The OpenSchool, First High School on the Blockchain: The Vision.

in #openschool7 years ago

This post is the white paper (V1.0) for the OpenSchool project.
Goal: to provide quality education for free to all students over the world.


Here is how this article will be structured:  

  1. The main idea.   
  2. The on-going test of concept is a success!   
  3. The OpenSchool, an organizational structure inspired by decentralized technology.
  4. Call for teachers interested in joining the OpenSchool (and what it implies).   
  5. Call for ideas on elements to be placed in the OpenSchool charter.
  6. Steemit, the ideal platform for the development of the OpenSchool.   
  7. Ideas for further developments once the proof of concept has been solidly established.   
  8. Conclusion  


1/ The concept 


With the huge advances of communication technologies in the last two decades, new opportunities to make the world a more equal, thus a more peaceful place, have emerged.    

Big shiny words, right?    

Well, the OpenSchool wants to translate these words into real facts by attacking the root of the problem: education. This is where communication technologies kick in: Nowadays, countries of the third world have also access to fast internet connections for reasonable costs, which allows smooth video communications.    

Fluid communications between any two points around the world? Wait a minute…  

This is how we can tackle the education problems. Teachers anywhere in the world are now able to provide the best support to any student or group of students anywhere around the world. This is the Credo of the OpenSchool, and, we do this for free.

Of course, before we revolutionize the world, it is necessary for us to test the concept… Well, these past couple of months,  we did just that, and it works: @muphy, private physics teacher in The Netherlands teaches a high school classroom located in a remote area of Nigeria every Monday.

  

2/ The OpenSchool: a concept already in place.   


I have put the concept to the test by setting up a link between an ‘emitting teacher’ (me, @muphy) and a classroom of defavorised kids in a remote region in Nigeria, with the assistance of their local teacher (‘receiving’ teacher, @obamike). Every week, we meet by Skype for a 2-hour lesson in Physics.   

In consultation with the ‘receiving’ teacher who is aware of the program the students must follow, a lesson plan is set in place (here we chose ‘basics in mechanics’ ). Lessons are prepared in advance. Exercises are adapted to the level of the students and can be used as support for further discussions.   

Up to now, all lessons have been a success in terms of interactivity. The feedback of the ‘receiving’ teacher has shown that this experience is extremely useful to the students as it gives them a new vision of the subject, boosts their motivation and lets them see beyond their own cultural bubble.   

Proof of concept : check!   

So for now, the map looks like this  

  

The goal of The Openschool is to make it look more like this :  


3/ The OpenSchool, a structure inspired by decentralized technology  


The unconventional organizational structure of the OpenSchool aims at generating a spontaneous wave of international solidarity that strives independently of any single individual, organization, corporation or government.   

The novelty here is that the organizational structure is neither vertical nor horizontal. It is exponential.   What do I mean by that?   

Every teacher / tutor or school director is considered as a node of the network. Two teachers partner with each other and create a ‘pair’. One is an “emitting teacher”, the other, a “receiving teacher”. 

Together the emitter and the receiver arrange to set up the means for a good communication (fluid internet connection, computer, screen, loudspeaker, eventually beamer etc…). Once the first lessons have been carried out successfully, a link is created.  

The OpenSchool can provide financial support to the 2 partners via the donations or upvotes it receives on its posts.   


Yet, the responsibility of a pair does not stop in just animating a regular class. It also has a role in creating new links between potential partners by activating their personal network. This is how the Openschool network can expand exponentially without the need for a central organization.    

Example:  Alice from Copenhague (Denmark) is a teacher in biology.  Pim is a secondary school teacher in the suburbs of Pleiku (Vietnam). A teaching pair, already active in the Openschool initiative connects them together and help them set up a link. Now, every 2 weeks, at a regular time, Alice animates Pim’s class. Once a routine installed, and the link solidly established, Alice and Pim are now active members of the Openschool network. 

It is their turn to activate their own personal network of teachers and attempt to create new links between teachers (John, economics teacher in Sweden and friend of Alice, and Lisa, Pim's direct colleague, also in Vietnam). John and Lisa, become the next generation of active teachers and when in turn they realize how profitable this action is for the openness of their own students, become active members too, so activate their own network… and so on…    

And that's how a chain reaction of solidarity and knowledge rises across the globe…   

No government, nor institution of any kind could stop this momentum. This is the power of decentralized education, fueled by the most motivated teachers, those that are willing to go through this extra mile to make their kids grow and bloom out of their cultural bubble.  


