Report
Raymond Williams Foundation (RWF)
Learning Revolution Transformation Fund – Discussion Circles Project
Residential, Fri – Sun 19th > 21st February 10
Wedgwood Memorial College, Barlaston, Stoke-on-Trent
For full details and programme for the week-end visit www.raymondwilliamsfoundation.org.uk
A central aim was to probe, interrogate and enquire about the learning process through informal discussion. Some subjects or themes more difficult than others? How to select and offer information? How best to ‘chair’, ‘facilitate’, ‘lead’, ‘guide’ groups.
The week-end was fully booked with every bedroom in the College occupied.
So, total of 35 resident with 6 non-resident participants from a wide area geographically;
From Berwick-upon-Tweed and Bolton to Birmingham to but most were from Liverpool/Merseyside (11) and Leek/North Staffs (13).
Two short lectures on the Friday evening engaged with the issues of Citzenship and Education, using Micheal Sandel’s 2009 Reith Lecture, leading on to the question of how current ‘informal adult learning’ developments may relate to these big themes.
The residential was organised to offer varied experience of informal discussion as practised by Open Democracy Discussion Circles (ODDc); Philosophy in Pubs (PiPs) and Sci-Bars (Science, primarily through question and discussion).
14 ‘circles’ or small groups discussed, mainly using the ‘stimulus’ of notes sent out in advance, a wide range of social, philosophical, political and cultural themes throughout the Saturday:
From Marxism to Humour; from Thatcherism to God and Dawkins;
From The Mona Lisa to How to talk about things we know nothing about’.
The Sunday morning included sessions on Globalisation led by two WEA professional tutors and this again offered experience of different methods and approaches to learning through direct participation.
Evaluation and feed-back, verbal and written, indicates positive response. These quotes from e-mails sent through in the days following illustrate strengths and potential:
‘I enjoyed it very much. I would like to get involved in some way – perhaps by trying to start a circle in my area’;
‘Extremely interesting … a shot in the arm’;
‘I can not remember when I was last in the company of so many interesting, communicative (and opinionated!) people…’
‘There were no ghastly cliques to make one feel excluded, so that I met lots of interesting people during the weekend…. I think it important I now keep the momentum going’
‘What a great weekend…asking for a view of adult education for the future…
Mine would be the ‘divan design’ – a patchwork quilt of all kinds of learning; from iPlayer TV and radio 4, through OU, university and colleges to WEA > U3A …self help model through to PiPs, SciBars and Mugge/Trout etc.. Such a quilt… would lie on a bed that by design was generously padded with monies that had the springs of political openness and concern > Sandel’s ‘common good’.
Incidentally, I downloaded all his Reith transcripts and thoroughly enjoyed reading them – he communicated excitement and optimism.’
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RWF can help, a little, to pad the quilt with monies. We are searching further funding (ideas - and donations! - always welcome). Meanwhile, RWF is assisting a Day School on Local Democracy in Berwick-upon-Tweed in March; our RW W/end in May on Towards 2020 is full residentially (but B&B and non-res. participants still welcome); look at RWF web-site for further future activities which may now include a similar ‘discussion circles’ residential but modified taking account of suggestions made, during and after the February weekend.
DT, BF and EB
Also visit: www.oddc.org.uk; www.philosophyinpubs.org.uk; www.bollingtonscibar.co.uk;
www.opendemocracy.net;