Category: social media

Tools for Catalyzing Collaboration

Eugene Eric Kim of Blue Oxen Associates pinged me today about an offering coming up that looks really juicy. It resonates a bit with some of the workshops I’ve been doing with clients. I love that he is mixing tools with process and fundamental views about participation.  I’m really interested in learning more about the “conceptual framework.”  Sounds like technology stewardship!!

blueoxenThe workshop starts next week, and the application deadline is Monday, so if this looks interesting, jump in! And tell us how it was.  (I am facilitating a bit too intensely the next three weeks to fully commit to another workshop – but I was sorely tempted!)

Blue Oxen Associates » Tools for Catalyzing Collaboration: June 2009
There are an overwhelming number of online tools that promise to help you collaborate more effectively. How do you know which ones are right for you? How do you tailor those tools for your organization? And most importantly, how do you use these tools most effectively?

Blue Oxen Associates principal, Eugene Eric Kim, will be leading an intensive, four week online workshop that explores these questions. In this workshop, you will:

* Develop a conceptual framework for how to think about, evaluate, and apply online tools and social media to your work.
* Get real, hands-on experience with several of these tools.

You will be working with your fellow participants in a Blue Oxen Collaboratory, where you will have the opportunity to play with tools such as microblogs and Wikis for real learning and collaboration. At the end of this workshop, you will understand how to think strategically about online tools, even as they continually and rapidly evolve.

Topics

* Patterns of high-performance collaboration
* Identity, trust, and reputation
* Strategies for effective communication and knowledge sharing
* Specific tools include:
o Email, mailing lists, and online forums
o Teleconferences and shared screens
o Social Media / Web 2.0
o Wikis
o Blogs
o Microblogs

There are a number of other online tools available for catalyzing collaboration, and we will not even attempt to cover all of them. However, this course will help you develop fundamental skills that will apply to all online collaborative tools.

What is also interesting is that Eugene is doing “pay what you feel it is worth.” I’ve been very interested in this model, but a bit timid to try it.

Digital Identity Workbook for NPO/NGO Folks

some digital identitiesMy friend and colleague, Shirley Williams, pointed me to a great resource on digital identity (DI) that she and her colleagues created for their students at Reading University in the UK.  It is called “This Is Me.”

As I saw that lovely Creative Commons license on it, I thought I’d whip up a version for folks interested in social media and the digital identity implications in the non profit and NGO sectors. I thought it would be handy in an upcoming workshop I’m facilitating for the CGIAR starting next week.

Pat Parslow and Shirley uploaded a version to a Google doc. We edited, I did some rewrites and trims, and here is the first draft. I’d love feedback!

thisisme-ngo-v11

(updated to latest version on Thursday, May 21)
(Edited September 7 – there is now a version in Arabic here via the Social Media Exchange)

(Edited August 21, 2012 – file link has been repaired and there is a new Student version coming out in September!)

Sam Rose on the Social Media Classroom

Drill bitLast week I shared a podcast with Howard Rheingold on the Social Media Classroom as part of  CPSquare’s “Connected Futures” workshop. This week we have a podcast with Sam Rose, one of the key developers of the Drupal based Social Media Classroom.

Listen! A Conversation With Sam Rose on the Social Media Classroom

Some of the many fabulous observations from Sam that caught my ear include:

  • Sam’s observations about the iteration between the deployment of a tool, the community’s creative use of the tool and the subsequent develop and iteration of the tool echoes what we found in our work for Digital Habitats.
  • The thinking around the differences of a platform designed for delivery of a curriculum (i.e a Learning Management System or LMS) and a platform designed to support inquiry based learning.
  • The importance of an integrated starting place and then as social media literacy grows, the exploration outward to other tools.
  • How SMC thinks about forums as discussion starting places, blogs as individual reflection/note taking spaces and wikis as a place for crafting joint learning.
  • The role of affordances to make use easier.  (For example, the little  color coded toolbars in SMC). And how some of those affordances are subtle and benefit from some “showing” — but once you learn them how useful they are.
  • The trajectory of SMC towards becoming a place to integrate with other tools and content through APIs. (Lots of exciting things to come!)

Creative Commons License photo credit: EnergyTomorrow

Howard Rheingold on the Social Media Classroom

Flickr CC image by vagawi As part of CPSquare’s “Connected Futures” workshop exploring the use of web technologies in the service of communities of practice, we (John Smith and I!) asked Howard Rheingold to share a little bit about the Social Media Classroom (SMC) he developed as part of a MacArthur Foundation Award (A HASTAC award specifically).

