJ

Learning… dangerous?

Elephants in the room?

Next?

Talk, write, Skype, Tweet

Nancyw@fullcirc.com

http://www.fullcirc.com

@NancyWhite

Some rights reserved by Eleaf

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eleaf/2536358399/sizes/m/in/photostream/