31 KiB
Knowledge Hydrant
- Knowledge Hydrant
Introduction
A study group can make a difficult book easier to understand, it can succeed where an unsatisfying class fails, and it can support you if your environment doesn't support your ongoing learning and growth.
A study group is a collection of individuals who meet regularly to improve their understanding of some non-trivial subject, like a body of great literature, by participating in dialogue.
The authors and architects of the original pattern language understood that individuals vary in how they obtain knowledge. Some don’t have a lot of time and want to gain knowledge as fast as possible. Others prefer to extract as much knowledge as they can by pondering a work’s every paragraph and page. Still others prefer to study a work’s visual elements–its photographs and sketches–before diving into the words.
There are 21 patterns in this pattern language. They are grouped into four sections called Spirit, Atmosphere, Roles, and Customs. As you study the patterns from each section, consider the structure of this language: * the patterns from the Spirit section, at the beginning of the language, help to define the study group's core, its spirit of learning. The patterns that follow this section, in Atmosphere, Roles and Customs, are all intimately tied to the earliest core patterns and serve to re-enforce them*.
Concepts
| Concept | Meaning |
|---|---|
| [Great] Literature | Piece of information in it's original form, un-destiled, no summarized, etc. |
Summary
1. SPIRIT
After identifying a great source of knowledge in a subject, work to create a rewarding, intellectually safe environment for the study of that subject.
- KNOWLEDGE HYDRANT
- POOL OF INSIGHT
- SAFE PLACE
- ENDURING ENERGY
- KINDRED COLLABORATORS
2. ATMOSPHERE
Establish a home for the study group that is centrally located, comfortable, aesthetically pleasing, and conducive to dialogue.
- COMMON GROUND
- PUBLIC LIVING ROOM
- INTIMATE CIRCLE
- VIRTUAL SPACE
3. ROLES
Lead and energize the group, come prepared, and help guide dialogues so that they are insightful and productive.
- ENTHUSIASTIC LEADER
- MOTIVATED MODERATOR
- ACTIVE PARTICIPANT
- PREPARED PARTICIPANT
- DISTINGUISHED PARTICIPANT
4. CUSTOMS
Follow customs that will re-enforce the spirit of the group, piquing participant's interest in dialogues, accommodating different learning levels, making the study of literature easier, recording group experiences, and drawing people closer together.
- OPENING QUESTION
- SEQUENTIAL STUDY
- AGENDA
- SUBGROUP
- STUDY CYCLE
- DISTRIBUTED DIARY
- AFTER HOURS
1. Spirit
1.1 Knowledge Hydrant
. . . where can one obtain knowledge in its fullest, unfiltered, unsimplified, form?
This ignorance about great literature is widespread. It exists today primarily because several important ideas about great literature have been forgotten. These include some of the following facts:
- The hard work put into the study of great literature is worthwhile because it ensures that people retain the knowledge they wish to obtain
- Great literature is much easier to understand when it is studied in an intelligent sequence (4.2 SEQUENTIAL STUDY)
- It is easier and more rewarding to study great literature with other people (1.2 POOL OF INSIGHT))
Discover the great literature in your profession or area of interest—the finest books, articles, and speeches ever written—and then begin an earnest study of these works.
So how do you find the great literature worthy of study? Ask people. Ask knowledgeable people which authors they like, what are their favorite books, what profoundly influenced them?
After identifying the works, form or join a study group (1.2 POOL OF INSIGHT), order the works to be studied (4.2 SEQUENTIAL STUDY), and compose an 4.3 AGENDA.
1.2 Pool of Insight
. . . once you've discovered your KNOWLEDGE HYDRANT, it can be overwhelming to drink from it. This pattern suggests how to make the study of great literature easier and more rewarding.
To obtain the fullest understanding of great literature--to penetrate its meaning – it is tremendously helpful to read and study a work on one's own and then engage in meaningful dialogue on the work with others.
In dialogue, people get the chance to learn from themselves and from their colleagues. In communicating how they understand something, people may:
- clarify what confused others
- expose their own misunderstandings
- reveal new ideas
- articulate that which they didn't know they knew
There is a spirit present in dialogues that one doesn't find in many other learning environments. Frequent meetings help sustain this spirit. When a group doesn't meet frequently, it can struggle to keep its momentum and enthusiasm; lively subjects and debates can fade between meetings, and if people miss just one meeting, they will be absent for a very long period. Many groups sustain a group's spirit by meeting weekly or biweekly.
