STUDY CIRCLES AND COMPUTER CONFERENCING
by Norman D. Kurland

[Reproduced with permission from the October issue of THE ELECTRIC PAGES, an electronic magazine serving primarily the State of Texas. Published by National Information Systems, Inc., P.O. Box 2550, Austin, TX 78768. Phone: 512-472-6432] -----

Study Circles are a new-old form of adult learning that adapt well to the newest form of adult learning: on-line courses and computer conferencing.

WHAT IS A STUDY CIRCLE?

A Study Circle is a stimulating, informal, and inexpensive way to learn through shared group effort and experience. The Circle members run their own small group, assisted by a trained facilitator. They learn what and where they want, and are responsible for their own success.

WHAT DO CIRCLES DO?

A Circle generally has five to fifteen volunteers who meet regularly to learn about a chosen topic. A trained facilitator helps the group set and meet its learning goals. The members learn from their own resources, including shared experiences, and from prepared materials and outside expertise.

WHO PARTICIPATES?

Participants have included senior citizens, teenagers, working parents, homemakers, employees at all levels, teachers, government workers, the unemployed, students in independent study programs, and citizens concerned with public issues.

WHAT DO THEY STUDY?

Circles have been conducted on almost every conceivable subject, but the most popular have been ones on parenting, money management, retirement planning, and local, national and international issues.

WHERE DO CIRCLES MEET?

Circles meet wherever participants can find comfortable and convenient space: in homes, libraries, community centers, churches, union halls, businesses, and classrooms in schools and colleges.

WHO STARTS A CIRCLE?

A Circle may be started by any individual or organization. All that is required is an interest in learning something, a willingness to bring together a few others with similar interests, and someone trained as a facilitator.

HOW DO FACILITATORS HELP?

o by being trained in group process

o by helping everyone to contribute

o by clarifying and summarizing discussion

o by resolving differences and moving the group toward consensus

o by suggesting occasional review of process and progress



HOW DO FACILITATORS GET TRAINED?

The Study Circle Consortium provides training for trainers of facilitators. Those trainers can then train facilitators locally. Three days is required to train a trainer and two for facilitators. An initial group of facilitators is trained at the same time as the trainers.

WHAT IS THE STUDY CIRCLE CONSORTIUM?

The consortium is a group of individuals and organizations who want to foster Study Circles as a significant way to learn and solve problems. It is a forum for the exchange of information and skills, and sharing of materials and other resources. It provides encouragement and facilitator training. It publishes an occasional newsletter and is planning a national conference in 1986. It is headquartered in the New York State Education Department, where it got its start several years ago.

HOW DID CIRCLES ORIGINATE?

Study Circles were developed in Scandanavia. In Sweden, one out of three adults takes part in Circles each year. Governmental subsidy helps to encourage participation. In the United States, Circles were originated at the end of the nineteenth century by the Chautauqua Institution in western New York. It was from there that the idea originally was taken to Sweden. Other groups have had similar approaches to learning such as Bible study groups, the League of Women Voters, the Great Books Program, and many other self-directed study and action groups.

Many businesses are using a variant of the Circle approach called the Quality Circle. First widely developed in Japan as a way to improve productivity and product quality, the idea has spread widely in this country as well. Quality Circles put the emphasis on solving specific problems, while Study Circles put the emphasis on learning.

HOW ARE CIRCLES BEING USED FOR PUBLIC POLICY DISCUSSION?

The Domestic Policy Association (DPA) has chosen Study Circles as one format to engage citizens in the discussion of major national issues. Each year the DPA selects three issues for discussion by concerned citizens. It publishes an issues book on each of the topics and encourages organizations throughout the country to bring people together to discuss the issues. Participants fill out ballots at the end of the discussion, which are summarized locally and nationally and the results presented to key decision makers.

The issues this year are:

1. The Soviets: What is the Conflict About?

2. Taxes: Who Should Pay and Why?

3. Welfare: Who Should be Entitled to Public Help?

The DPA has published a brochure: "The Study Circle in The National Issues Forum."

HOW DO CIRCLES RELATE TO ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION?

The discussions in computer conferences have many of the same characteristics as Study Circles. Both consist of a small number of people who are interested in a common topic; both are "learner-centered" since it is the participants who decide what, how and how much to learn; both are informal since there is no "curriculum" or set of learning objectives to be met, nor any predetermined structure; and both occur at times convenient to the participants.

Many computer conferences even have someone who performs the facilitator function--sometimes this role evolves "naturally;" sometimes a member of the group is specifically designated as a facilitator or "moderator."

HOW CAN ELECTRONIC CIRCLES BE USED?

Because of the similarities, computer conferences can be thought of as "electronic study circles." In recognition of this concept, in October the DPA began an experiment to determine if the forums could be conducted via computer conferencing. A discussion on the welfare topic was begun on The Source (see NIF-WELFARE). In the first week discussion was spirited and extensive. The experiment appears already to have demonstrated that this medium lends itself nicely to the kind of discussion the DPA is trying to promote.

Another application of the Electronic Study Circle is in distance-learning programs. In those programs, students receive their instruction from an instructor via mail (correspondence study), or television, radio, telephone, and, now, computer. The key factor is that the students are separated from the instructor and, usually, from each other both in space and time. One of the key problems in distance education is overcoming the loneliness of the long-distance learner. The Electronic Study Circle is one answer to this problem. Online, both students and instructors can learn together without having to be in the same place or even online at the same time. As the numbers of persons using the media of all kinds for instruction grow, it can be expected that the Electronic Circle will be more widely used.

HOW CAN I GET MORE INFORMATION?

Information about Circles and about facilitator training may be obtained by writing to: The Study Circle Consortium, Room 5A47, Cultural Education Center, Albany, NY 12230.

Information about the National Issues Forums may be obtained from: Domestic Policy Association, Study Circle Program, 5335 Far Hills Avenue, Dayton, OH 45429.

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Author's note: Norman Kurland, a consultant in education and
telecommunications, is a founding member of ENA and has for several years
been active on several networks including NYIT, The Source, and
Compuserve. He is Chair of the Study Circle Consortium and Director of
the Telecommunications Management Program at the State University of New
York at Albany.