IF’s public discussions routinely begin with an exploration of the concerns relating to the topic at hand. Discussants then move on to explore various conceptual possibilities for addressing those concerns.
There are various schools of thought among IF facilitators about… Read More »
Yearly Archives: 2011
In Public Discussions, Look First at the Forest, Then at the Trees
Posted in Perspectives Tagged beginning point, facilitation, forest, possibilities, starting point Comments closed
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I.F. as a “Discussion Tank”
You know how you sometimes feel as though you’ve got just the answer to a question or the right description for something—only 10 minutes or a half hour too late? That happened to me last week, just after I’d finished… Read More »
Is Online Relevance Killing Diversity?
Like many people, I am spending increasingly more time working, educating myself, socializing, and shopping online. Search engines like Google and Yahoo, online companies like Amazon and Ebay, and social media networks like Facebook and Twitter are making my online… Read More »
Posted in Perspectives Tagged challenges, civic engagement, democracy, public discussion Comments closed
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Wiki Discussions?
One of the new possibilities we’ve been exploring at the Interactivity Foundation is the use of wikis for the discussion and development of material. We’ve set up a general wiki site, the Interactivity Foundation Wiki… Read More » as a home base for
Posted in Perspectives Tagged conversations, discussion process, exploration, learning by doing, student-centered discussion Comments closed
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Heels and Soles
I took several pairs of shoes in for repair the other day. Heels. Heels and soles. New stitching. The usual thing. I go to a small shop that is owned and operated by a very hard-working brother and sister team… Read More »
Discussion Impossible
A few weeks back I participated in a public discussion on education policy. It didn’t go very well. In fact, the experience served more as a cautionary tale or a lesson in what not to do rather than as an… Read More »
Make Your Own Path
Apple Co-Founder Steve Jobs died this week, and there’s been a lot of talk about his life and his work. This was clearly a man who knew what he wanted and went out and got it (or, in his case,… Read More »
Some Limitations of Current Democratic Discussion*
Americans are privileged to enjoy perhaps the world’s strongest legal safeguards on the freedoms of speech, press, and assembly. Yet as undeniably important as these safeguards might be, they do not by themselves ensure either widespread or robust democratic discussion. … Read More »
Posted in Perspectives Tagged democratic discussion, information, limitations, limits, participation, public discussion Comments closed
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Democratic Discussion, Public Discussion, and the Policy-Making Process*
Conventional views of the policy-making process are helpful–as far as they go. But they usually leave out a good deal, especially with respect to the potential role of democratic discussion. Consider, for example:
Emotions, habits, beliefs, attitudes, assumptions, norms, concepts,… Read More »
Posted in Perspectives Tagged policy-making process, public discussion, purpose, usefulness Comments closed
Then I Took an Arrow to the Knee
The complete quote of course—now laughably familiar to my boys and all other Skyrim players—is “I used to be an adventurer like you, then I took an arrow in the knee.” The viral and self-mocking ubiquity of this gaming meme… Read More »
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