Page History: Facilitating Online Peer Learning Checklist
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Page Revision: 2010/02/19 09:07
It is helpful to think about what you want to accomplish and how, when facilitating online peer learning.
Take a few minutes to fill out this checklist. Ignore any questions that are not relevant to your situation, or which you don’t know how to answer and add any particular context that is missing.
Part 1 - Purpose and Form¶
Think about the desired purpose and outcome for the peer learners? What are they trying to learn? Why (think about the word "intent")? People are busy and if they don’t see and understand the purpose and its value, they won’t participate. Consider these questions...
- What is the purpose of the peer learning group that you can communicate to potential members? (Practice on a friend or colleague. If they don’t understand, refine your statement further.) Please write it down here.
What kind of group is it? Consider this range of options from a pair or triad, to a defined group of people, to a broader, open informal network. Smaller groups tend to focus on strong personal connections and shared goals. Networks work with overlapping interests. They can help create many "weak connections" and amplify the flow of ideas and information, but have very little interest in being a community or group.)
- What are the group’s specific outcomes or process goals? Please describe them. For example, an outcome oriented group may be compiling a set of useful practices for use at work. A process oriented group may be about building relationships that can then be deployed as they need them, such as responding to a grant opportunity, problem solving, or brainstorming something new.
- What are the benefits of participation? Are they measurable and visible to members and potential members? Describe them. Use the test question “what is in it for me” from the perspective of the participants.
- Who is determining the goals? By the organizer? Group members? Both? How are these outcomes negotiated? Think about how ownership by members may or may not play a role in the success of the group. Learning has many motivations, from internal self-motivation to a particular learning need defined by one's job or manager.
- Is the goal of the group in line with your work, role or organization? If the group is part of a larger organization, is the purpose consistent with organizational goals and culture? If not, how will that affect your group? Are you trying to do something new that may or may not be welcomed by the larger organization? We ask this question to be aware of any potential barriers or clashes, as well as opportunities and synergies.
- Must this happen online? Is the group’s purpose something that can only be done / accomplished online? Will it replace something offline? Or is it some combination with face to face?
- What can you learn from others’ experiences? Do you have examples of other groups with similar goals that you might explore for ideas? Please list, and if they have open websites, please bring the URLs to share.
Part 2: Membership Questions
Who are the peers? What are their contexts and needs? Consider these questions...
Membership- What is the minimum number of people you need for a successful initiative? Maximum?
- How might the peer learning group expand if there is greater interest?
- Do you want your peer group to be public or private? If private, what determines eligibility?
- Where might you find potential participants? Are you building from an existing pool of participants? Or drawing in new people?
- How wil you communicate with your potential participants to market the peer learning opportunity? (Remember: just putting up an online space does not guarantee anyone will come participate in it!)
Participant Make up- What is the gender, professional, cultural make up of the group?
- Are there power issues (i.e. will some feel disinclined to participate because people of power are participating?)
- Are there any particular learning style issues you should be aware of? (LINK TO A RESOURCE OR PAGE ON LEARNING STYLES)
- Are there any language issues such as the need for translation, a common language or set of (or no set of) common languages? (For example, community members, etc.)
- How many different time zones might be represented by the group? (For example, when bringing in other experts or peers from out of state)
Motivation and Interest
- How motivated are people to participate? What is “in it for them?”
- Is this part of their job, or in addition to their job? If in addition, will they have/make time?
