[Oe List ...] Some thoughts about the future

[Marilyn Crocker]

Hi again, Tim

 

The comment in your first line below documented as "Del wrote:" was actually
from me.

 

My questions were intended to ask about if and how we might explore/employ
new communication technologies comparable to those I experienced being used
by educators on the state and national levels to enhance collaboration among
national technical assistant and content specialists and state education
directors responsible for enabling the implementation of legislation such as
IDEA and ESEA.  These projects attempted to thread conversations among a
number of communities of practice and even engage collaborative
decision-making in virtual platforms that often involved parent/community
members.

 

I realize you missed the core of my questions and were responding more to
Herman's issues of the raison d'etre for the two list serves.  That's quite
OK, but I'm guessing some of our "aging community"  knows about and is ready
for something more,  although we have no idea how it might be constructed to
work for us.

 

Thanks again, Tim.

 

Marilyn

 

Marilyn R. Crocker, Ed.D

123 Sanborn Rd

West Newfield, ME 04095

 

From: oe-bounces at lists.wedgeblade.net
[mailto:oe-bounces at lists.wedgeblade.net] On Behalf Of Timothy Wegner
Sent: Tuesday, June 25, 2013 10:02 PM
To: Order Ecumenical Community
Subject: Re: [Oe List ...] Some thoughts about the future

 

Del wrote:

>I would love a way that I might easily tune into, follow and contribute to
conversation threads of substance among us.  

I have given the question of the limitations of the email listservs a lot of
thought over the years. Some of those limitations are obvious, such as that
there is no clear distinction between OE and DIALOGUE, and that whether or
not the conversations appear threaded (keeping topics together) is the
accident of how people's email clients work. Over the years various ones of
us have tried alternative software platforms. This experimentation included
(among others) wiki.wedgeblade.net  and is continuing today using WordPress
for the ICA archives.

I can (and will if asked) install other platforms at wedgeblade.net (or
elsewhere) quite easily. And while I am willing to do that, I have reached
some (never entirely final) conclusions that may not be too satisfying for
the inquiring and restless:

1. Email lists work amazingly well for our aging community. Yes there are
limitations, but folks seem to have come to terms with them. My guess is
that these lists will continue while enough of us have not yet lost the
ability to get to a computer and type. There is an enormous amount of useful
discussion and news on these lists. But they are not the "true and
beautiful", and sin abounds.

2. These cats cannot be herded, OE and DIALOGUE will be what the evolve to
be, some prefer one to the other for unfathomable reasons. Perhaps someone
can articulate a useful distinction. Or not!

3. When we try new platforms, success depends much more on willing
organizers and facilitators more than on the technical aspects of the
platforms. Experimentation will continue, and folks deciding to commit
effort will be the key to success.

We will continue experimenting with new ways of being community online, but
my guess is the email lists will exist for some time, then slowly fade away
as the tide comes in and our footprints, one by one, are washed away from
the beach of this world.

Tim

 

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