Group study also helps motivate people to learn, especially when they are no longer officially "in school." A reading assignment every week or every other week can help individuals continue to learn while balancing work and family life.
Read and study literature on one's own, but discuss it with others in a regular study group. Aim to ask questions about what you don't know and explain what you do know. Your exchanges with colleagues will enrich your understanding immensely.
The best study groups are those in which individuals feel comfortable learning with others (1.3 SAFE PLACE).
Atmosphere plays an important role in a dialogue. Some environments promote dialogues (2.1 COMMON GROUND, 2.2 PUBLIC LIVING ROOM) and some don't.
The most enriching study happens when a group has a MOTIVATED MODERATOR and PREPARED PARTICIPANTS...
1.3 SAFE PLACE
It is so important that a place of learning be a safe place. People need to feel that they can experiment, or be wrong, for almost everyone becomes uncomfortable if they fear that anything they say will be harshly criticized. When places of learning have highly critical or judgmental natures, an individual's ability to learn can easily be compromised.
In dialogue, participants must be comfortable to ask questions, even illogical, overly simple, or silly questions. It is the group's task to handle such questions in such a way that individuals aren't stifled, or embarrassed, but encouraged to continue learning.
All participants within a dialogue need to help establish the safe place. Usually, it is up to the MOTIVATED MODERATOR to be especially vigilant. With great diversity in a group-- people who are provocative or reserved, skeptical or generous, newcomers or veterans --it is very easy for study group sessions to become unsafe.
Maintaining a safe place is easier if a group establishes customs. Such customs can help participants and moderators know what to do when different types of discord arise
Establish a warm, tolerant, polite and focused environment in which individuals help each other and where everyone is comfortable to ask questions and make mistakes.
1.4 ENDURING ENERGY
It's fairly easy to start a study group. But keeping it going, so that members are active, dialogues are insightful, and the group is long-lived, is another matter altogether.
A study group's energy initially comes from its founder. If the founder is genuinely interested in creating a thriving, long-lasting POOL OF INSIGHT, to improve himself and his community, the group will start life with a powerful energy. But if the founder is merely interested in short-term gains, or personal recognition, the group will be short-lived.
Frequent Meetings
It is difficult to maintain any sort of flow, or continuous energy, if a group doesn't meet very often. When a group is studying a body of knowledge, a month between meetings is usually far too long for people to maintain focus and enthusiasm. Therefore, have the group meet weekly or bi-weekly. These frequent meetings will allow a group to study effectively, and may lead some members to become KINDRED COLLABORATORS.
Hour Meetings
A one-hour meeting is typically not enough time for a group to have an insightful dialogue on a piece of literature. But three hours is too much time, since most participants can't actively engage in dialogue for that long. Therefore, limit dialogues to a maximum of 2 hours, and if energy has waned significantly before that time, finish the meeting early.
Short Breaks
At a certain time in a dialogue, a group's intensity, focus and effectiveness will begin to diminish. If the group doesn't take a break at this time, the quality of the dialogue may begin to deteriorate, and people will become uncomfortable. Therefore, allow for a short (ten or fifteen minute) break in the middle of a study group session, to let members reflect, chat, use the restrooms, and prepare for the next half of the dialogue.
Equally important, is a group's meeting quarters, since the location and space will play a huge role in sustaining a group's energy. People need to be excited about attending a group.
Create study groups out of genuine enthusiasm to study a subject in-depth. Meet weekly or bi-weekly for two hours, and have a short break in the middle. Choose a meeting location where people will enjoy passing time, and study only those writings which are worthy of the group's attention.
1.5 KINDRED COLLABORATORS
Join or form a small group that meets regularly and studies ideas that are important to you. As you get to know people, valuable, career-enhancing collaborations will develop.
2. ATMOSPHERE
2.1 COMMON GROUND
People want to connect with others but aren't willing to do so in settings that make them feel uncomfortable. Location plays a vital role in the life of a group.
Oldenburg's thesis is that people need informal public places where they can gather, put aside the concerns of work and home, relax, and talk. Germany's beer gardens, England's pubs, and French and Viennese cafes created this outlet in people's lives, providing a neutral ground where all are equal and conversation is the main activity.
Hold public study groups where diverse individuals will all be on common ground. The best locations are easy for people to get to, but not too close to their offices or homes.