We were interested to hear about the development both because we are using a hosted version of the SMC as our “home base” this iteration of the workshop, and because Howard’s project is a nice example of community technology stewardship. Every platform has its lineage, the experiences of the designers that inform design choices during development. What needs is it trying to meet? How can it do this in the simplest and elegant manner?

SMC is created on a Drupal base but customized to reflect what Howard thought would be useful for educators. But it is not just a technology platform. There is also a rich library of new media literacy resources and a community of practitioners.  From the SMC website:

The Social Media Classroom (we’ll call it SMC) includes a free and open-source (Drupal-based) web service that provides teachers and learners with an integrated set of social media that each course can use for its own purposes—integrated forum, blog, comment, wiki, chat, social bookmarking, RSS, microblogging, widgets , and video commenting are the first set of tools.  The Classroom also includes curricular material: syllabi, lesson plans, resource repositories, screencasts and videos.

For communities picking or even building platforms for themselves, there are some nice pearls from Howard.

Click here to listen in: 30 Minutes with Howard Rheingold on the Social Media Classroom… and other stuff!

Some of the things Howard talked about included:

  • the importance of an on-ramp to new media – with integration of tools being an important early experience that helps us be more confident when we start using tools in a more “free range” manner.
  • the need for a new media literacy – just because we are all online doesn’t mean we understand and know how to use it. What are the essentials that make a difference?
  • the origins and inspirations of some of the tools in the SMC
  • Howard’s exploration of teaching at this phase in his career and the importance of a constructivist, participatory approach.

If you are interested in SMC for your learning context, you can download the software to your server, or if you don’t have access to a server or IT help, the project is offering a limited amount of hosted space. If you want to learn more and engage in the SMC c ommunity, join the community of practice.

Photo credit:vagawi

Social Media in International Development Workshop

Do you work for an international development NGO? Then sign up now for the next Social Media Workshop offered by the ICT-KM Program of the CGIAR. Here are the details:

After a successful pilot online event (See blog posts about the event), the CGIAR, through its ICT-KM Program, is pleased to offer an online Social Media Workshop from May 25 to June 12 2009.

Moodle space

“Social media is using the Internet to instantly collaborate, share information, and have a conversation about ideas, and causes we care about, powered by web based tools.” – [We Media]

Social media offers a move from “push” communications towards a place where we can interact with our constituents and engage with them in ways we never could before. It enables us to network with colleagues and some stakeholders.

Objective of the workshop: Introduce researchers, communications professionals and knowledge sharing practitioners to social media tools and support their social media strategy development. As a participant, you will:

Obtain an understanding and appreciation of the role and value of social media.
Learn how to apply social media concepts and tools to both gather information and increase the dissemination of your information.
Learn how to apply social media concepts and tools for collaboration and interaction with your organization’s staff and partners.
Learn from participants of mixed professional and organizational backgrounds.

Outline of the 3-week event

Week 1 – Introductions, conversations and assessment of your communications needs and goals.
Week 2 – Social Media Tools wikis, blogs, twitter, file and photo sharing, and many more. You can join the exploration of a range of tools or start a new discussion on tools of your own choice.
Week 3 – Social Media Tools and strategies. How these tools can help you to achieve your knowledge sharing goals. Develop your strategy.

Number of participants: minimum 22,maximum 30

Language: English

Dedicated time: A minimum of one hour per day, asynchronous you decide when you go online, as well as two telephone conversations, one during Week 1 and the other during Week 3. Optional synchronous calls or chats may be offered if there is an interest.

Open to: CGIAR staff, partners, agricultural and development organizations

Platform: Moodle, Skype and/or telephone. If you choose to use a landline, you will be responsible for long-distance costs. You should have regular access to the Internet. Some tools may not be accessible for those with low bandwidths. You may need to check with your IT department, as some web-based services you wish to explore may be currently blocked in your organization and you may need to seek support to access them.

Facilitators: Nancy White (Full Circle Associates), Simone Staiger-Rivas CGIAR-CIAT, Meena Arivananthan CGIAR-WorldFish

Cost: USD 500

Please write to Simone Staiger-Rivas (s.staiger@cgiar.org) for questions and subscription by May, 15 latest.