Happy "International Working Out Loud" week

Yes.  Apparently that's a thing.  Here's the announcement on Simon Terry's blog.  Talk about timing for me to jump on the bandwagon as I enter week 3 of #WOL / #FridayUpdate.

(Photo credit: Simon Terry)

This week started with me finalizing a blog post in which I ask: Are traditional workshops effective in changing participants’ knowledge, attitudes and behaviors?  It is an attempt to reflect a bit on the learning that took place a recent workshop. The more I attend “traditional” workshops, the more I wonder whether our seemingly natural propensity for holding face-to-face workshops is the best investment of time and money in terms of learning outcomes. I believe we aren’t measuring our “ROI” on this investment rigorously enough, so it is hard to answer this question.   More in the blog. 

My colleague Susan MacMillan yammered me earlier this week asking that I share more about my involvement in the first CGIAR Development Dialogue (CGDD). The CGDD will focus global attention on the vital role of agriculture, forestry, fisheries, landscapes and food systems in achieving sustainable development. The event will take place on 25 September 2014 in New York City at the Faculty House at Columbia University, alongside the UN General Assembly, the inaugural meeting of the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, and the UN Climate Summit. A by-invitation-only audience of circa 300 will attend. Thousands more will be included online through live webcasting and social media channels.  I have been asked to co-lead one of the eight parallel sessions on "strategic and effective partnerships", working in collaboration with colleagues from Dryland Cereals, WLE, Humidtropics, L&F, RTB.   The planning is still very fluid, and this week we received revised guidelines for the event.  It now looks like the parallel sessions will be moderated debates (think Doha Debates) with four high-level speakers of which three should be from outside the CGIAR.  Our team is planning to discuss and revise our proposal accordingly (luckily, we were already thinking about such a format).  More on this in due course once we have the panelists lined up, key messages, etc.

Spent lots of time working on finalizing the terms of reference for the FEAST blended-learning work I mentioned last week. It culminated in a 23 page detailed proposal, that I hope we can get past all the required approvals in the coming week or so so the work can begin  - we have an ambitious (self-imposed) deadline of mid September - which is quiet short considering all the deliverables: 

1.         Design and develop both blended (instructor‐led + self‐guided) and entirely self‐ guided versions of a learning course on the PRA methodology and FEAST tool, based on existing classroom materials, plus:

o    One module of original material on basic Excel skills

o    A brief facilitator enablement (“train the trainer”) class to accompany the materials

o    Job aids and reference guides for participants to use in the field

2.         Produce all necessary video, audio, printed materials and interactive eLearning for the course

3.         Set up, configure and populate an LMS (learning management system) to deliver the course content online, as well as track participant progress and run reports

4.         Development of metrics to gauge the success of the course and develop reports in the LMS to help track key metrics

5.         Assure that all eLearning content complies with the European Foundation for Quality in E‐Learning’s ECBCheck guidelines

6.         Create a brochure‐style website and promotional video on the FEAST tool

7.         Document the process and help create an internal CGIAR presentation on the value of learning development and how it was applied to the FEAST program

 
The work complexity is compounded by the fact that in many/most of the placed we run FEAST, internet connectivity is unreliable.  The dilemma we face is that most of the new / advanced tools all take it for granted that everyone is online and can access web-servers (where most of the tech is hosted) so if one needs (as we do) to have offline comparability, one starts a game of trying to fit a square peg in a round hole - so lots of reshaping of edges and cobbling together solutions.   Will work out in the end - but it really is pushing the envelope in terms of trying to figure out how to deliver a 'best in class' experience without the normal enabling environment.   I wish I had more instructional design colleagues actively engaged in similar work to bounce ideas on  - but the consultant we've shortlisted is great - so hopefully we'll be a two-person community of practice until others join the party ;-)

Other bits of work included a discussion on restructuring the EXTRAPOLATE workshops, chairing the inaugural meeting of a taskforce to revise ILRI's Fellowship Guidelines, working on CapDev protocols for CRP L&F, Discussions with the IBLI team on possible marketing options for the next sales windoes andf finalizing the ToR for an IBLI Case study, meeting with ASARECA and exploration of some potrential joint activities, discussions on a Tools for Systems Analysis portal for existing tech tools (Cross-CRP, initially Humidtropics and  Livestock and Fish), Touching base with a new ICARDA CapDev colleague who just joined our CGIAR CapDev CoP.  Last but not least, I also had the rare pleasure of some face time with both our DDGs this week - a general catchup with Suzanne Bertrand and a more detailed initial briefing with Iain Wright - very important as about 80% of my work is currently embedded in his Directorate!

Hope you have a wonderful International #WOLweek !

 

Happy 2014 - will it be the year of the how?

 Happy 2014 folks!