4/ Call for teachers interested in joining the OpenSchool (and what it implies).   


Are you interested in participating in this beautiful human adventure?   

What you will gain: 

First off, you are not going to make money for yourself. But the reward is much more valuable than just cash. Imagine you, a talented teacher in your field: 

  • Inspiring kids the other side of the world and presenting them ideas they have never thought about before.  
  • Seeing in their eyes the spark of understanding when you present a concept they are not used to be taught in that way.  
  • Feeling their gratitude and that of their local teacher for your time and dedication. 
  • Feeling like you are actually truly doing something for others, and that this is not giving away money (which is usually just a patch) but your drive and dedication. Such gift on a large scale is what can solve educational issues at their root. You are making the world and better place, and you can be proud about it!   


What you will give:   

These are moral rewards that can make you feel really happy in your daily life. But involvement does require quite some dedication. Be ready for that too.   

First of all, once you have been presented to a partner teacher by an active OpenSchool member (or once you have found one yourself), You must create a link:   

  • Have one-on-one meetings between emitting and receiving teacher to get acquainted, test the internet connection, discuss of the students and the scope, and decide of a lesson structure and schedule.   
  • Solve any technical problems concerning the internet connection, the diffusion of the lesson and the interactivity of the sessions.   

Example: in the Nigerian-Dutch link, there was one lesson where connection drops were making it impossible to proceed in good conditions. The emitter teacher recorded the lesson on video and sent it to the class using Wetransfer. Funds were donated by the OpenSchool to the receiving teacher that was able to purchase the equipment needed to improve the connection (Many thanks to @Elemenya for her donation that allowed this!). The lesson that followed benefited from a much better connection, and restored interactivity between emitting teacher and classroom.    

You must also :

  • Be consistent and regular. Make sure you have the time to provide a lesson of quality on a regular basis. It cannot be just a one-off for fun: you must consider the kids the other side of the screen as your own students. You have to feel the same dedication for them as your usual ones at home.    
  • Once the link is set up and in ‘routine mode’, count about 3 hours per week of your time (1h30 preparation and admin, 1h30 for the lesson itself).  


Support from the Openschool:

The Openschool will: 

  • Upvote / resteem all posts concerning the progress of your partnership (lessons, progress, anecdotes, human stories, tips, lesson content,  etc…). The post must be tagged #openschool.   
  • Provide financial aid when required based on the funds available by donation.   
  • Provide technical support to help you in setting up a lesson, in setting up the internet in your own school (@muphy and @Obamike on discord). As the number of nodes increases, so should the number of people able to help you.   


5/ Call for ideas on elements to be placed in the OpenSchool charter.


The ultimate goal of the Openschool is to allow students around the world a free access to great teachers from all around the world. In order to make sure that this objective remains constant while the Openschool grows, it appears important to define a kind of charter.

The charter will need to be concise and simple, and reflect the decentralized humanistic approach expressed in this post.

When the time comes, we should have one ready. @obamike and I will be reflecting on it, but if any of you feel like contributing a draft or share some ideas, please give it a go!


6/ Steemit: an ideal platform for the OpenSchool   


Have you noticed how in the last 50 years, decentralized network technology has revolutionized our lives? 

First you have the Internet, that allows direct communication between two individuals whatever their location around the world. The best part is that even if a large fraction of the network is down, the communication link can remain open.   

Then, you have blockchain technology that layers onto it and provides the next step in this decentralized revolution: it does so by excluding from an exchange between individuals, financial or otherwise, parasitic middle men and the abusive handholds of authorities.

Steemit provides an amazing environment where decentralized initiatives like the OpenSchool can bloom. Remember, the idea is to create an unstoppable wave of human solidarity and knowledge that remains independent from official institutions, governments, foundations or corporations.

When links are set between two ‘rich’ countries, no funds should normally be necessary: Fast internet connections and IT equipment are common and inexpensive. However, when one or both sides of a link are located in less fortunate countries, a financial support may be required to establish a reliable link. 

This is why we call on all Steemians to:   

  • Delegate Steempower to the @openschool account. 
  • Donate SBD or Steem to the @openschool account. 
  • Follow the @openschool, resteem and upvote our posts and resteems.      


