Set goals and determine purpose

Once members have been recruited, the next step is to determine and articulate a shared purpose for the new working group. A more informal open working group might build consensus around common goals via brainstorming and discussion. In comparison, a more formal open working group might be assigned (or tasked with developing) a terms-of-reference document outlining key goals.

Articulating shared goals from the start helps to establish a framework for planning future working group activities and initiatives. These are also important for evaluating and communicating the impact of the group’s work to campus administration in future.

Establish meeting schedules and group communications

In order for a new open working group to run smoothly, establishing logistics and ground rules for meetings and internal group communications is also a recommended strategy. You may wish to consider:

• How often the group will meet,
• How agendas will be set, meetings run, and notes captured and shared,
• How group members will generally communicate internally, and
• How the group will communicate about their work externally.

Discussion prompts

These prompts may help your group discover what their participation in open is and what types of activities they may already be doing in open education:

• What does open education mean to you? Are there activities that fall under open education that are already part of your regular educational practice? What are they and why do you participate in them? What value do they bring to your educational practice?
• What roles do you think digital technologies and the Internet have played in making open education possible? Are there types of open educational activities that are dependent on digital technologies and the Internet?
• Thinking of your own teaching practice, have you ever revised learning content to make it better suited for your course? Why did you revise it? Did you have to get permission before you revised it?

Attributions

• Discussion prompts from “What is Open Education?” by Lauri M. Aesoph. © CC BY (Attribution)