2.2 PUBLIC LIVING ROOM
Great locations for study groups resemble large, comfortable living rooms. There are various types of chairs that may be rearranged, perhaps a sofa and rugs, some lamps or other warm lighting, and windows. When people feel comfortable they forget about themselves and may freely engage in dialogue.
Some of the best locations are quiet, aesthetic places that invite reflection: a centrally located cafe, a spacious gallery or bookstore, a room with a magnificent view, or some nook or corner of a hotel or lodge.
Place each sitting space in a position which is protected, not cut by paths or movements, roughly circular, made so that the room itself helps suggest the circle - not too strongly - with paths and activities around it, so that people naturally gravitate toward the chairs when they get into the mood to sit. Place the chairs and cushions loosely in the circle, and have a few too many.
Choose a warm, spacious establishment where people will enjoy mingling before and after study sessions, where there is comfortable, rearrangeable furniture, plenty of warm lighting, and a variety of foods and drinks.
2.3 INTIMATE CIRCLE
Awkward seating arrangements alienate people and thwart a group's ability to work together. The best configurations allow participants to easily see and hear each other. Yet many establishments don't provide either the furniture or space to make this happen, or don't let groups rearrange the furniture.
...people will feel oppressed, both when they are either working in an undifferentiated mass of workers and when they are forced to work in isolation. The small group achieves a nice balance between the one extreme in which there are so many people, that there is no opportunity for an intimate social structure to develop, and the other extreme in which there are so few, that the possibility of social groups does not occur at all. ... In our own survey of attitudes towards workspace -- taken among workers at the Berkeley City Hall -- we found that people prefer to be part of a group that ranges from two to eight. When there are more than eight, people lose touch with the group as a human gathering.
Choose a location with ample room, many tables and chairs, and the freedom to rearrange the spaces to form rough circles or ovals that may dynamically expand or contract.
2.4 VIRTUAL SPACE
Without an online presence, a study group will lack a cost-effective way of advertising its existence, organizing events, staying connected and attracting new members.
The trick to building a good site, is to avoid loading the site with too much content that will regularly change, and to enlist the group's participants to maintain the content that will need routine updating.
If the study group keeps a DISTRIBUTED DIARY or provides feedback to authors, it is a good idea to post this material to the site, for the edification of group members, and to foster online dialogue. For conducting such dialogues, a simple, group email server or service (such as eGroups) is useful. AGENDA are particularly helpful for members and non-members of a group and are therefore best placed on the site. A good agenda will span several months, giving people the chance to plan their schedules and study readings prior to group meetings (3.4 PREPARED PARTICIPANT).
Establish an online presence where the study group's mission, activities, and DISTRIBUTED DIARIES are posted, where members may continue dialogues, or chat, and where prospective members may learn more about the group.
3. ROLES
3.1 ENTHUSIASTIC LEADER
When a group doesn't have a leader who is passionate about the subject and determined to nourish and maintain its energy and culture, a group can languish, and possibly not survive.
The best leaders are those who are genuinely enthusiastic about a group's mission. Such individuals will lead by example and seek to make the group thrive, through continuous improvement.
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Leaders will help ensure that AGENDAS are kept up to date, and that the readings being selected are worthy of the group's attention.
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To inspire a group, a leader may plan special events at which authors or leading scholars visit and participate in dialogues (DISTINGUISHED PARTICIPANT).
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To help keep a group informed and to attract new faces, a leader will help produce an informative Website (VIRTUAL SPACE) and will encourage others to invite new members to the group.
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Should other groups attempt to subsume the group, the leader will step in to either prevent a take-over or to explore the idea with the group.
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If a group's meeting location is no longer working for a group, the leader will work with others to help find a more suitable location.
Lead study groups by example and with enthusiasm. Make them places where people want to be, and invite the greater community to participate. Energize members with stimulating events, virtual dialogues, and seek to continuously improve the group by listening closely to member's ideas.
3.2 MOTIVATED MODERATOR
Without a moderator, dialogues may wander aimlessly, arguments may erupt, people may talk on top of each another, and a group may fail to ever explore an author's deeper meanings.
The following practices define what good study group moderators do:
Prepare thoroughly
When a moderator doesn't prepare thoroughly for a session, when he or she doesn't read thoroughly, or discover important questions about a reading, or understand a moderator's responsibilities, the quality of a dialogue may be compromised. **Therefore, moderators must prepare thoroughly before sessions and understand how to effectively moderate **.
