In this participatory session, we will briefly share several examples of declarative writing and explore the potential value of such public and intentional declarations of one’s views, motives and intentions in the form of a manifesto within the context of education (Bayne et al., 2020; McCall, 2020).
We will then share our draft Manifesto for Liberatory Open Education, which seeks to clearly define ways in which we can actively break down barriers, both those real and imagined, between “formal education” and “informal education.” We will then invite participants to participate in an interactive discussion session in order to help co-create this document and talk about how might best share and use it.
The following is a short excerpt from our current draft:
Since the spring, schools have been disrupted. Along with lives. Among open educators, much attention has been focused on ways of teaching online (i.e., synchronous vs. asynchronous, online proctoring, etc.), on the use of pre-packaged, corporate based educational apps or platforms that purport to provide the “best quality” and “standards” for teaching and on the learning that students have missed and the content not covered. particularly as the boundaries between face-to-face learning and open (online) learning have blurred.
We know that students learn with or without us. We are not satisfied simply engaging our students in “active learning” but also celebrate activism as learning (and learning as activism). We commit to inviting students to teach and teachers to learn. We refuse to place limits on our imaginations. We will not be afraid to ask, “What if…”
We know that obstacles in affecting change are real. We know that racism, sexism, classism and many other forms of discimination are real. We refuse to “imagine” them away, but instead resolve to collectively and continuously demand equal rights and justice.
We know that boundaries between physical classrooms, digital spaces & the real world are colonial constructs. We believe we must challenge the boundaries between the classroom, whether physical or digital, and the world. We will not ask students returning to classes what content they missed, but instead what they learned while away. We will listen. We will not underestimate our students.
Find the working document HEREReferences: Bayne, S. et al. (2016). Manifesto for Teaching Online. Retrieved from: https://blogs.ed.ac.uk/manifestoteachingonline/the-text/
McCall, A. (2020, July 30). What if we radically imagined the new school year [web log post]. Retrieved from: https://chicagounheard.org/blog/what-if-we-radically-reimagined-the
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Learning Outcomes
In this session participants will:
- Explore the purpose and relevance of declarative writing in the form of manifestos
- Discuss barriers and impacts of barriers between "formal" and "informal" education
- Annotate and contribute to a Manifesto for Liberatory Open Education
- Discuss use and sharing of the manifesto and contribute additional ideas to a
Jamboard
