同世界各地一样，自1990年代中期，瑞典的远程教育利用现代信息和通讯技术（ICT）得到长足发展。其实，远程教育在瑞典由来已久。自1898年第一所函授学校创建以来，远程教育就在成人教育中起着重要作用。后来，其他函授学校纷纷效仿，1960年代，按人口比例，瑞典的远程学生人数位居世界前茅。当时——1960年代——瑞典的人口约为750万，而最大的函授学校注册学生达到100,000人。
不过，1960年代末，全国各地都兴起了成人教育学校(komvux，一种成人高中或中专)，而且全部免费。这改变了原来函授学校的状况，它们或关门大吉，或规模锐减。
在1990年代之前，远程教育主要以教师和每位学生的信函为基础。然而，这种形式只适合最有雄心最有毅力的学生。但是，现代信息和通讯技术的突破改变了这一切。自此，学生可以以小组或班级的形式接受远程课程。随后，远程教育经历了复兴——在大学和成人教育领域都如此。
当然，也有现代远程课程——在瑞典，如同世界各地——学生独自面对课程网页，孤立于其他学生。这些课程像传统的函授学校，只不过使用了更现代的技术。此类课程给学生最大程度的自由，因为学生可以在自己想学的时候学，以自己的节奏前进，不受其他学生影响。
然而，如同传统函授课程一样，此类学习仅适合少数学生，这些学生比一般学生更自力更独立自强。此外，此类课程无法使学生与其他同学互相学习，互相支持。还有，这种课程未向学生提供机会通过学习小组扩展自己的知识和理解，而在学习小组，学生们对课题有着共同的兴趣、共同的目标来理解该课题，而并非仅为考试而学习。
瑞典大学和成人教育提供的大多数现代远程课程都可供每位学生参与到其他学生小组中。然而，对于学生聚会及协作的强调程度相去甚远。
深层次理解
当学习协会提供远程学习圈时，其核心是聚会和协作。此类学习圈重新打造了参与者之间的远程聚会，以便创造更灵活的学习条件，深入理解，使学习者之间有效支持。
当学习的目的不再局限于为了正式考试而机械重复学习，为了达到深层次理解，以聚会为基础的学习是建设性学习过程之根本。“深层次学习是获得更高等级的技能，例如分析、诠释、评判信息，而非简单地聚集、复制、描述。深层次学习是整体性的，通过整合事实来产生理解进而得到深化，而非以累积离散的事实为特点的着重细节的学习”(Entwistle&Ramsden,1983;Hill等2002)。
Biggs(1987)认为深层次学习是由学习者的积极参与促进的；参与是由互动支持的“情感的投入，互动发生在社会背景中，例如小组学习。Lipman(1991)强调这种社会背景——小组学习——是培养“质疑群体”的地方，对于培养个人更高层次的批判性思考能力和深层次学习，是不可或缺的。只要有分析、批判性讨论的需求，很多学生就需要团队来获得对话题更深入的理解。
Tait(2000)所定义的“学生支持”有三大主要功能，其中之一：“情感支持”功能，小组对于创造这一功能也非常重要。“情感支持”功能即“提供环境、支持学生、创造投入感、加强自信”。
虚拟聚会点
1990年代中期，瑞典的一些民众高中和学习协会开始发展ICT支持的远程课程。自1996年起，随着普公共虚拟会议网络“FolkbildningNet”（民众共修网）(www.folkbildning.net)的建立，这种发展本可以在更大规模上得以继续。该网络对所有学习协会和民众高中开放，也作为一种教学工具用于远程学习——或“灵活学习”（灵活学习的说法在瑞典更常见）。
这种发展一直得到政府的鼓励。例如，一个公共权的官方机构——瑞典灵活学习中心（CFL），在2002年至2008年期间，起到举足轻重的作用。CFL由政府建立，意在鼓舞激励成人教育中ICT应用的发展。CFL与成人教育工作者合作，以便积累基于实践灵活学习知识经验，并将其编写为系列报告，在会议或研讨会上探讨。CFL还为民众高中和学习协会提供ICT教育的免费教师培训、技术和方法支持、项目基金等等。
灵活学习
有些远程课程全部在线授受，参与者之间并不聚会。然而，民众高中和学习协会提供大量ICT支持教育其实是在线和面对面聚会的混合。这就是它之所以称为“灵活学习”的原因之一。
在很多小组中，面对面的聚会在开始非常重要——在部分参与者首次参与远程课程时，尤其如此。许多人对于计算机和互联网仍然相当不习惯，如果在开始就遇到太多技术障碍，他们可能有退出的风险。因此，在课程开始之前，教师就学生的计算机技能等方面收集信息，并在开始阶段仔细观察潜在的问题，至关重要。
当然，未必总能够安排面对面的聚会——甚至在瑞典也不可能，尽管瑞典比中国小多了。
时空上的自由
在教育中使用ICT的基本理念是课程参与者在时空上享有一定的自由度。但这种自由并非不受限制。如果你想创建参与者能够真正和其他人“聚会”并且彼此学习的小组，你需要恪守一些基本条件：