7/ Ideas for further developments 


The Openschool project is in its infancy, and will remain so until the proof of concept has been solidly established by a multiplication of solid links.    Yet, there are some ideas worth exploring for when the time comes: 

There will be a calling for web-designers to build an interactive website: 

  • Where emitting and receiving teacher could register themselves with topics of expertise, student level, availability etc… browse through the database and contact each other. 
  • With a forum where teachers can interact and help each other. 
  • With a blog to relate the human adventures that will rise from this initiative. 
  • Tips, tricks and support. 
  • A compilation of free downloadable software tools useful for the lesson (like for example, OBS and virtual cam).   

There will be a calling for developers to launch an ICO to:

  • Provide a source of funds for financing links and educational projects. 
  • Finance larger projects like for example real life lessons and workshops in defavorised areas, or even a network of physical open school buildings!   Feel free to contribute in the comments if you have other ideas.  

 Feel free to contribute in the comments if you have other ideas!


8/ Conclusion


This article is the first version of the OpenSchool white paper.    

It describes how we wish to implement our attempt to make good quality education a respected fundamental right whatever the location or social status of the student.    

The decentralized and exponential approach of this initiative could be the seed for a wave of solidarity and knowledge for the benefits of all kids around the planet.    

Help us make this vision a reality: 

  • Join us as teachers (emitting and receiving), 
  • Join us as organizers (tech support, development, help in setting up links), 
  • Delegate SP or donate SBD or Steem to the @openschool account, 
  • Follow the @openschool account and upvote and resteem its posts and resteems.  


Image credits:

  • Pictures of class room in Nigeria by @obamike  
  • Pictures of lesson set-up by @muphy  
  • All illustrations produced by @muphy using elements found on Pixabay.com
  • Other pictures found on Pixabay.com




Hi, I’m @muphy (see intro post), 

My life revolves around music production, teaching sciences, and discovery through travel.

You enjoyed that post?    Resteem and Upvote!

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Hi all,
From the comments, I am thrilled by so much willingness to help! This is just amazing :-)!

I realize that to get the ball rolling effectively, we need more than just teachers: The Openschool needs a management team: people willing to create the first teacher pairs and help them set up active links.

Here is a suggestion of how this could be organized:

Contact creators:
These would actively search the Steemit community and make contact with teachers in order to make them aware of the initiative. Teachers interested would join the social community (discord, telegram or other) and there, be guided by social animators and link managers.

Social animators:
Community animation is key. For example, @dexterdev asked if there is a discord community… well no… not yet… Having collaborators active on social media and animating social groups would be invaluable! They could then guide teachers that would like to join the Openschool effort towards link managers.

Link managers:
Link managers would interact with teachers and guide them in how to set a link up. I can do that for the first links, but I may get overwhelmed quite soon if I am alone doing that. In addition, link managers would suggest connections between teachers forming partner pairs.

To be honest, I am currently in a very busy period professionally (exam period, with many students). Things should clear up for me a little by end of May when I will become more available (I will only have my A-level students to take care of from then on). Then, during the summer break, that is when I could really contribute with all in making this project happen on a large scale.

Feel free to contact me on Steemchat or discord (@muphy on both), and I’ll do my best to answer promptly.

Let me add my voice here as the receiving teacher currently working with the open school project. I have gone through every bit of comment here.
The first time @muphy posted about the open school project project, I caught the vision but I must admit it was not as clear as now, or as deep as presented above. I take a deep breath now as I realized it is bigger then just two, three of four persons. It is a movement and a just course to salvage the world's education system. I believe now, even more than ever, in the vision of the open school.


Open School so far
For the past couple of months, @muphy and I have been connecting weekly for live lessons. I can't express in words how wonderful the learning experience has been for the students. I can see meaningful progress in the skills of the students courtesy of this project.
The teaching is unconventional, and beyond the scope of just understanding physics, but in furtherance to its application thereof. just as @mobbs has rightly pointed out, it is not in any way going to replace in-person education but to complement it. The beauty of the open school is that, unlike just downloading videos from youtube which is a one way communication channel, the teacher and students get to interacts at no cost. Some academy like the Khan academy are providing similar resources, but what stands out for the open school is the teacher-students interaction at no fee(to the best of my knowledge).


Gains
The curiosity of the students have been raised and they now ask questions about things they never deem fit to ask their teacher. Some they will share with @muphy in the coming week.
let me point out here that I am not their local teacher, I work as a volunteer teacher in a local primary school in the community. I came in contact with them during my exploit within the community.
Obsolete methodology is one of the major factor affecting education systems and it is a global challenge. what the open school want to achieve is to bridge the gap. You will find out that many students are just basically 'schooled' and not educated (I hope you get what I mean), and we have gone past the industrial revolution age.
The open school is also achieving global citizenship and my student feel as part of the world. The psychological effect is a positive one. And so much more...