Like many of you, I'm just coming back from the holidays and going through the backlog of emails, yammer, LinkedIn etc.  Came across a nice "season's greetings"card from HarvestPlus, a CGIAR project (see below).

Great stuff - very impressive.  Reaching 500,000 farmers with bio-fortified crops is no small feat.  What's more, "seasons greetings" cards aren't exactly the format for an in depth review of objectives, methodologies and the likes.

Still, beyond the deserved congratulations, am looking forward to the sequel - how many will be reached in 2014? over the next 5 years?   Just as importantly, how is HarvestPlus (and for that matter other CGIAR Research Programs) reaching all these hundreds of thousands of farmers?   How matters...

Also, while hundreds of thousands of farmers is impressive outreach, the CGIAR is aiming for many times this number, possibly hundreds of times this number.  So how do we get to the magical S word?   Is there a systematic documentation of the "how" so that it can be scaled up further and replicated by similar programs?

Could  more emphasis on the how eature high on our collective New Year's resolution list?

Here's hoping...

Plugged & Played at ICT4Ag 2013

As I wrote over the weekend, I headed to #ICT4Ag13 in Kigali with lots of Excitement and Skepticism.   Yesterday (Monday 4 Nov) was the Plug & Play day, and it was a blast, and it reaffirmed my excitement (and skepticism).

To start off with, the scene is great.  Met so many interesting people, and the vibe is one of opportunity and growth.  A real "start-up", (social) entrepreneurial atmosphere.  Fantastic networking opportunities and I won't be surprised if several collaborations won't be traced back to this event.  All the makings of a "Plug" atmosphere.

I'm happy with the logistics so far.  Organizing large workshops isn't easy.  So far my hierarchy of logistics needs from a conference (wifi, clean cool air, good food & breakout spaces - in that order) is met .  So good conditions to "Play.

What enhanced my excitement?  The facilitattion method (Kudos to Pete Cranston and team) allowed me to "speed date" lots of interesting projects.  There is so much going on in this sector right now.  One cannot but be excited about this movement and its posible potential.    I was particularly interested to learn about some of the work of TRAC.fm (and their work with Harvest Plus  / the  CGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition and Health (A4NH).)  - particularly because they are mixing the present (radio) with the future (mobile/web) in what seems to be a really neat way.   Great stuff.  Would love to know of more organizations doing this - please point me in the right direction!

What enhanced my skepticism?  A few things.  For one, the scale. For all the talk of the potential scale of mobile (in the billions), most projects I saw were pilots, with outreach of several thousands to low 6 figures (active and passive users combined).  Pilotitis anyone? 

Also, there is lots of duplication.  If I had a drink every time I heard the phrase ("so we built this platform...") I would have been drunk long before the first coffee break.  Yes, to a certain degree this is inevitable in such a start-up environment.  Still, many of the players are at least partially publicly funded, and we could (should) really question the coordination in funding so many similar platforms.   Either way, I foresee some serious consolidation before we can start going to scale and moving to more mature, holistic products. 

Finally, there was too much focus (to my liking at least) on channel, and too little on the content.  Yes, I know new tech is exciting and sexy, and old school instructional design and (adult) learning theory are in comparison slow and tedious.  However, we should be VERY careful not to end up ith great platforms that suffer from the "Garbage in - Garbage out" syndrome.  I know that there will one (or more?) sessions looking at the content today and am really looking forward to these.  By and large though, the content seems to be the poor cousin in this gathering - which is a red flag for me. 

Still, if I had to place my feeling on the excitement/skepticism scale, it is tilting towards  excitment.  Plenary of the conference about to start - looking forward to a fun week ahead!

Emerging Educational Technologies - very far from being applied in development

My (soon to be) colleague Diana Brandes just shared an article about 10 Specific Examples Of Emerging Educational Technologies by  Teach Thought.

The list provides some (heavily US-centric) examples about how some educational institutes are applying technology.

Cloud Computing, Mobile Learning, Tablet Computing and MOOCs are all listed in the "12 months or less" category, implying they are pretty much here already.  From where I'm sitting (well, standing most of the time, but that's the topic for another post one day), which is thinking how technology can revolutionize learning in a developing context (think large scale application of agricultural research in developing countries)  - this is still much more of a distant dream than reality.

Of all of these, the one I hold most hope for is mobile learning - but let's unpack it for a minute.  The article gives examples of a school in Australia using tablets for math applications, another use of tablets, this time in Switzerland, to create music on ipads, and finally a US school creating an iOS app for digital storytelling.  All very neat.  And very far removed from the reality of the vast majority of mobile users at the BoP.

Despite a lot of promise for (entry level android) smartphones about to boom in many Asian and African countries - the reality in my host country of Kenya - considered a hub, perhaps even the epicenter - of mobile innovation is that most users are still not on smartphones, and if you want scale in rural areas, you better think of the old school (Nokia) entry level phones.  None of the innovative applications mentioned in the article are mobile-compatible in this context. As far as timelines are concerned, I think we're certainly more than 12 months' away from any of these making a dent in mainstream applications of education, let alone in a development context.

