[OSList] study circles

[Eiwor Backelund]

Some time ago I promised to write something about study circles. Here is a really short version of what it is and how to do one: I know I also wrote something about it a few years ago which I believe happened to be gathered into the OST non-guide. I have worked a lot with the Swedish study organizations. We have 11 national study organizations (or they might be 12 right now), that are funded by the government to support people to learn in study circles and also to experience culture, so everyone irrespective of background, financial status or where they live could enjoy music, theatre, art etc. They have a special focus on people with disabilities and immigrants. 

Study circles - the Swedish version

When a study circle is created it is always based on people´s n need or wish to learn more. The main focus for the study circle is the search for increased knowledge about a certain area or topic. 

 

The basics of the studycircle is that it is free to join or leave, that there are no such things as tests or examination and that there is time for reflection between the meetings. The usual here in Sweden is to meet once a week for 5-8 times, 2-3 hours each time. The group size is important so the discussion is easy to participate in. The number of participants could be as little as 3 people but no more than 12. 6-8 participants is a recommended number for getting enough energy in the group and still making it easy for everyone to talk and listen.  

 

At the start of the study circle, the participants create their own study plan together, based on what each of them want to learn. They decide what material they want to use, where they will search for more information, when and where they will meet and who takes care of the coffee and snacks each time. The last thing is not least important J. The coffee break makes everyone a butterfly for a while and allows the sharing of other things, which also contribute to the learning. 

 

The leader of the studycircle is not a teacher, but one of the group that has a somewhat different role. He or she facilitates the discussions and keeps the group together. The leader has sometimes, but not always, more knowledge about the topic than the participants. The leader should see to that everyone has the opportunity to talk and is listened to and that the group follows the study plan or agree on changes when necessary. The task to care for the room, coffee etc can be shared among participants. 

I think the study circle could be seen as one of the sessions in an OST, but with some reflection time in between the discussions. The leader is a combination of the topic leader and the facilitator.  





Good luck

Eiwor



Gateway Creation Tools
a holistic approach to organizational sucess

+46 (0)70 2622946
www.gatewayc.com


 

 
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.openspacetech.org/pipermail/oslist-openspacetech.org/attachments/20131001/ec66963e/attachment-0007.htm>