Overall, many valid points have been raised here, and I know @muphy has started putting together the team that are willing to be build this project.
The open school is far reaching, as it is touching students from the far end and economically disadvantage places in the world.
I look forward to working with you all in any capacity.
Thank you all

Though I do think this certainly has some practical application, especially for developing countries in need of expertise, I want to emphasise that this cannot be a replacement for formal, in-person education.

Education as it stands is already suffering not just financially, but by being stuck in a completely obsolete methodology, many of which are even limited to possibly the worst, 'lecture'-type teaching strategy. Teaching hasn't changed for generations, but our world is changing rapidly by the day, and this needs to be reflected in education.

We're no longer trying to train factory workers, but innovators, and lecturing does little to help this.

Lectures are also obsolete because we have the internet, and we can acquire the same input from YouTube or other educational video sources these days for free and in our own time. When it comes to many courses in Universities for example, the only thing you're really getting is the incentive to connect with people and get an official document purely because you put yourself in so much debt - better make it worthwhile.

A teacher abroad cannot interact or engage fully with most classes if limited to watching a screen; that's not how kids function. In some older classes preparing for exams or University, this could be worthwhile, but if there's any attempt to teach the younger groups, the in-house teacher will have to play a much greater role and both teachers would need to plan intimately with each other how the class is to play out in a way that is truly engaging, diverse and variable.

This I think might be a limitation to the exponential growth idea since it would really need a mutual understanding between two individuals. Not every student is going to raise their hand when confused, and students ahead of the rest are going to feel bored as we all move along at the same pace like a factory conveyor belt.

Fundamentally, the greatest problem to address is the style of education, and I would suppose with some creative input it could be applicable to this system somehow, but right now I just don't want the world to see this as a complete replacement for poorer quality education.

A teacher with no knowledge at all is better than a fully qualified one if the former teacher can inspire and invigorate the students' lives when the latter just writes on a chalk board in silence.

Anyway, steemstem supports this regardless! Upvoted

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We have communities like steemSTEM and steemiteducation successfully running in our platform. I understand that this concept, openschool, is entirely different from other two in its way of working. It is more of a service than money-making. A continuous supply of quality education having international standards in economically backward regions can fundamentally improve the quality of a lot of lives in long run. #wafrica is such a community( But it is content curation centric). I would like to hear from @lordjames about what they can do to support @openschool from their part. I guess they are already doing great things in their region.

I'm more than happy to support your great concept in whatever way possible.

Yes, @sathyasankar, The openschool is not aimed at promoting quality content. Instead it uses the Steemit platform to spread the idea, get people involved, and eventually finance the tools required to build stable links (internet connection + IT equipment). For that, Steemit is really an ideal platform, thanks to its reward system.

More importantly, it allows to connect various parts of the world and distribute knowledge to those that need it the most in order to make their own society prosper in the future (attacking the inequality problems at the root). I believe firmly, that if the less favored see an improvement in their quality of life thanks to education, it will benefit all (including the more favored countries).

I am convinced there is a huge number of teachers out there that would be willing to contribute sharing their knowledge with kids like @obamike and I are doing. We just need to reach them and get them started. Then, it can become a virtuous cycle, where all actors work in making the community grow.

I love Steemstem! Being a scientist myself (I was a researcher, public 5 years, in industry 12 years before becoming a teacher), I find Steemstem a fantastic initiative, where I met many ultra interesting individuals via this community. Like @dexterdev, I am very much less impressed with Steemiteducation, a tag I stopped using for my educational posts.

Would you like to help us? That would be awesome. If it is not being a teacher, check the comment I added concerning giving a hand in the organisation (one doesn't exclude the other by the way). Feel free to contact me on Steemchat or Discord (@muphy).

Hi @sathyasantar.

The conversation in this thread kind of diverted to Steemstem ;-).

Let's go back to the point: Now that we have the main ideas in place with the first version of the white paper, we are working on setting up a team.

If you are still in giving The Openschool a hand, which role or roles would like to take (teacher, contact creator, Social animator, Link manager, tech support, general coordinator etc...)?

Please reflect on how much time you could dedicate to it, and how you could integrate this role in a consistent way in your life. (it can be as small as 1 hour per week, or much more, as long as it is consistent. Of course this depends on the role you would like to play, and how you see playing it).