——每个小组的参与者必须大约同时注册开课，以大概相同的进度学习。
——每个小组不能太大。
——当有面对面聚会时（除非是完全在线课程），参与者需要在这些晚上、白天或者这几周在场。
因此，远程学习圈不可能完全自由。如IngemarSvensson在瑞典灵活学习中心（CFL）和全国成人教育委员会（FBR）所发表的文集中写道：
“我们不能误导参与者，让他们误以为远程学习意味着他们完全有自由决定何时学习，如何学习。如果我们想打造紧密连接的、以密切度和对话为基础的小组，参与者和课程领导都必须准备好定期登陆，阅读回复信息，否则无法形成对话。太多延误，数天或数周，通常导致虚拟对话停滞不前，或者变成双方的自说自话。会谈中，越来越多的平行讨论，杂乱无章，会导致对话破裂，最终使之成为数个独白”(Axelsson等，2004)。
聚会的重要性
你可以说在“民众共修”中，每位学生或者参与者对于团队进程太重要，不容他们独立。在上述文集中，编辑写道：
“自然而然地，‘民众共修’的灵活学习以紧密关联的小组的归属感为基础。在远程‘民众共修’中，你不必单独面对学习。绝不是只有你和电脑，总是你和其他人。在‘民众共修’的方法中，这种不言自明的原则是根本，构成了远程‘民众共修’意欲提供的高质量的教学法至关重要的基础。
而为什么情况如此，也显而易见。这是以‘民众共修’关于知识增长的基本理念为基础的，在此理念下，人们可以根据自己的求知欲自由自愿地聚在一起，以便在民主对话中耕耘知识。因此，聚会是必要的……”(Axelsson等，2004)。
创造顺利聚会的良好条件
为了重新创造良好的远程聚会，你需要创造环境使参与者形成紧密交织的团队，他们在其中可以互相学习。每个团队要足够小，这样每位参与者可以活跃其中，也要足够大，使参与者之间形成积极互动。那么，何谓“足够小”，何谓“足够大”？这当然取决于学科和参与者，例如他们是否是残障人士，但通常每个小组最好至少10名参与者，不超过20-30人。
如果参与者可以自由提出各种问题，表达自己的观点——但同时也表现自己的无知，那么小组不可能太大。
你还需要计算机应用程序，让参与者可以简单而直观地参与在线讨论。应用程序还必须易于使用，这样，只要有基本计算机经验的教师都可以用虚拟学习室的所有资源进行管理。在很多机构，远程课程的教师已经将虚拟“教室”标准化。但是，大多数学习圈的领导喜欢更具灵活性。
在普通学习圈中，参与者和领导规划他们自己的学习。远程学习圈也应如此。因此，当瑞典学习圈领导就如何成为优秀的远程成人教育者接受进一步培训时，他们也学习如何根据自己的喜好、学科及参与者的要求来设计虚拟学习室。
咖啡馆
教师们也可以利用“咖啡馆”来得到远程交流的“软起动”，尤其是当学生们对虚拟论坛的数字式通讯不熟悉时。如IngemarSvensson在文集中所写：
“那么，你如何使用咖啡馆？如我前面所说，在咖啡馆开始课程的软启动是很不错的想法，对教师/领导和参与者进行介绍，并引入介绍性的社交对话。你已经强调了咖啡馆在课程主要会议中的作用，一旦参与者准备好了，你可以在课程主论坛中启动学习进程。而咖啡馆中剩下的就是聊天，轻松漫谈，如果你想维持该活动，也应该保持轻松的小范围交谈。想让咖啡馆讨论经久不衰的教师通常会犯一个错误，那就是在咖啡馆上课，而且停不下来，他们以这种或那种方式急于不断地就课程主题进行交谈。这个方法准能使参与者对咖啡馆失去兴趣。
在线研讨会
灵活而愿投入精力的教师
然而，教师需要在场。这和面对面聚会的普通小组一样。教师并不滔滔不绝——也不应该滔滔不绝。然而，教师需要在场，在需要提供建议、鼓励、支持的时候随时在场，甚至间或讲解。
所有教育中最重要的因素——在远程课程中当然也是如此——是投入的教师和学习圈领导。“民众共修”中的这些人大概就属于投入最多的教师和领导，尤其是因为他们大多数都受非政府组织的事业影响，在思想意识上受到激励，而这些非政府组织正是学习协会的奠基者。
部分优势
大约15年前，当有些学习协会开始组织ICT协助的远程课程时，颇多争议。大部分学习圈领导不相信可以重新再造良好的远程聚会。然而，随着实际经验逐渐积累，越来越多的人已经明白这可以实现。
但是，事情并非自动发生；教师和学习圈领导通常需要特殊培训。课程也未因此而变得更便宜。主要原因是你要想小组中有生动的对话，就不能有太多参与者。作为教师，小组进行所有讨论时，你都必须在场。
另一个优势是在虚拟学习室，几个讨论可以同时并行。在普通的学习圈聚会或在教室里，一次仅能一人发言。在虚拟学习室，当你“发言”时，你不会干扰任何人。
第三个优势是在虚拟学习室“发言”提供更多的阅读和书写训练，因为沟通主要以文本为基础。在上述文集中，Gothenburg大学的RogerSaljo写道，文本是思考之源：
更多积极的参与者？
