Innovation: one step at at time
I love making connections—especially when those are connections of connections. Two posts I read today really struck me with their similarities: whenever you are trying to make understanding from complex information or activities, you have to meaningfully break it down into easily understandable digestible parts.
Eileen McMahon introduced the idea of Scaffolding Learning:
To scaffolded the learning process you have to break a complex set of skills that are required to demonstrate mastery of a subject into a sequence of steps.
William Brah at the VDC discussed Research Clusters:
The eight research clusters UMass Boston identified after a rigorous and collaborative approach are a mechanism for diverse teams to come together to explore opportunities, exchange information and collaborate more effectively. Faculty-led committees in four of the areas have spent a year creating plans, now awaiting action by university leadership.
These research clusters of multiple departments have created some great documents on what they are doing, and have broken down their future activities into distinct bites:
- Overview of their opportunities for collaboration within the cluster
- The focus of their existing research strategies of UMass Boston
- Established and Potental Collaborations within the cluster
- The distinctive approach UMass Boston takes with its teaching and initiatives within the cluster
They have taken something really complex, and turned it into a document that will quickly align people, get them on the same, and set them loose in a coherent direction, creating innovation and synergies as they go.
Within CPCS, one of our core skills is building the skills that allow graduates to make these types of connections within their own communities. Community Building, Strategy and Engagement classes all teach students how to identify key groups, values and competencies within their communities and facilitate them—by breaking down and making meaning out of complex situations and challenges—to work together to help their community and the world beyond.
Thank you for making the connection between Bill Brah’s work with the VDC and my reflections on the learning process. We’re lucky to have someone who enjoys connecting the dots on campus.
Now, thanks to the fact that you posted your photo in your blog, I’ll be sure to introduce myself when I spot you on campus!
Interesting to meet you this way, Ben. I’m also a member of the small CPCS community, yet we’ve not officially met. I’ll be sure to say hello next time I’m in your neighborhood. It would be fantastic to utilize this tool as a vehicle for connecting more students as well, particularly during a time of building community. I, too, appreciate the power of connecting dots.