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Methodology
The OSDE can be used for the introduction of global issues and perspectives in educational contexts, such as teacher, adult, higher and secondary education.
It has been our mission to demonstrate the OSDE methodology in a number of contexts to gather evidence of its impact and to pass on the techniques to others in order that the momentum of its usage is sustained. Hence our target groups are as follows:
Target groups:
- The immediate target groups, are both those responsible for policy and management at whole-school and university level and also those responsible for delivering the educational provision - Head Teachers, senior managers, citizenship coordinators, lecturers, teacher trainers, youth leaders and teachers. This target group will benefit from increased knowledge and understanding of development issues and will gain the skills to become more effective educators in exploring global perspectives in the classroom and lecture hall.
- Secondary target groups are other educators, LEA advisors, the academic community and other development education practitioners and wider school and university communities. These might include parents, governors and local communities whose young people will have developed awareness about issues of social justice and equity; local businesses whose prospective employees will have a greater understanding of the global nature of business and commerce. The ultimate target groups in the UK (Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Leicestershire) are sixth formers, youth groups and trainee teachers in ITE.
- The ultimate target groups in the UK are pupils from KS3 to 5 and students in Further Education. These pupils and students will benefit from increased knowledge, understanding and skills enabling them to critically participate as global citizens in the world they will inherit. The ultimate target groups in Canada, India, Brazil and Singapore are undergraduate students.
We welcome enquiries, feedback and the use and adaptation of our sample materials. Please contact us with any enquires at mundi@nottingham.ac.uk or on 0115 951 4485
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Ground rules
Secondary School pupils
- There should be good atmosphere
- No one should feel left out
- No one should tell you what to think
- Everyone should do their best in relation to the three key challenges:
- Staying focussed
- Thinking hard
- Working as a team
Adult/Teacher education
a) That every individual brings to the open space valid and legitimate knowledge constructed in their own contexts.
We look at the world through lenses constructed in a complex web in our contexts, influenced by several external forces (cultures, media, religions, education, and upbringing), internal forces (personality, reactions, conflicts) and encounters and relationships. The image these lenses project represent our knowledge of ourselves and of the world and therefore, whether they are close or far from what is considered 'normal' they have a history and their validity needs to be acknowledged within the space.
b) That all knowledge is partial and incomplete
As our lenses are constructed in specific contexts, we lack the knowledge constructed in other contexts and therefore we need to listen to different perspectives in order to see/imagine beyond the boundaries of our own lenses.
c) That all knowledge can be questioned
Critical engagement in the project is defined as the attempt to understand where perspectives are coming from and where they are leading to (origins and implications). Therefore questioning is not an attempt to break lenses (to destroy or de-legitimise perspectives), but to sharpen and broaden the vision.
| Where does our knowledge come from, and where does that lead us? |
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OSDE procedures for an enquiry
Secondary Schools
- Looking at PERSPECTIVES: images, film, cartoon, song, story.
- Drawing or writing your First Thoughts/ reflecting on the stimulus and sharing it.
- Generating questions or selecting questions from those provided that interest you.
- Voting on a question/s to discuss
- Discussing questions
- Optional Responsible Choices activity
- Sharing what we have learned - final thoughts plenary
Procedures for adults/teacher education
- Engagement with stimulus (prompting cognitive dissonance) and airing of views in pairs.
- Informed thinking - where to find out more
- Reflexive questions - individually (related to own perspective)
- Open Space questions - in small groups (focus on different logics and power and origins and implications of perspectives)
- Responsible Choices - in small groups (decision making processes related to the theme)
- Debriefing (reflection on learning process and quality of the space)
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 Facilitation Technique
The idea is to create an atmosphere of trust and openness where the 'being' of an individual is separate from his/her doing, seeing and saying. As a participant (being), an individual needs to feel safe and free to explore their lenses within the space (even things they are and aren't allowed to say or think in a normal situation). Individuals will be accepted and respected and asked to justify what is expressed. Facilitators are responsible for creating a supportive atmosphere of equality and commitment to a learning process of exploration. Only in extreme circumstances they are advised to silence or exclude participants on the grounds of their
perspectives if they are deemed unacceptable for the setting, this will of course vary.
The role of the facilitator is:
- To open and close the space
- To create the right atmosphere by modelling behaviour
- To help focus when necessary
- To offer different interpretations
- To balance the mood of the space (celebration/cynicism)
- To act as devil's advocate when the tendency of the group is to agree or see only through one perspective (to challenge consensus)
The opening and closing of the space is a necessary 'ritual' - especially to mark the return to other modes of engagement in schools. The opening ritual establishes the level of relationship of the group, therefore, a strategy that creates a closer environment is necessary (e.g. facilitator eye contact with members, a warm welcome, etc). The closing ritual starts with the debriefing of the learning process (last stage). Props can also be used to mark the opening and closing of the space (an activity, an object placed in the middle of the room, cards distributed to participants, special song or statement at the start and end of the session).
There is still a debate on whether facilitators should express their own perspectives to the group and take a more active role in the discussion. As a general rule, it is advisable that they should refrain from doing so until they feel confident that participants are not going to take the facilitator's perspective as the prescribed truth they need to agree with. This might require familiarity with the methodology and the ethics of the space on the part of students.
The way facilitators create the space and relate to participants is determinant in the quality of the learning process, participation, and the level of ownership the group is allowed to have over the process. The ideal scenario is that, the role of the facilitator disappears as participants get used to the methodology and start to mediate the dialogue by themselves.
For a summary in booklet format please click here to download the OSDE Booklet (.PDF 2.5MB) or contact MUNDI or CSSGJ for a copy.
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