实践经验表明，民众高中和学习圈的理念可以在远程课程中得以实现：生动的对话，不断发展的小组进程，参与者的自信得以加强。实际上，远程与面对面聚会相结合似乎效果最好。证据之一就是此类课程辍学率很低。
远程课程的经验也表明，与普通课程的参与者相比，远程参与者更积极。原因如下：
——参与者自己决定何时学习，何时积极参与以及积极参与的频率。这增强了他们的积极性。
——更多参与者可以更积极，在其他人“发言”时，他们不必等待。同时，教师可以不那么强势。
——更多平等对话。不论信息来自教师还是参与者，看上去都相同。每个人积极发言的机会相等。
——对教师而言，更容易提供个性化支持，更容易与每位参与者交往。
——如果参与者病了，要想赶上进度，也更容易。因为所有讨论都保存在虚拟学习室里。
一个特别的例子……
也有很好的例子表明，此类基于聚会的远程课程行得通，哪怕参与者文化背景不同，母语不同。此类例子之一是2005年由两个独立的学习圈组成的联合跨国学习圈，这两个学习圈分别位于罗马尼亚和瑞典。该学习圈远程运作完全是以瑞典民众共修网为技术平台，以英语为共同语言。
“开始时，我们不知道在这样两个迥异的小组之间是否真得会产生良好而颇有成效的聚会。瑞典学习圈的参与者只有男性，大部分年龄在50岁以上（有一位例外），对于当前欧盟的民主和提议的宪法相当怀疑。而罗马尼亚学习圈的参与者主要是年轻的大学生，对于即将成为欧盟一员充满期望。当我们写这份报告时，我们总结8周来学习圈的所有活动，我们可以确定在整个期间，对我们基本问题以及其他话题的讨论一直很积极、开放、自由、充满批判性。对于问题，总有不同意见，但是讨论者一直都彼此尊重，讨论本身引人入胜。
我们都一致认为这种活跃在线的学习圈活动是人们推进欧洲民主的好方法，人们来自欧盟各地，尽管不能面对面但却可以在网上聚会。我们也看到在成人教育中发展或进一步发展公民教育以之作为建立、强化、保卫民主的方法的重要性。我们看到，这种资源必须由政府或欧盟提供，而教育本身必须由NGO来进行，这些NGO有强大的民众支持，我们也看到，侧重于学而非教的学习圈方法值得嘉许。”
结束语
民众高中教师和学习圈领导已经逐渐意识到，在现代ICT的帮助下，可以创造良好的远程学习条件。他们也意识到可以创造虚拟论坛，让参与者聚会，互相学习，彼此有效支持。而且，越来越明显，远程学习未必非得是退而求其次的解决方案，与面对面的课程相比，远程学习自有特点。
引申，反思……
——中国和瑞典远程教育之间有何异同？其原因可能是什么？
——如果您安排远程课程，并且强调小组之间高度合作，理想的参与人数是多少
——中国远程课程中是否有“茶馆”，其运作如何？
——像罗马尼亚和瑞典之间的联合学习项目在中国是否可行？例如，在中国小组和瑞典小组之间是否可行？大家可能会对哪些课题感兴趣？
等等
参考文献：
Lars-ErikAxelsson与他人（共同编辑），《folkbildning.net——关于民众共修教育及灵活学习的文集》。瑞典全国成人教育委员会和瑞典灵活学习中心出版。2004年第二版（该章节英文版《folkbildning.net——关于民众共修教育及灵活学习的文集》可以从www.pub.folkbildning.net/English_Anthology_II下载).
Biggs,J.B.(1987).Studentapproachestostudyingandlearning.《学生的研究与学习方式》Hawthorne,Victoria:AustralianCouncilforEducationalResearch.《澳大利亚教育研究委员会》.
Lipman,M.(1991).ThinkinginEducation.《教育中的思考》英国剑桥剑桥大学出版社.
Hill,J.&Woodland,W.(2002).AnEvaluationofForeignFieldworkinPromotingDeepLearning:apreliminaryinvestigation.《对国外促进深层次学习的实践评估：初步调查》Assessment&EvaluationinHigherEducation,Vol.27,No.6.CarfaxPublishing.《高等教育评价与评估》，第27卷，第6篇，Carfax出版社.
Entwistle,N.J.&Ramsden,P.(1983).UnderstandingStudentLearning.《理解学生学习》London:CroomHelm.
Tait,A.(2000).PlanningStudentSupportforOpenandDistanceLearning.《对开放和远程学习中的学生支持的设计》OpenLearning,Vol.15,No.3,pp.287-99.《开放学习》第15卷第3篇，pp.287-99.