The article's most exciting prospect for me personally is "Games and Gamification", slated at 2-3 Years away.  I think there's so much potential for engaging adult learners with games that we're not tapping into - it would hopefully take "only" one or two killer applications to come out to turn the tide and focus the world's attention to gaming for development.  Who knows, by then it might be a mobile app that does the trick?

Mobile learning - some initial thoughts.

I recently blogged about MOOCs, which prompted an interesting Twitter exchange with Guy Pfefferman of the Global Business School Network and Dan LeClair of The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).

The starting point was Guy's recent article in BizEd, which focuses on mobile learning.

I have to admit, my first reaction was (and is till) skeptical.  When we talk of mobile learning in a developing country context, we're not talking iPads or iPhones.  We're not even talking basic android phones (yet).  Remember your Nokia handset from 1997?  Most times, that's the closer cousin to what you'll find.  I haven't researched the topic enough to make any kind of statement with certainty, but instinctively, this doesn't seem to be a great learning platform to me, with the obvious limitations of screen size etc.

Sure, it can work for many things - especially practical areas where you need a conrete piece of information.  Think market prices, medical consultation, etc.  These are not new, and there are lots of examples around.  For instance, my employer, the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI)  joined hands with others on such projects  - for instance mfarmer - where we provide agricultural value added services (Agri VAS) for smallholder farmers in emerging markets.  The purpose of these mobile services is to bridge the information gap faced by smallholder farmers and to improve poor farming households’ resilience and decision-making as a result of better access to relevant agricultural information.  You can read more about similar initaitves on the GSMA Mobile for Development website.

These are great initiatives, and I think they can make a real difference, and we are just scratching the surface.   But this is not mobile learning in the sense of what MOOCs are projected to do to classroom learning.  It is no substitute for traditional classroom education - at least not yet.  As Guy points out - we're still missing business models for mobile learning. A recent UNESCO conference touched upon aspects of this - including a mobile MOOC - have a look for yourself, some interesting stuff.  Still, not a game changer as far as I can see - and certainly no business model yet.  

At this early stage of thinking about the topic, I feel what we really need is to look at how technology (and with all the mobile hype, radio is still the king of rural) can be combined into blended learning that prepares youth for starting business or finding jobs.  Technology alone will not be a panacea.  

This said, I still need to do more reading and thinking about this exciting area.  Very much looking forward to ICT4Ag conference in Kigali, where I hope to pick up the thread. 

What MOOCs Will Really Kill Is...

Came across an article in Forbes today who's headline read "What MOOCs Will Really Kill Is The Research University".  

Nice article, with the gist of it basically saying 

"...time to get a little Adam Smith on this professor. The sole purpose of any production is consumption: and we should listen and consider the interests of the producer only to the point that said interest is essential to the interests of the consumer. And I’m afraid that if MOOCs do indeed produce the technological revolution which lessens our demand for professors then that’s just too bad for professors. Our only concern here is and should be the interests of the students. If they can get a better education through technology, the same but cheaper education, or even a worse and much cheaper education and that trade off seems acceptable to said students then that’s just the end of the matter. The students’ interests win."

MOOCs are the most significant technological revolution in higher eduction in a long time (as in several generations) The established higher-ed industry has not come to terms with it yet (a bit like the very early days of digital photography).  In fact the biggest players are either Universities (e.g  edX) or emerged from universities (e.g. Coursera who's founders hail from Stanford).  Despite lots of hype and money being invested in the idea, the business model isn't clear or proven yet - but what a potential...   In any case, the trend is already  giving way to a wave of innovative startups looking to tap into this technological disruption.  For instance, Spire Kenya is about to launch a new model for undergraduate education that harnesses MOOCs, and combines them with placements in companies, mentoring and peer-leaning, to produce graduates that are better suited to match the needs of employers.  With a degree from an accrediated US university, and at a fraction of the price of private universities (e.g. less than $1000/year) - one could see that if such startups get it right, we could really have an appealing alternative model on hand.

To be sure, societies looking to get ahead will need to keep investing heavily in R&D, and universties will certainly continue to have a place in that picture.  So am not convinced the Research University is about to go the way of the dinosaurs.  However, many (in some contexts most) students in higher education are not on track for research careers.  Yet becuase of the way academics (prof.) are hired, promoted and remunerated - essentially based on their publications record - advances in teaching and learning have suffered.  It is this academic caste system whereby prof. in mainstream subjects (e.g. business, social sciences etc) shy away from great teaching (which sometimes pays less than janitorial work in the same institutions) in favor of often irrelevant research that's likely to be the first to go.

That might be a very good thing for most students.