Let me know where your reflections lead you to :-)

steemiteducation is a fishy group in my understanding. They tried to get monthly 5 SBD from every member and when asked about that they kicked me out of their discord group. Later they had to take that decision back. So don't compare steemiteducation with steemstem at least. Openschool seems a nice idea btw.

My knowledge about the community steemiteducation is very less. I was able to spot their tag even in your earlier posts. So I thought that their way of working is much similar to that of steemSTEM. I have never joined their discord channel and hence I don't even know anything about their this kind of behaviour. It is condemnable if they had kicked you out of their group.

I had read the story of @muphy and @obamike conducting a formal class through Skype last month and fascinated to learn more about openschool. I hope their vision will succeed.

I used to tag them. My mistake.

It is condemnable if they had kicked you out of their group.

So I asked 5 SBD monthly is not acceptable and I said bye. within seconds I was unable to access their channel. Later someone told me that they reversed their decision.

Thanks @Dexterdev for you discord msg. I just responded.

Great news...! ❤
A very informative and useful post...
Hope i can join this Openschool...

Thanks for sharing, dear @muphy ... 🤗😍

Thank you ❤ !
Why not? Do you have any teaching experience? Or would you like to help in the organisation?
Check the comment I added above.
Be well

Yes i have teaching experience, but only in the field of literature...
I also would be happy to help in the organisation...
Ready to help as far as I can for the better wolrd...❤

Hi @Zaimrofiqi. Thank you so much!

Now that we have the main ideas in place with the first version of the white paper, we are working on setting up a team.

Please review the paper carefully, pick which role(s) you would like to take (teacher, contact creator, Social animator, Link manager, tech support etc...). How much time you could dedicate to it, and how you could integrate this role in a consistent way in your life.

Please let me know after reading and reflecting on the info, what you feel you can and would like to contribute in helping teachers all around the world support kids all around the world!

Hi dear @muphy... you are welcome...

Ok, I'll review the paper first carefully... and then I will let you know soon...

Nice to see you again...
Best regards...❤

Wow. I LOVE what you are doing here. I look forward to your updates. Getting v1 white paper out is a big deal. Congratulations!

I can only imagine the possibilities of all the lives that may benefit.

Thank you very much for your encouragement.

I am currently running the link with the Nigeria school. This White Paper is a first step to enlarging the effort. Wish me luck in bringing more people on-board.

Teachers and Openschool organisers can change the world by promoting free education to all. The more we are, the more the Openschool has chances to succeed.

A very interesting project, it catches my attention a lot, I am a retired teacher, I know that with a little study and dedication, I can manage to inculcate.
I congratulate you for raising interest in the quality training of students from any location in the world.

Hello @nayibe,
That would be great! Let me know what topic, and what level range, you would like to teach. I'll put you on a list, and when there is a match to make a pair, I'll contact you for a Skype discussion. If you have any questions feel free to contact me on Discord or Steemchat (@muphy).

Always help in primary school children. In the areas of literature and social sciences.

Hello @Naiybe,

Thank you! I will put you on the list.

I will post soon a little video showing how the lessons work out, and how you can set things up. Could you send me a discord message telling me about yourself and your teaching experience (or here in the comments if you don’t mind being public)?

Do you have a discord community @muphy ?

Excellent question! Unfortunately no.

Your question triggered my need to post an extra paragraph on the practicalities (see the comment I added above with a suggestion for the organisation). What do you think about this organisational structure?

Would you like to contribute by creating a community of Discord and animate it? The Openschool would definitely need this kind of help!

First of all, thank you for the reply. I am really impressed by this concept of openschool.

What do you think about this organisational structure?

I will take some time to go through this article and get back to you.

Would you like to contribute by creating a community of Discord and animate it? The Openschool would definitely need this kind of help!

I think I can be a part of such a community. But as I said, let me go through this again. This project seems very promising.

This is a great initiative, I'll pen this down now and take a look at it again to see how I can support. I have deep experience in teaching math and got the skills of teaching even to educationally advantage children. I hope to gift this skills in helping others round the world.

Hi @Lordjames, thank you so much in proposing your teaching skills. Shall I put you on the teacher list? For what level range?

well done. Blockchain and any technology based on blockchain = Justice, Security and Peace.
good luck.

Thank you.
I would add... Freedom.
Hopefully, these initiatives will develop further as the Blockchain Tech gets to the masses :-)

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