2018 Democracy Discussions IF’s Democratic Promise guidebook has been discussed a number of times since its initial publication. Interest in the subject seems to somewhat track the election cycle and concerns about election process and practice features that are seen as shaping election results: Electoral College, gerrymandering, voter suppression, etc. This guidebook has, perhaps, generated … Read more »
constitution, democracy, elections, voting
Introduction First generation college students— or those students whose parents did not complete a four-year degree– face unique challenges. First-generation students include traditional-aged students, active-duty members of the military and veterans studying with G.I. benefits, as well as adult learners completing a degree while working full-time and raising a family. Most first-generation college students are immensely talented and highly motivated … Read more »
college, education, First Generation College Student, higher education
Community-based learning is education that takes place off college campus. With community partners as co-educators, students and faculty collaborate on shared learning, co-construction of knowledge, and civic action projects. This year, the Interactivity Foundation has been engaging with scholars and practitioners of community-based learning to learn more about this process and examine what role, if … Read more »
Community, Global Citizenship, Haverford
Don’t know what to discuss at Thanksgiving dinner? Terrified of talking about current events? Breathe easy. We’ve got you covered. Invite your family to discuss Agri-Culture & The Future of Farming. This is our newest exploratory discussion guide that examines the future of agriculture, rural communities, and farming trends in the United States. Over the … Read more »
Agriculture, Community, discussion guide, farming, food, sustainability
What would the future look like if there were no sports? What would be missing in a society without sports? Those questions kicked off IF’s project on the Future of Sports and Society. They helped the citizen participants to explore the different roles that sports can, do, or should play in our society. Now there’s … Read more »
Cost, Roles, Sports
All of the IF Fellows will participate in the 8th National Conference on Dialogue & Deliberation. It will take place in Denver, Colorado, November 2-4, 2018. IF has participated in NCDD conferences over the years and we found them a great place to form new partnerships, learn about the art and science of dialogue … Read more »
Denver, ncdd, wesleyan
Suppose you’re interested in teaching a team-based undergraduate research course. You might be wondering how to structure the class experience so that students learn how to collaborate productively by harnessing the diverse perspectives of a research team without succumbing to groupthink. One answer might be to use a small-group discussion process, such as the Interactivity … Read more »
discussion process, IF, UAB
Since the last newsletter the USATalk/CivNet team continued making important strides toward developing the web’s first integrated collaborative platform supported by a network of organizations. Helped along by IF’s first sizeable external grant (fifth bullet in the following list) and the increasing use of collaborative online work sessions, headway has been notable along numerous fronts, … Read more »
CivNet, ncdd, USATalk
The Interactivity Foundation partnered with the National Building Museum (NBM) to train summer camp councilors how to use IF’s interactive small group exploratory discussion method in their upcoming summer camp. Lauren Wilson, Teen Programs Manager at the NBM, invited us to do the training. She envisioned thoughtful exploratory discussions as a part of their summer … Read more »
discussions, National Building Museum, Summer Camp, teens