来自瑞典-罗马尼亚学习圈的报告，该项目名为“欧洲财富——通过民众的主动性和成人教育启动欧洲教育财富”(2005).
Studycirclesatadistance（SerialⅣ）
——themeetingbetweentheparticipantsisrecreatedonInternet
TorePersson&GaoShuting
（Continuedfrompage85，No.2,2011）
LikeelsewhereintheworlddistanceeducationinSwedenhasdevelopedsincethemiddleofthe1990'susingmoderninformationandcommunicationtechnology(ICT).ButdistanceeducationactuallyhasalonghistoryinSweden.Ithasplayedanimportantroleforadulteducationsince1898,whenthefirstcorrespondenceschoolstarted.Othercorrespondenceschoolsfollowedlaterandinthe1960's,Swedenhadoneofthelargestnumbersofdistantstudentsintheworldinproportiontothepopulation.Atthattime-inthe1960's-whenthepopulationinSwedenwasapproximately7,5million,thelargestcorrespondenceschoolhadforexample100.000studentsenrolled.
However,attheendofthe1960'sadulteducationcolleges(Komvux,highschool/secondarylevelforadults),weresetupalloverthecountryandallsuchstudiesweremadefreeofcharge.Thatchangedthesituationfortheoldcorrespondenceschoolsandtheyhadtoeithershutdownorreducetheirbusiness.
Untilthe1990s,distanceeducationwasmainlybasedonlettercorrespondencebetweentheteacherandtheindividualstudent.However,thatformonlysuitedthemostambitiousandpersistentstudents.Butthebreakthroughofmoderninformationandcommunicationtechnologychangedallthat.Sincethen,ithasbecomepossibletohavedistancecourseswherethestudentsworktogetherinsmallgroupsorclasses.Consequently,distanceeducationhasexperiencedarenaissance–bothwithinuniversitiesandwithinadulteducation.
Thereareofcoursemoderndistancecourses–inSwedenlikeelsewhereintheworld–wheretheindividualstudentisalonewiththecoursewebpages,independentofotherstudents.Thosecoursesfunctionliketheoldcorrespondenceschools,theyjustuseamoremoderntechnology.Suchcoursesgiveyoumaximalfreedomasastudent,becauseitallowsyoutostartyourstudieswheneveryouwantandproceedinyourownpace,independentofotherstudents.
However,aswasthecasewiththeoldcorrespondencecourses,thatkindofstudiessuitsonlyasmallnumberofstudents,whohavetorelyonthemselvesmuchmorethanordinarystudents.Besides,suchcoursesdonotgiveyouthebenefitoflearningandgettingsupportalsofromotherstudents.Furthermore,theygiveyounochancetodevelopyourknowledgeandunderstandingthroughdiscussionsinastudygroupwherethemembershaveamutualinterestforthesubjectandacommongoaltounderstandthesubjectandnotonlystudyforatest.
MostofthemoderndistancecoursesinSweden,offeredatuniversitiesandwithinadulteducation,arecourseswheretheindividualstudentjoinsagroupofotherstudents.However,thedegreeofemphasisonthemeetingandthecollaborationbetweenthestudentsdifferquitealot.
Deepunderstanding
Whenstudyassociationsofferstudycirclesatadistancethemeetingandthecollaborationisatthecentre.Insuchstudycircles,themeetingbetweentheparticipantsisrecreatedatadistanceinordertocreatemoreflexiblelearningsituations,deeperunderstandingandgoodlearnersupport.
Whenthepurposeofthestudiesisnotlimitedtomechanicalreproductionofinformationforaformalexam,meeting-basedlearningisfundamentalinaconstructivelearningprocessforreachingdeepunderstanding."Deeplearningistheacquisitionofhigherorderskillssuchasanalyzing,interpretingandevaluatinginformationratherthansimplyamassing,reproducinganddescribingit.Deeplearningisholistic,deepenedbyanintegrationoffactstoproduceunderstanding,ratherthanatomistic,characterisedbytheaccumulationofdisparatefacts"(Entwistle&Ramsden,1983;Hilletal.,2002).
Biggs(1987)regardsdeeplearningaspromotedbyactivelearnerparticipation;theparticipationisan"affectiveinvolvement"whichissupportedbyinteraction,andtheinteractiontakesplaceinasocialcontext,suchasgrouplearning.Lipman(1991)highlightsthatthissocialcontext–grouplearning–istheplaceforthedevelopmentofa"communityofenquiry",whichisessentialforthedevelopmentofhigherlevel,criticalthinkingskillsanddeeplearningwithintheindividual.Inthepracticalexperienceswithinfolkhighschoolsandstudyassociationswecanfindsuch"communitiesofenquiry"intheirsmallstudygroups.Wheneverthereisaneedforanalysis,criticaldiscussionsetc,manystudentsneedthegrouptoreachadeeperunderstandingofthetopic.
