Co-author: Lois Alston
The time has come. You have been put in charge of creating some sort of professional development (PD) or professional learning (PL). Perhaps you feel overwhelmed by all of the options you have when it comes to how to run the event. Who should be presenting? How will I convince them to join us? What if no one is interested in what the speaker has to offer? How can I keep the participants engaged?
If you are not sure how to proceed, we encourage you to think about the best model to follow for your specific goals.
What is an unconference?
As the name suggests, it's most certainly NOT a conference. An unconference seeks to do away with that which is wrong with the traditional conference model. That's not to say that conferences do not have their place. You would use an unconference when you want to tap into the expertise that already exists in your organization.
Rather than setting the topic and agenda in advance, an unconference will leave the sessions to the attendees to create. For some, this will be refreshing, but others are likely to feel uncomfortable with this change.
Why should you consider the unconference?
What important resource does a traditional conference tend to ignore? The traditional conference ignores the audience. We all intuitively know how bad of an idea it would be to ignore the needs of your audience when seeking to provide them with opportunities to grow. So, if you're looking to harness the power of the audience, consider abandoning the old model and going with something new.
If you have ever attended an EdCamp, then you have already experienced an unconference. Recently, I attended my first EdCamp. It's a shame it took me this long to get to one. The content was valuable, but what really caught my attention was the creative model that this event followed. EdCamps use the "unconference" model.
An unconference is not perfect for every situation, but it just might hold the key to building a better professional learning event for your situation. Read on below to see how this model might fit into your next event.
What are the Pros & Cons?
Pros:
- When the audience picks the topics, they are likely to connect more with the content.
- The potential for the unexpected allows for a greater range of topics.
- Depending on the pool of participants, you can have people contributing who don't normally work together.
- Team members feel empowered as no single person is the "sage on the stage." Instead, everyone's personal experience is given equal weight.
- Promotes spontaneous conversations between educators as they get to connect with other educators in and outside their own school district.
- More flexibility with unexpected topics that come up last minute as sessions are added to the session board.
Cons:
- If you want a specific topic discussed, you will be disappointed by this format.
- Session times are typically a lot shorter than your traditional conferences.
- There can be less structure during breakout sessions. Conversations are more free flowing.
So How Is It Done?
If you’ve made it this far, you’ve probably decided that the unconference is worth giving a try. So let’s dive in to see how to get started. (The following assumes this unconference will take place in the educational setting so venues and catering are not mentioned) We will explore the following steps in detail:
- Select a Theme - Think “Essential Question”
- Craft an Invitation - Allow for attendees to post possible topics
- 5-15 Minute Whole Group - Explain the process and remind group of rule of 2 feet
- Allow Time for Session Creation - Attendees create their sessions
- Sessions Begin - Move from session to session
- Regroup - Bring group back together for brief recap
Step 1 - Select a Theme
As mentioned earlier, think of this as the essential question for your unconference. By framing the theme as an essential question, we are promoting discourse which is an essential part of this process. Consider something like this:
Strategy “XYZ” - Should it be used in K-5 classrooms?
Step 2 - Craft an Invitation
There are two important sub-elements to this step:
The invitation needs to emphasize the unique opportunity for interactivity that they will have.
Attendees should have the opportunity to begin inputing ideas for sessions
This idea board could be a Google Form, Google Doc, Google Site, or whatever method you prefer to use to collaboratively build a list. It would be a good idea to broadcast the current status of ideas a few times while reminding them to input any and all ideas.
This is a great opportunity to begin infusing the informal spirit that makes the unconference so special. This is a brainstorming phase and all ideas should be allowed and encouraged.
Step 3 - Whole Group Meeting
This is the time when we indoctrinate the attendees into the unconference model. Look for a way to make this stand out from the beginning. Think “Shatter the mold.” For instance, many attendees are expecting an entirely intellectual experience. Perhaps, begin the day with a “physical” team building challenge.
For instance, I recently experienced an activity during a meeting where groups held hands and had to keep a balloon in the air without letting go of each other. This short activity (and others like it) work well to break the ice and allow you to address the topic of teamwork and collaboration. You then explain how the event will progress including how they are to begin creating a session board which is step 4.
Step 4 - Session Creation
At this point, your attendees will make use of what ever system you choose for schedule the session slots. Often times this is done with physical items like sticky notes or note cards. There should be a few people that take these physical items and transpose them into a digital version that is available to the attendees.When complete, be sure to make mention of the rule of 2 feet and how important it is to: A) feel comfortable using it and B) not to feel insulted if someone leaves their session.
What is the rule of 2 feet?
“If you aren’t contributing or learning or having fun where you are now, use your two feet.” The nice thing about this rule it gives participants greater flexibility. It allows you to choose how you want to use your time, and it gives you an opportunity to leave a session and move to another one, if you feel it's not for you after visiting the first part of the breakout session.
Bonus Tip - Encourage Social Engagement:
If you can manage to have a giveaway, consider using a social media hashtag as a way for your attendees to enter into the drawing.
Perhaps the prize could be a book related to the theme, but the attendees need to post to the social media platform that you mention and use the hashtag you specify. The main goal of this is to incentivize your attendees to share their experiences with their social communities.
Step 5 - Sessions Begin
Use this opportunity to check in on the sessions. Your role here isn’t to manage the sessions but to:
Seed the discussion if necessary
Encourage the rule of 2 feet. Your entrance and exit into and out of the sessions gives attendees the “green light” to move with you.
Step 6 - Regroup
You’re almost there. Your guests are likely to be excited about the opportunity they just had and are looking forward to hearing a little about the sessions they missed. This is also the time to use the social media bonus if you decided to include it in your event.
In Conclusion
The next time you hear about an unconference in your area, such as Edcamp Jersey Shore, give it a try. They are typically free of charge, and you're given an opportunity to choose what you would like to learn. What's great about an unconference is that the setting is informal and there's ample time to connect with other educators throughout.
As educators, we should be striving to improve our own craft with the mindset of how we can serve our current students, so they can become innovators in our society. Two questions you may want to keep in mind when attending an unconference, "How do my students learn best?" and "What are some ways students can demonstrate their knowledge?" If you keep these two questions in mind when participating in the sessions at an unconference, you'll be sure to gain valuable insight and tools to make your lessons more engaging.
Let us help you plan your first unconference. Let's start small and lead by example as we venture out of our comfort zone. Click below to let us know you're interested:
References:
*(blocked in LBPS)
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