Open Learning Ireland

Also available as a PDF of Minutes (much easier to read)

Attending: Niamh Farren (AONTAS), Gareth Stack, Naomi Elster, Shane Connelly, Robby Collins, Sebastian Dooris, Daniel Costigan

Recent Contacts Review

Gareth met Blaithin Quinn
(detailed notes in previous post – Update on February… – in Google Group).
– provided a tonne of info on organising events like this one
– willing to be involved in February (as panellist, and perhaps also running a visual workshop with artists, exploring the potential of the space)

– still need to get a) details of Blaithin’s pop-up insurance
– b) contact details for landlords mentioned

Gareth met with Aoibheann McCarthy
– education curator for Limerick City Gallery (Shinnors Curatorial Scholar)
– Aoibheann is trying to do something more useful with the educational space in the gallery
– would be interested in OLI doing something in Limerick, or doing a similar project under our banner
– shares many of our goals – re: open access to education, peer learning, real educational outcomes, breaking down barriers to access

Gareth met with Re Dubhthaigh
– Re organised last years ‘Hedge School’ initiative in NCAD, and is responsible for numerous design led initiatives in the city – lots of advice

–        no money in the system

• there are however assets, which institutions are willing to allow you use of
• e.g.: buildings, (govt department) funded researchers time
• we need to identity which assets we need

–        Ask people for bounded commitments

• E.g.: 1 or 2 weeks, not forever
• Irish people won’t say no, they’ll say yes or maybe, then just not do it

–        Find out

• Who are people with skills / resources
• Find route to them
• What is their playback / reward
• Managing their communication
• What will their role be
• Properly credit according to their actual role

–        Camara (Camara.ie)

• Provided reconditioned computers free of charge to Hedge School
• Might do the same for our initiative
• Although looking at their website – they usually do charge (what would be to us, extremely high fees).

–        Useful contacts

• TFE – NCAD – Learning Research Group (http://www.tferesearch.com/)
• Designing Future Learning Environments
• Might be interested in helping with February
• How cool would it be to get some of their furniture etc!

–        PR

• Selling the event
• What’s the angle?
• Newspapers like – self sufficiency, JOBS, skills

–        Social Honour (Prestige) as reward / status

• How to leverage to reward / motivate volunteerism
• Certification of course participation
• Staff bios / affiliation
• Non materialist  motivation & Self Determination Theory
  • Autonomy, competence and relatedness
  • http://selfdeterminationtheory.org/theory

–        Educational Affordances

• What are hooks of capacity or interestingness
  • Which facilitate and provide new uses
• E.g.: Pens, paper, AV equipment, art supplies, learning journals (hard or software)

Meeting – 15^th October

• We have a new website – https://openlearningireland.wordpress.com
  • Will go live at the .com address after the 20^th
  • Anyone who wants one can have a login, update with articles etc
  • Gareth has migrated (almost) all content – and will continue to post meeting notes etc

    

• New Member of the Group – Robby Collins
  – previously involved in Cork Artists Collective and co-founder of Camden Palace Hotel Community Arts Centre
  – willing to help with AV Stuff
  – owns a ‘big van’

• Need to nail down dates
  • Can only do this by finding a property
  • need to find backup spaces

• Panels for Feb
  • Radical Alternatives for Inclusive Education In Ireland
  • How to fund social goods (should social entrepreneurship be a J.O.B)
  • Educational Affordances – what an unskool should look like

• Workshops Proposed So Far
  • Gareth – sitcom writing, how to use Prezi, making radio with adobe audition, Final cut, intro do psych
  • Seb – hacking, arduino, digital music
  • Naomi – something science related
  • Robby – maker / artist / hacking theory lecture
  • Dan – dream interpretation / psychoanalysis
  • Shane – science for non-scientists
  • David Collins – hack / 3d printing?
  • Maybes – Deveril (from Exchange Words), Knowledge Exchange Lecture Series

• AONTAS
  •  will get in touch with their membership
    • to find tutors and workshops that might be interested in using the time in February
• Near FM (Ciaran) are also interested, could run workshops at the event, or even broadcast from it
• might help with AV

• Building
  • most promising looks to be…
  • part of Point Village, near Odeon
  • get details from Blaithin
  • but v. Large space, so would need partitions
  • also internet provision – sponsorship from major ISP?
  • Others – (via Niamh)
    • Green St Gallery, Francis St
    • CHQ Building in IFSC (held a fringe show)
      basement below shopping centre

• Insurance
  – Shane: Milk & Cookies – Insurance Broker = JLT, provider = Ecclesiastical
  – 400 euro including their festival, probably 300 without

• Volunteers
  • Put call out ASAP – as soon as we have dates
  • make volunteering an application process – like Fringe, 10 Days in Dublin
  • develop App form on website
  • semi-autonomous teams – e.g.: Promotions, AV, general gophering
  • how to reward volunteering? Open question
  • provide references, be part of the future of learning in Ireland?
  • How to best document the week in February?
    • Need a dedicated AV team
    • Need to source recording equipment
    • Robby and Seb may be able to provide some equipment
    • DCTV might help
    • Or Could borrow recorders from Near FM
    • Next meeting
      – make a list of 5-6 most promising buildings
      – get contact details of owners
      – ideally we need for 2-3 days before and after event
      => say 22^nd Feb to 3^rd March

To do

1. We are meeting again on Saturday, to prepare for looking at buildings
   – we need to get as much info as possible on potential sites before then
2. AONTAS are going to get back to us, with whether or not their existing insurance will cover the event
   – if not they can help us cover public liability
3. We need to source
   a)    individual references (academic etc)
   b)     Reference from Dublin Contemporary – Ciara
   c)     sample lease for (2) weeks – e.g.: TBCT licence for Exchange Dublind)     Nicely designed documentation explaining our purpose and our past events
4. Contact Camara.ie – to ask about computers for the event
5. Produce Form for potential workshop runners- asking what they need- what their workshop will teach
6. Contact TFE Learning Research Group- http://www.tferesearch.com/
7. Compile bios of everyone involved in Open Learning  Ireland
   – for new website
   – make us a team with real credentials, rather than a faceless idea
8. Convert Existing lectures to youtube / prezi video
9. Start finding people for 3 panels- Already on board – Blathin Quinn, Aoibheann McCarthy, Re Dubhthaigh
10. Find volunteers (once we have a date) – volunteering Ireland etc
11. Find events to perform / speak at to promote OLI and February Pop-up
    a.     Flight of Ideas – http://facebook.com/flightofideasdublin

    
    
    b. Inventorium – Open Mic Idea Jam – inventorium.com – this one is tonight 16^thOctober – Stags Head 7-10PM – can anyone go?

    

    c.     Idea Lab (6 week course in Science Gallery) – Gareth has signed up, and will attempt to promote OLI through it

    

    e.     Future Science Gallery Ignite Talks – Gareth has done this in the past, they might be open to having one of us again