Newcastle University

Project:

Developing the Potential of Retired Skype Mediators ("Sykpe Grannies")

From January 2011 to June 2011
Project Leader(s): Jill Clark
Staff: Ian Hall, David Leat, Sugata Mitra
Contact: Jill Clark
Sponsors: Beacon Fund

Background

Professor Sugata Mitra is well known for his work on using ‘Hole-in-the-Wall’ computers in India. This innovation has evolved into Self Organised Learning Environments (SOLES), in which 4 children work with one computer (linked to the internet) to answer ‘hard’ questions set by a ‘curious’ facilitator. This has been trialled in India and NE England and educational improvements are eye-catching. To enrich the SOLES, Sugata has recruited 50+ mediators or ‘Skype grannies’, mainly retired people (nearly all women) from the UK and beyond who work with the school students in supervised mediating sessions (SOMES).

These ‘Skype grannies’ (SGs) are volunteers and they offer to revolutionise the concept of education, especially in ‘remote’ and disadvantaged areas (both geographically and culturally) which exist in all countries. There are plans to recruit many more volunteers as the SOLE concept is developed.  CfLaT is working with Professor Mitra to marry the SOLE concept with enquiry- based learning and he has asked CfLaT to develop a support structure for the mediators. This proposed project will communicate with these Skype mediators and having found out more about them, work with them to develop ideas and plans for how best to support their continued and developing commitment to online mediation. 

The ‘Skype grannies’ do not yet constitute a formal group – they are out there, somewhat ad hoc and unconnected to each other. As the numbers are growing, we are uncertain of ultimate numbers but we know that over 200 have volunteered and about 50 are fully registered. We will interact at a web-based level in two ways: firstly through an online survey and secondly through the expansion of a dedicated web-based community area. This virtual space will have facilities and functions such as weblogs to enable regular reflection, message boards for the sharing of good practice, etc., etc. This area and the survey will involve all the volunteers (approximately 200). We will also interact more intensely with a sample of 30 fully operational mediators via telephone (or Skype) interviews (worldwide) and at a face-to-face seminar with 20 UK-based mediators.

Project Aims 

The project aims progressively:

1.  To find out more about this vital population  - their characteristics, motivation, qualifications, experience and ambitions;
2. To work with them to identify and overcome barriers to their participation in educational facilitation especially in ‘remote’ and ‘disadvantaged’ areas;   
3.  To explore with them what infrastructure  they need to support, reward and extend their engagement work;
4. To identify the training needs of the SGs
5. To publicise their existence and their work in order to encourage more 50+ citizens to volunteer.
6. Through the web-based community area and the seminar we intend to create the beginnings of a community of SGs, which can be pursued if further funding becomes available;
7. To present the findings from the project to the Faculty EBs and University EB, with some suggestions, in order to stimulate strategic thinking about the infrastructure and any ‘accreditation’ that might be offered;
8. To consider a new name – does Skype Grannies offend or reinforce?

 The project is an important stepping stone in a fast moving context. SOLES are attracting a lot of interest. Other bids (to European funding bodies) are being made to develop the technology, develop organisational logistics and research the students’ educational outcomes. Through these funds an infrastructure can be developed to sustain the role of SGs in SOLES – but importantly we need to place the SGs at the heart of the project and consult with them to know what support they need and what barriers they face. This proposed project will allow us to do that.

Project Plan 

We have put a significant resource into this project (35 days of RA time). To justify this time and money we need to make this project work for us in terms of publicity, publication and creating a vital building block for the development of SOLES. Therefore our work will, by design and necessity, generate data and information that will play an important role in evaluation. 

The online survey, telephone interviews, web-based area and the seminar all provide data that gives immediate success in delineating the characteristics, experiences and ambitions of the SGs. A significant measurement of success will be validation by the SGs when this report is sent to them for comment, and their active participation in the seminar. 

At a practical level the outcomes will be fed into funding bids for the SOLE concept and research and these bids provide a further outcome measure. A significant outcome indicator is the response from Faculty and University Executive Boards. Will they be persuaded of the value of mediators both to school and potentially university education? Will they permit and support a reward system for mediators which fits with their aspirations and needs?

The project will profile retired people in a very positive light – making use of technology in the process of making a difference to disadvantaged and remote communities (geographically and culturally) overcoming some barriers to social exclusion. It also provides a chance for one or both universities to develop infrastructures and rewards that can advance a very innovative and effective form of public engagement that improves social, economic and cultural life, thus achieving one of the aims of the Beacon partnership.