ThegroupisalsoimportanttocreatewhatTait(2000)definesasoneofthreeprimaryfunctionsoflearnersupport:the"affective"function,thatis"providinganenvironmentwhichsupportsstudents,createcommitmentandenhancesself-esteem".
Virtualmeetingplaces…
Inthemiddleofthe90'ssomefolkhighschoolsandstudyassociationsinSwedenstartedtodevelopedICT-supporteddistancecourses.Thatdevelopmentcouldcontinueatalargerscalefrom1996withtheestablishmentofacommonvirtualconferencenetwork,the"FolkbildningNet"(www.folkbildning.net).Thatnetworkisopentoallstudyassociationsandfolkhighschools.Itisusedasapedagogicaltoolfordistancestudies–orfor"flexiblelearning",whichisacommonterminSweden.
Withthehelpofthe"FolkbildningNet",studyassociationsandfolkhighschoolstrytobridgethegeographicaldistancesbetweenparticipantsandcreatevirtual"meetingplaces"wheredeeplearningcantakeplaceandwheretheparticipantscansupporteachother."FolkbildningNet"isalsousedasaforumforsharingexperiencesandasasupportnetworkforteachersandstudycircleleaderswhoworkwithdistancecourses.
ThebenefitsofmodernICT-baseddistanceeducationareobvious:itmakesitpossibleforpeopletotakepartineducationwithouthavingtobeincertainplacesortostudyatcertainhours.Distanceeducationisnotonlyforpeoplelivingfarawayfromeachother.Itisalsoapossibilityforpeoplewhoforsomereasoncannotparticipateinstudieswithregularmeetingsorinfulltimestudies.
Thegovernmenthasencouragedthisdevelopment.Forexample,apublicauthority,TheSwedishAgencyforFlexibleLearning(CFL),playedforafewyears,2002-2008,animportantpartinthisprocess.CFLwasestablishedbythegovernmentinordertoencourageandstimulatethedevelopmentofusingICTinadulteducation.CFLcooperatedwithadulteducatorsinordertoaccumulateknowledgeaboutflexiblelearningbasedonpracticalexperiencesandpresenteditinaseriesofreportsandatconferencesorseminars.CFLalsoofferedfolkhighschoolsandstudyassociationsfreeteachertraininginICT-basedteaching,technicalandmethodicalassistance,projectfundsandsoon.
Flexiblelearning
Therearedistancecoursesthattakepartentirelyonlinewithouttheparticipantsmeetingeachotherface-to-face.However,alotoftheICT-supportededucationwithinfolkhighschoolsandstudyassociationsisactuallyamixtureofonlineandface-to-facemeetings.Thatisoneofthereasonswhyitiscalled"flexiblelearning".
Inmanygroupsitisimportanttostartwithaface-to-facemeeting–especiallyifitisthefirsttimeforsomeoftheparticipantstotakepartinadistancecourse.ManypeoplearestillquiteunaccustomedtocomputersandInternetandiftheyencountertoomanytechnicalobstaclesinthebeginningtheyruntheriskofbecomingdropouts.Therefore,itisimportantfortheteachertocollectinformationfromtheparticipantsbeforethecoursestartsabouttheircomputerskillsetc,andalsotobeveryobservantofpossibleproblemsduringthestart-upperiod.
Freedomintimeandspace
ThebasicideabehindtheuseofICTineducationisthatthecourseparticipantscanhaveacertaindegreeoffreedomintimeandspace.Butthatfreedomisnotunlimited.Ifyouwanttocreategroupswheretheparticipantsarereally"meeting"andlearningfromeachotheryouneedtosticktosomebasicconditions:
–Theparticipantsineachgrouphavetojointhecourseatapproximatelythesametimeandproceedwiththestudiesatapproximatelythesamepace.
–Eachgroupcan'tbetoobig.
–Theparticipantsneedtobepresentatthoseevenings,daysorweekswhenthereareface-to-facemeetings(unlessitisacourseentirelyonline).
–Asinordinarystudycircles,theparticipantshavetounderstandtheimportanceofsharingknowledge,experiencesandideaswitheachotherandtogiveeachothersupport.Atthesametime,theyalsoneedtobecriticalandkeepahighqualityintheirdialogues.
–Theyhavetosetaminimumamountoftimesaweek,whentheymustconnecttothevirtualstudyroomandbeactiveinthediscussions.Forexample,atleastthreetimesaweekfortheparticipants(whiletheteacherorleadershouldconnectalmosteveryday,andatleastacoupleoftimesduringmostdays).