Ask the opening question
Asking challenging, penetrating questions about a reading is essential to establishing engaging, enlightening dialogue. Therefore, moderators must discover important questions, and ask and re-ask these questions at the beginning and throughout a session OPENING QUESTION.
Resuscitate deteriorating dialogues
Dialogues can deteriorate easily: they can slow to a crawl, fail to be engaging, get way off track or become too argumentative. Therefore, moderators must promptly diagnose problems and resuscitate dialogues accordingly.
Handle side conversations
A group may effectively participate in only one discussion at a time. Therefore, side conversations must promptly be quieted or politely postponed.
Refocus by reading
Inattention to an author's words can produce lengthy, unproductive, off-topic conversations or can lead to wayward arguments that would cease to exist if a group merely studied a relevant passage. Therefore, to refocus a group on an author's content, moderators may read significant passages out loud.
Let people speak
Active participants (i.e. people who talk a lot) or veteran members of a group, can sometimes make it hard for less active, or newer members of a group to effectively participant in a discussion. Therefore, when participants struggle to join a dialogue or get a word in edgewise, moderators must step in and give these individuals opportunities to be heard.
Challenge groundless criticism
Non-specific or detail-free criticism, like "I just didn't like it", fails to enlighten anyone and isn't helpful to a dialogue. Therefore, * moderators must challenge groundless criticism*, often by asking individuals what exactly they disliked.
Rotate Moderators
A moderator who really knows a particular piece of literature and also knows how to moderate, is a lot better than a moderator who only knows how to moderate but doesn't know the literature. Therefore, rotate moderators, particularly when individuals are expert in various readings, but also to give others a chance at playing the role.
Background Requirements
It's great if everyone participates in a dialogue, provided that everyone is on the same page: if an individual is clearly way over his or her head, it may mean that the individual needs to catch up to the group by studying some previous papers or books. Therefore, moderators must gage whether participants are dragging a group down with unrelated or unnecessary questions, and if they are, the moderator needs to politely tell the participant to do some homework or form or join a SUBGROUP.
Elucidation Statement or Questions
If a part of a group simply isn't understanding something, and it is holding back the rest of the group, or the misunderstanding is leading to more confusion, something needs to be done to clarify the confusion. Therefore, moderators must be aware of what is confusing people and either ask questions that will help clarify the point or clearly explain the point.
Politeness & Patience
Rude behavior within a study group must never be allowed. Therefore, the moderator must make the peace, and get all members to understand that all members need to respect each other, regardless of whether or not they agree.
Moderate dialogues by asking penetrating questions, keeping dialogues focused, balancing diverse personalities, and helping group's increase their understanding. Give all members a chance to moderate, but let them choose when they want to play the role.
3.3 ACTIVE PARTICIPANT
Anyone who is a member of a study group, or wants to join one, can find something lacking in an existing group: the meeting location, the number of people who attend, the literature being studied. Few of these things are incapable of change. However, too many people fail to realize that they can actively change a group, helping mold it to meet their needs
Each group is really shaped and managed by both its ENTHUSIASTIC LEADER and its regular participants. If the leader and the participants work together, they can make the group a powerful educational center for every participant.
Being an active participant doesn't just mean getting your needs met. It also means helping others to get theirs needs met - and this can have a tremendous effect on the group's lifespan.
Actively and patiently shape a study group by seeing to it that the group meets your needs. Work with the group's leader to introduce change, and create customs, like SUBGROUPS, to make it easier for the group to accommodate diverse needs. Actively help others, particularly newer members of a group, so that the group meets their needs and so that they become valuable participants in the larger group.
3.4 PREPARED PARTICIPANT
When individuals don't study prior to a dialogue, they either add nothing to the dialogue, or add too much. The unprepared participant may ask questions that are off-track or elementary or may contribute ideas that misguide rather than further a productive inquiry.
If a group chooses to study some piece of literature, a participant who thoroughly prepares will actively read and note:
- what they did and did not understand
- what they thought were key points
- what they did not agree with
- what ideas related to other writings
- how the work could be improved
Now it is not common for all participants within a dialogue to prepare thoroughly. So what does a group do when an unprepared participant is thwarting a dialogue? Since dialogues can handle only so many superfluous contributions before they begin to sour, prepared participants need to be vigilant and assist a dialogue's MOTIVATED MODERATORs in assertively keeping things focused, civil, and productive.
