Learning patterns/Collaborate with teachers who share your enthusiasm
What problem does this solve?[edit]
The Wikipedia Education Program offers so many possibilities and starting one can be overwhelming sometimes. A variety of tactics, strategies, and ideas on how you can implement the education program, sometimes may leave you in the crossroad on developing partnerships. One thing you learn from interfacing with teachers & professors is that they are very busy and not everyone necessarily shares your enthusiasm. As such, reaching out to as many options and/or professors can lead to confusion, energy drain and few results.
What is the solution?[edit]
When starting an education program, start small and focus your energy on collaborations that share your enthusiasm from the beginning. Meet and discuss with teachers and professors you are collaborating to identify what are their needs, capacities and skills so you can build an assignment that fits both parties. Remember that you will face difficulties and problems during your first time, and that's okay. It is a way of learning and advancing in building future assignment.
Focusing in only one or few collaborations benefits you as:
- you don't run out of energies, trying to solve problems for a variety of teachers and professors;
- mistakes can easily be eradicated when you work with a small group;
- you focus on the quality of delivering the assignment, which always is a powerful tool for attracting new teachers to participate in the program.
Things to consider[edit]
When starting an education program consider the following:
- Make use of countless materials that WMF has created in running, building and maintaining an educational program;
- Find one to two collaboration opportunities that share your enthusiasm in building such an assignment;
- Based on online resources you find and meeting with teachers, customize a program model that fits your needs;
- Share the WMF materials with teachers and work together in building a course;
- Make use of Outreach Dashboard tool to monitor the assignment;
- Provide constant support to your teachers at the beginning, especially if they were not Wikipedia editors before you reached out;
- Set goals and evaluate the assignment/ course at the end of the term. Check if you have reached your goals, understand what went well and what didn't, so you can improve your course/assignment for the next term.
When to use[edit]
If you didn't have an educational program in the past or you are experimenting on new strategies and models that works for you, you can consider in following such pattern.
Endorsements[edit]
See also[edit]
Related patterns[edit]
- Plan an education program pilot
- Setting goals for an education program
- How to generate a stronger and more relevant relationship with the schools