Consequently,therecan'tbeatotalfreedominstudycirclesatadistance.AsIngemarSvenssonwritesinananthologypublishedbyTheSwedishAgencyforFlexibleLearning(CFL)andTheNationalCouncilofAdultEducation(FBR):
"Wecannottricktheparticipantsintobelievingthatdistancestudiesmeanacompletefreedomtostudywhenandhowtheylike.Ifwewanttoformcloselyconnectedgroups,basedonnearnessanddialogue,bothparticipantsandcourseleadersmustbepreparedtoregularlylogon,readandanswermessages,otherwisetherewillbenodialogue.Toomanydelays,daysorweeks,easilyleadtostagnationordouble-tracksinthevirtualdialogue.Moreandmoreparalleldiscussions,inamess,inaconferencecanleadtoabreakinthedialoguesothatit,instead,turnsintoanumberofmonologues."(Axelssonetal,2004)
Theimportanceofmeeting
Youcansaythatwithin"folkbildning"eachstudentorparticipantistooimportantforthegroupprocesstobeallowedtobebyhimselforherself.Inthementionedanthologytheeditorswrite:
"Theflexiblelearningin"folkbildning"isnaturallybasedonthesenseofcommunityintightlyknitgroups.In"folkbildning"atadistance,youdonothavetobealonewithyourstudies.Itisneverjustyouandthecomputer;itisalwaysyouandtheothers.Thisself-evidentprincipleinthemethodsof"folkbildning"isfundamentalandconstitutestheheavyandvitalbaseforthequalitativepedagogythat"folkbildning"atadistancewantstooffer.
Itisquiteobviouswhythisisthecase.Itisbasedonthefundamentalideaof"folkbildning"aboutknowledgegrowingwhenpeoplecometogetherfreelyandvoluntarilywiththeircuriosityandtheirthirstforknowledge,inordertocultivatetheirknowledgeinademocraticdialogue.So,themeetingisthereforeessential…"(Axelssonetal,2004)
Tocreategoodconditionsforagoodmeeting
Inordertorecreatethegoodmeetingatadistanceyouneedtocreateanenvironmentwheretheparticipantscanformtightlyknittedgroups,wheremutuallearningcantakeplace.Eachgroupneedtobesmallenoughsothateachparticipantcanbeactiveandbigenoughtogetadynamicinteractionbetweentheparticipants.So,whatis"smallenough"and"bigenough"Itdependsofcourseonthesubjectandtheparticipants,iftheyforexamplearedisabledornot,butgenerallyyouwouldprobablypreferatleast10participantsineachgroupandnotmorethan20-30.
Thegroupcannotbetoobigiftheparticipantsshallbeabletofeelfreetoaskallkindsofquestionsandtoexpresstheiropinions–butalsotoshowtheirignorance.
Youneedalsoacomputerapplicationthatmakesitpossiblefortheparticipantstoeasilyandintuitivelytakepartinonlinediscussions.Theapplicationmustalsobesimpletousesothatanyteacher,withonlybasiccomputerexperience,canmanagehisorherownvirtualstudyroomwithallitsresources.Inmanyinstitutions,teachersindistancecourserhavestandardizedvirtual"classrooms".However,moststudycircleleadersprefertobemoreflexible.
Inordinarystudycircles,theparticipantsandtheleaderformtheirownstudies.Itshouldbethesamefordistancestudycircles.Therefore,whenstudycircleleadersinSwedentakepartinfurthertrainingsabouthowtobeagoodadulteducatoratadistance,theyalsolearnhowtoarrangethevirtualstudyroomtotheirlikingsandtothedemandsofthesubjectandtheparticipants.
Theparticipantsarenotonlyexpectedtoshareinformationandunderstandingaboutthetopicorsubjecttheyarestudyingbutalsoaboutthemselves.Thatisthereasonwhythereoftenisaspecialonlineforumcalledthe"café"asanessentialpartofthestudyenvironment(inChinaitprobablywouldbea"teahouse").
The"café"
DuringeveryordinarystudycirclemeetinginSwedenyouhaveacoffeebreak.Duringcoffeebreaks,youcantalkaboutallthosethingsthatareimportantissuesbetweenpeoplebutnotdirectlyrelatedtothesubjectyouaresupposedtostudy.Theparticipantstalkabouttheirfamilies,theirpersonalinterestsandhobbies,aboutwhatishappeninginthesocietyandintheworldetc.Indoingso,hopefullytheybecomemorecloseandtrustingtowardseachother.Inthatwayitalsobecomeseasiertocontributewiththeirownpersonalknowledgeandexperiencesrelatedtothesubjecttheyarestudying.Italsobecomeseasiertotakepartindeeperandmoreseriousdiscussionsaboutthesubject.
Ofcourse,inthevirtual"café"atadistanceyouwillnotgetanycoffeeservedbythestudycircleleader.Instead,youwillhaveaspecialdiscussionforumcalled"café"orsomethinglikethat.Whileyouinthemainforumdiscussthecoursesubject,youarefreetobringupanytopicinthe"café".Quiteoftenthoseconversationsactuallydevelopintowideranddeeperunderstandingthatbecomeimportantforthecoursesubject.