Another technique, which is far from optimal but sometimes necessary for groups with busy professionals, gives people time to read and discuss passages when the group meets. This does not usually give a group a chance to get a deep understanding of a reading, but it can be a way to launch a dialogue if few have had time to prepare.
Study literature thoroughly prior to each study session. Select great literature for study since people will be more motivated to study it over lesser works. Make each reading assignment manageable -- not too small or too large, but commensurate with a group's abilities and the density of each reading.
3.5 DISTINGUISHED PARTICIPANT
Individuals who are distinguished in their fields often lecture to large audiences. These lectures tend to be far less educational–for the lecturer and the listeners–than a good dialogue.
Veteran educators Dani and Jerry Weinberg are fond of a quote from a friend who once described the lecture method as "a way of getting material from the teacher's notes into the student's notes--without passing through the brain of either one." ([Weinberg1999], p. 1)
For study groups, it is optimal if a distinguished individual comes to participate in the group's dialogue as an equal member.
Invite distinguished people to attend a study group and participate in dialogue. Such individuals will energize the group, and help foster great dialogues. Let everyone in a group have an opportunity to participant in dialogue with such an individual, either by forming larger-than-normal circles, or by scheduling multiple study sessions over the course of weeks or months.
4. CUSTOMS
4.1 OPENING QUESTION
A dialogue is set in motion by an opening question. When the question is good–when it reveals subtle meanings, inherent contradictions or far-reaching consequences–people within a group can become aware of what they don't understand, thereby paving the way for learning.
...They should be questions that raise issues; questions that raise further questions when first answers are given to them; questions that can seldom be answered simply by Yes or No; hypothetical questions that present suppositions the implications or consequences of which are to be examined; questions that are complex and have many related parts, to be taken up in an orderly manner. ([Adler1983], p. 175)
Begin dialogues with an opening question or series of questions that penetrate into the heart of a reading, puzzling and/or challenging participants, and leading a group to search for a work's most profound ideas. Let people volunteer to ask the opening question, and encourage them to record their questions to improve them over time.
4.2 SEQUENTIAL STUDY
Because authors refute each other, extend each other's ideas, and subtly reference each other, readers can easily miss or misunderstand important connections when literature is not studied in chronological order. Some literature may be quite unintelligible if is studied out of order.
Study literature chronologically for maximum comprehension: the order will help illuminate how authors were influenced by each other, thereby rendering references to older works more intelligible.
4.3 AGENDA
Create and publish an agenda with at least 3-6 weeks worth of planned meetings. Allow the agenda to be revised, with some lead-time, to accommodate special, unexpected events or the study of newly discovered works.
4.4 SUBGROUP
Study groups can reach a size where they are no longer effective. In addition, not everyone within a study group is at the same level or knowledge, or is interested in studying the same subjects.
The following list provides some reasons for forming study groups:
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Too many people show up: The quality of a dialogue may deteriorate if a group gets too large: people who are generally comfortable talking may become shy around so many other people, or the INTIMATE CIRCLE may need to grow so large that folks won't be able to see or hear one another. Therefore, when a group grows beyond a reasonable size (e.g. 10 people), consider forming an impromptu subgroup.
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People want to study different literature: As study groups mature, older members advance beyond foundational literature into more specialized or current literature that rests upon the foundational literature. Without understanding this foundational literature, newer members of a group can feel lost or intimidated, and their participation may actually hinder an advanced dialogue. Therefore, to accommodate different levels of experience, form ongoing subgroups that focus on different books, subjects or STUDY CYCLES.
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Someone may want to study something relevant that no one else is studying: If this happens, an individual may feel discouraged, believing that it won't be possible to engage in an ongoing dialogue without interest from others in the group. The opposite is the case. Therefore, encourage the individual to form a subgroup, create an AGENDA, publicize the new subgroup's existence ( using the group's VIRTUAL SPACE), and begin the study process alone, while the other subgroups are meeting.
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A study group needs new members: As a study group matures, newer members will want to join, but will have a hard time participating if the group is already studying advanced or specialized literature. Therefore, create subgroups of varying levels, which newer members may join to become part of the larger study group.
Form subgroups when groups become too large or when members are interested in different tracks of study. Give each subgroup an agenda, and publicize each group to attract new members. Let everyone choose which subgroup they wish to attend.