Of MOOCs, ARGs, and other acronyms....Vanessa Camillerihow can we engage citizens effectively?The MRER Lecture Series, Faculty of Education
25th February, 2016
Thank you for coming here today. My motivation to carry out this talk stems from a number of societal trends that I have been observing in the last decade or so. We have seen an increased online presence by a large number of people - citizens in society - who feel empowered by the technology to make their voices heard. So the question arises quite spontaneously - if citizens are online, what can we do or think of to harness that potential to have the same citizens who are engaged, do so more effectively? So in come the acronyms - as a result of our advances in technologies and applications we hear of these terms - the MOOCs, ARGs, VRs, etc. What are they? How are they already being used? Can we re-design what is already there to gain a more positive influence on society?
OutlineMOOCs - what are they?TodaysMeet - lets connect [A]ARGs - whats the focus?Engage your citizens [A]The CCE Model - a possible solution
Abstract: Engaging citizens in activities that improve their quality of life and that of others in the community is one of the key strategies driving lifelong learning policies in a number of countries. A UNESCO report (2014) proposes a view of lifelong learning as a paradigm for continuous, seamless, multifaceted learning opportunities and participation that deliver recognised outcomes for personal and professional development in all aspects of peoples lives (pg.5). The Connectivist approach is considered as a self-directed process driven by online and offline connections, and residing in communities, networks, as well as various databases. Various initiatives involving online and virtual communities have been emerging in the forms of massive open online courses (MOOCs) or social alternate reality games (ARGs). MOOCs emerged from a need driving education that is open, accessible, flexible and just-in-time modelled around the learners needs. In parallel social ARGs emerged as a response to using games to solve world problems by enlisting the intelligence of the crowds to create a positive impact on people about some of the current global issues. The questions we ask and attempt to discuss in more depth during this lecture are: What are MOOCs and what is their importance in lifelong learning? How can ARGs involve citizens actively? In what ways can online networks be designed to support a more active citizen engagement?
MOOCs - what is so special about them? Source: http://tinyurl.com/h3bo8g6Image Source: http://tinyurl.com/hat9wyjImage Source: http://tinyurl.com/co5y7ux
I chose this particular image source, viewing MOOCs as branching out in trees of knowledge - the apple - well look at my laptop and come up with your own conclusions So what are MOOCs, what is so special about them? What makes them different from other online courses that universities have been running for years now.
MOOCs emerged as a gradual paradigm shift in EducationMOOCs didnt just appear Massivethousands participate
Opento anyone with Internet access
Onlineall material is online
Coursestructured with start & end date
Source: http://tinyurl.com/zurmb27
As alternative Lifelong Learning Experiences
MOOC Timeline
MOOCs were the answer when we werent sure what the question was.-John Hennessy ,President Stanford University
What is the impact of MOOCs on lifelong learning? How do MOOCs affect citizen engagement?
Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Fugle%2C_%C3%B8rns%C3%B8_073.jpg
Questions for you: Find a MOOC - what audience does it target? [coursera.org; edx.org; platform.europeanmoocs.eu;]
2. Go to: https://todaysmeet.com/CitizenEngagement
3. Think of a MOOC what subject would attract citizen engagement?
But this is not all
Play the City Citizens play seriously
What are ARGs? (alternate reality games)
Urgent EvokeSource: http://www.urgentevoke.com
Community PlanItSource: https://communityplanit.org/how-to-play/
Design your own collaborative EVOKE; what mission can engage citizens? how can creativity lead to citizen empowerment? Source: http://tinyurl.com/hwyfatdHow to playPlan the missionExchange missionsBe creative with the game plan
Can we offer Solutions in the Design? a model for citizen engagement
Engaging Citizens - MOOCs, ARGs, and othersCitizen Networking
Co-creating
Deliberate Issue Discourse
Public Broadcasting
Source: http://tinyurl.com/jshqym4Source: Camilleri, V. (2015). Citizen Open Online Networks: Engaging Communities Actively. Connecting Cities and Universities at Strategic Frontiers. Catania, Italy: Pascal International Observatory.
Thank you!
[email protected]@veecam