Since most of the members of my organization are apprehensive and lack Web 2.0 technical skills, our main form of communication and community building is through email. I have tried several times to get them to participate, however their most commonly used excuse is that they don't have time. Also, they are strongly embedded in formal university publishing. They have fears of not being seen as academic professionals and want their ideas to be presented in prestigious journals or publishers. They fear that the Web 2.0 spaces of sharing ideas and resources will be not be protected in a secure space. They also fear that their ideas will be taken and used by others (individualism, competition, and intellectual property centered). Finally, the want to be paid for their work and ideas.
The top 3 action steps that I will take to assist in community building with my colleagues include the following:
1) I will create a video tutorial on how and why to use the social bookmarking site Diigo as an email attachment. I will then ask them to respond with their thoughts about using this tool. I will then ask them to try it one time. I will then follow up with a discussion of their experiences.
2) I will then invite them to a synchronous online meeting through Adobe or other conferencing tool. I will create a tutorial video on how to use the tool. After getting an agreed time, the focus of the conference will be to discuss and create a Community Guideline. Through this exercise, I will formalize and document the Guideline through a Wiki or Google docs.
3) I will then show them how to use discussion forums with the Web 2.0 tools so that we can start to create a formal community discussion space.
4) I will then create a blog where the content will start out with their formal, academic discourse. I will have links to other professional focused blogs and Web 2.0 forums. I will create a video tutorial to walk them through how to use the blog as a viewer, and how to create an account to participate.
Steven Downes ' article has several additional suggestions on how initiate and serve as a model for how to use Web 2.0 technologies to help build a learning community. He suggests that one should actively share and publish with Web 2.0 tools. In doing so, others may be encouraged to participate.
Even though I am excited about initiating this step, I too have apprehensions about submitting my article for publication. Mostly, I feel that it will be the first time that my work will be available for anyone to see. This feels risky, as there is a chance that my work will not live up to the readers expectations. It seems permanent, no turning back, I have shared part of myself to the world. I suppose need more self confidence that it is okay to share yourself with others. Maybe it is due to my generational experiences with not wanting my identity to be shared with the public. Even using this blog that is outside the Blackboard space, I still have an uneasiness. When I finally take that great leap, I am sure that I can adjust, grow, share part of myself, and learn. It is really ironic, because using Web 2.0 tools outside a formal LMS is the entire focus of my course and thesis.
As Papert's (1998) futuristic views reveal that my colleagues' resistance to follow the new generation's use of community building and learning space will make their ideas irrelevant. I use the word irrelevant because while they continue to submit their work to these journals, conferences where they may speak to 500 people, teach their face to face courses which may reach 200 students in a year. Their audience is limited. The newer generations are creating a new way of learning on their own with Web 2.0 tools. With access to new technological tools, the power dynamics have change. They aren't following or asking a teacher or parents if they can do it. They have already done it. Now we have to adjust.
My goal with my colleagues is to encourage them to get hands-on experience using these tools. This will start a discussion and introduction to the way that new generations are learning and how we will incorporate it into our online course. Through this hands-on experience on community building with Web 2.0 tools, hopefully they will be less apprehensive, see their value for learning, and will continue to maintain our own learning community with these tools.
Papert, S. (1998, June 2). Connected Family presented at The 11th Colin Cherry Memorial Lecture on Communication. Retrieved February 19, 2009 from http://www.connectedfamily.com/main_alt.html
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Johanna, you have quite a challenge, but I also see that you have a very good plan to introduce them to some of the 'latest.' What I have done it project my computer during a planning meeting - either I develop a concept map on the project while everyone is talking or I have also updated the wiki with the meeting agenda as items are being discussed. Then I give them the wiki address and ask them to update it before the next meeting.
ReplyDeleteThis has opened each person up to more technology without being threatened. Some people will send me their wiki items so that I can update it for them:). Hope this helps. ~ Datta Kaur