Theteachercanalsousethe"café"togeta"softstart"withthedistancecommunication,especiallywhenthestudentsareunfamiliarwithdigitalcommunicationinvirtualdiscussionforums.AsIngemarSvenssonwritesintheanthology:
"So,howdoyouusethecaféAsImentionedbefore,itcanbeagoodideatoplacethecourse'ssoftstartthere,withtheintroductionsoftheteacher/leaderandtheparticipantsandtheintroductorysocialconversation.Thenyouhaveemphasisedwhichrolethecaféshouldhave,andassoonastheparticipantsarereadyforit,youstartthestudyprocessinthecourse'smainconference.Leftinthecaféisthenthechatting,thesmalltalk,which,ifyouwanttomaintaintheactivity,alsoshouldstayassmalltalk.Teachersthathavetheambitiontokeepthecafédiscussionaliveoftenmakethemistakeofnotstoppingteachingthere,orthey,inmoraleagernessinoneoranotherway,continuechattingaroundthesubjectofthecourse.Thisisasafewaytoquicklymaketheparticipantsloseinterestinthecafé.
Instead,youtalkaboutthingsthatareclose,involvingorburningissuesfortheparticipantsthemselves,orsimplyaboutthingsthatareamusing.Youtalkaboutyourchildren,aboutlove,aboutwhatyouaregoingtodoonyourvacationorattheweekend.Youflirtabit,jokewitheachother,trembletogetherfrombeingupsetbytheinequalitiesintheworld,orsuffertogetherovercatastrophesortragedies"(Axelssonetal,2004).
Onlineseminars
Therearealsootherdevicesthanthe"café"tomakethecommunicationbetweentheparticipants,morevarying,moredynamic,moredramatic–andyes,moreflexible.Forexample,youcanusedifferentgroupprojects,whentheparticipantsduringaperiodworkmoreintensivelyinsmallergroupsorpairs.Youcanalsousesocalledonlineseminarswherealltheparticipantsduringafewdaysfocusintensivelyononeimportantorinterestingissue.Duringsuchshortperiodseveryparticipantconnecttothevirtualroommaybethreetimesadayinsteadofthreetimesaweek.
Themeetingsandtheconversationsatadistancealmostalwaysgoonasynchronously.Asastudentorparticipant,youconnectwhenitsuitsyouandyourconditions.Thegrouphasitsvirtualstudyroomandeachparticipantisfreetoenteranytimeduringdayornight.Onlyoccasionally,groupsmight"meet"simultaneouslyinachatroom.Butthen,allparticipantsneedtoagreeuponadateandhourwhenallcanconnect.
Flexibleandcommittedteachers
Youalsoneedflexibleteachers,teachersthatarewillingtoworkalsoineveningsandduringweekends–whichofteniswhentheparticipantshavetimetobeonline.Thatdoesnotmeanthatyouhavetobeconnectedatthesametime,unlessyoudecidetohavethosekindsofmeetingseverynowandthen.However,itisimportantthattheparticipantsorstudentsdonothavetowaitlonguntiltheycangetaresponsefromtheirteacherorleader.Thatiswhytheteachersshouldbeabletobeonlineatleastonceadaybutpreferablymoreoftenthanthat.
Thatdoesnotmeanthatyouasateachernecessarilyhavetoworkmorehours.However,itdoesmeanthatyouhavetobemoreflexiblewithyourworkinghours.Whendistancecoursesarenotfunctioning,thereasonoftenisthattheteacherseldomisavailable.
Ontheotherhand,theteachershouldnotbetooeagertoanswerallkindsofquestionsfromthestudents.Eachstudenthasalotofknowledge,experiencesandideasanditisimportanttomakethemfeelfreetosharetheminthegroup.Asateacher,youshouldbepreparedtogivesupporttoyourstudentswhentheyneedit,butoftenitisappropriatetowaitandlettheotherstudentsgivetheircommentsbeforeyougiveyours.
However,theteacherneedstobepresent.Itisthesameasinanordinaryface-to-facegroup.Theteacherisnotalwaystalking–andshouldnotalwaysbetalking.However,heorsheneedstobearound,readywhenneededtogiveadvice,inspire,supportetcandeventolecturenowandthen.
Aboveall,themostimportantfactorinalleducation–andofcoursealsoindistancecourses–arecommittedteachersandstudycircleleaders.Thoseworkingwithin"folkbildning"areprobablyamongthemostcommitted,especiallybecausemanyofthemareideologicallymotivatedinthecauseofthosenon-governmentalorganizationsthatarethefoundersofthestudyassociations.
Someadvantages
WhensomestudyassociationsstartedtoarrangeICT-supporteddistancecoursesaroundfifteenyearsago,whichwashighlycontroversial.Moststudycircleleadersdidnotbelievethatitwouldbepossibletorecreatethegoodmeetingatadistance.However,graduallyaspracticalexperienceshaveaccumulated,moreandmorepeoplehaveunderstoodthatitispossible.
However,itdoesnothappenautomatically;theteachersandleadersoftenneedspecialtraining.Moreover,itdoesnotmakecoursesalotcheaper.Themainreasonforthatisthatyoucannothavetoomanyparticipantsifyouwanttohaveavividdialogueinthegroup.Asateacher,youalsohavetobepresentinallthediscussionsthattakepartinthegroup.
