Research/Research themes

Research is a very important part of WikiEducator. The themes (ideas for research) below arose from the first Learning4Content online workshop. These themes will grow with the community and with the interests and needs of the community.

Sustainability

 * Community development
 * Critical Mass
 * -add more here-

Learning Processes

 * Pathways into communities
 * Participation processes
 * Ways of being a WikiEducator
 * Ways of being a WikiLearner
 * The individual within the community
 * Community support for individuals
 * Leadership
 * -add more here-

Learning Outcomes

 * Rubrics
 * Levels of Mastery
 * -add more here-

Technical development

 * Wiki design
 * -add more here-

Cross Cultural development

 * Multilingual communities
 * Translations
 * Diversity
 * -add more here-

Ideas to Ponder
In doing the required reading for my Master's course (at Fielding Graduate University) in Global and Intercultural Strategies and Skills, I came across a very interesting passage on "Losing Face" in a required text in Riding the Waves of Culture: Understanding Cultural Diversith in Global Business by Fons Trompenaars and Chales Hampden-Turner, 2nd edition. p. 88.

"At an international university at which I was teaching, a Ghanian student wrote a paper for me which I was unable to grade at more than a four out of ten, a fail. All scores were posted on a [public] noticeboard. The student said that this would be a pulblic insult to him, impossible for me as a respected professort to perpetrate, although he agreed with the mark. Wha I should do was mark the paper "I" (incomplete) for the board, while feeding the actual grade into the system."

I bring this up, in reference to what WikiEducator has done with 'grading' regarding the L4C workshops. We have sidestepped this challenging cultural issue, by going the way of Learning Contracts, and only posting achievements for the folks that have delivered on their Learning Contracts! Are there lessons for other forms of workshop development / achievement, particularly when saving face is a significant cultural element? Randy Fisher 00:57, 16 February 2008 (CET)