Abstract:

The Norwegian government wishes to implement, on a large scale, e-learning in all schools, and at the same time modernize e-learning in accordance with 21st century skills (Fossland, 2015). This is a challenge as it will require radical changes because Norwegian teachers will have to change their teaching methods, they will have to shift from the physical environment and classroom teaching to an online learning environment, and also take on the 21th Century Skills and integrate them into the e-learning design. The complexity of the challenge reinforces resistance to change.

The Principal at the vocational school in Telemarken wanted to engage his group of teachers in co-developing e-learning strategies, and at the same time integrate the 21st Century skills. This paper tells the story of how the task was initiated, with a focus on teachers´ everyday practice, and how the teachers themselves took the first step in the process of change. The approach was based on action research and initially a preliminary study was conducted focusing on the institutional setting and the work culture of the school. Based on this study a workshop, framed by the Collective Memory Work approach (Assmann and Czaplicka, 1995) (Schatz and Walker, 1995), enhanced through dialogue orientated intervention by informed facilitator, was conducted with the teacher group. This explorative, group-based method brings forth the individual experiences of a given phenomenon. In the second step it supports the participants in identifying common patterns of experiences, and on this basis articulate common ground. During the CWM-workshop, and for the first time, the teachers shared knowledge of their individual teaching practices and problems, and came to reflect upon their (rather) negative experiences with e-learning. This in turn enabled a distinction between didactic problems and technological problems, and as a result of this, the teachers spontaneously suggested solutions to the common problems around e-learning, being very concrete and practical.

The workshop made the teachers feel competent and resourceful, and motivated them to meet the challenges of the changing processes. They clearly expressed a wish to learn more about e-learning methods as well as to continue to share knowledge with their colleagues. One could argue that the teachers took the first steps in establishing a Community of Practice (Wenger, 1998). In a final paragraph the paper reflects upon how the CWM-method was applied, in this specific setting, and how the method may be used in other contexts.

References:
[1] Assmann, Jan and Czaplicka, John: Collective Memory and Cultural Identity, in: New German Critique, No. 65, Cultural History/Cultural Studies (Spring - Summer, 1995), pp. 125-133.
[2] Fossland, Trine: Digitale læringsformer i høyere utdanning, Universitetsforlaget, Oslo (2015)
[3] Schartz, Martin and Walker, Rob: Research as Social Change: New Opportunities for Qualitative Research, Routledge (1995)
[4] Wenger, Etienne: Communities of Practice: Learning, Meaning, and Identity, Cambridge University Press (1998)

Keywords:

e-learning, 21st Century Skills, co-development, empirical study, community.