Ontheotherhand,studiesatadistancehavesomeadvantagesbesidesthefactthatitmakesitpossibleformorestudentstotakepartinstudies.Oneadvantageisthatstudentswhoaremorethoughtfulandmayhavedifficultiestospontaneouslyexpressthemselvesinaclassroomhavemuchmoretimetothinkbeforethey"talk"inthevirtualstudyroom.
Anotheradvantageisthatseveralparalleldiscussionscangoonsimultaneouslyinthevirtualstudyroom.Atanordinarystudycirclemeeting,orinaclassroom,onlyonepersoncantalkatatime.Inthevirtualstudyroom,youarenotdisturbinganyonewhenyouare"talking".
Athirdadvantageisthat"talking"inthevirtualstudyroomgivesmoretraininginreadingandwritingbecausethecommunicationismainlytext-based.InthementionedanthologyRogerSaljo,GothenburgUniversity,writesaboutthetextasaresourceforthinking:
"Skillsasreading–andtoanevenlargerextentcreatingtextsthatdevelopargumentsandopinions–areverydemandingintellectualexercisesthatrequirequitealongcognitivesocialisationformostpeople.Butthepointinthiscontextisthateducation,fromnowon,willbeabouthowtoparticipateinatext-basedknowledgeworldwithaconceptionalandanalyticalknowledgeconcept,withwhichhelptheworldarounduscanbemadeunderstandableandcomprehensibleinnewways.Thetextalsobegantoinfiltratetheeducatedconversations.Peoplebegantocommentanddiscusssuchthingstheyreadandwerefascinatedby,inexactlythesamewayaswetodaydiscussnotonlywhatwehaveexperiencedbutalsowhatwehaveheardontheradioorseenontelevision."(Axelssonetal,2004)
Moreactiveparticipants
Practicalexperiencesshowthattheidealsoffolkhighschoolsandstudycirclescanbefulfilledincoursesatadistance:livelyconversations,developedgroup-processesandthestrengtheningoftheparticipants'self-esteem.Actually,combinationsofmeetingsatadistanceandface-to-faceseemstogivethebestconditionsforagoodresult.Aproofofthatisalsothelowrateofdropoutsfromsuchcourses.Thereasonsare:
–Theparticipantsdecidethemselveswhentheyarestudying,whentobeactiveandhowoften.Thatenhancestheirmotivation.
–Moreparticipantscanbemoreactive;theydon'thavetowaitwhilesomeoneelseis"talking".Atthesametime,theteachercanbelessdominant.
–Moreequalconversations.Themessageslookthesame,regardlessofiftheyarefromtheteacherortheparticipants.Everyonehasthesamepossibilitiestobeactive.
–Fortheteacheritiseasiertoindividualize,tomeeteverysingleparticipant.
–Itiseasierforaparticipanttocatchupifheorshehasbeensickbecausealldiscussionsaresavedinthevirtualstudyroom.
Aspecialexample…
Therearealsogoodexamplesthatsuchmeeting-baseddistancecoursescanfunctionevenwithparticipantsfromdifferentculturesandwithdifferentmothertongues.Onesuchexampleistheunitedtrans-nationalstudycirclethatduring2005wasformedbytwoseparatestudycircles,oneinRomaniaandoneinSweden.ThatstudycirclewastoruncompletelyatadistanceusingtheSwedishFolkbildningNetasthetechnicalplatformandEnglishasthecommonlanguage.
ThesubjectforthestudycirclewastheEuropeanUnionanditsconstitution.DespitethegeographicalandculturaldifferencesbetweenSwedenandRomania–andlanguageproblems–the18participantsproduced875messagesduringeightweeks.Hereisanexcerptfromtheprojectreport:
"Fromthebeginning,wewonderediftherecouldreallybeagoodandfruitfulmeetingbetweentwosuchdifferentgroups.TheparticipantsintheSwedishstudycircleweremenonly,mainlyintheageof50+and(withoneexception)ratherscepticaltotheexistingEUdemocracyandtheproposedconstitution.TheparticipantsintheRomaniancircleweremainlyyounguniversitystudentswithquitenaturalpositiveexpectationsonthecomingEUmembership.Whenwewritethisreportwecansumupall8weeksofstudycircleactivitiesandwecanestablishthatthediscussionsonourbasicissues,andonothertopics,havebeen,duringthewholeperiod,veryactive,open,freeandcritical.Therehaveoftenbeendifferentopinionsonissuesbutthediscussionshaveallthetimebeenrespectfulandexcitingtotakepartin.
Weallagreedthatthiskindofactivity,anactiveon-linestudy-circlewherepeoplefromdifferentcountriesintheEUmeet,eventhoughtheydonotmeetface-to-face,isanexcellentwayofempoweringpeopleforaEuropeandemocracy.Wealsosawtheimportanceofdeveloping,orfurtherdeveloping,civiceducationwithinadulteducationasawayofbuilding,strengtheninganddefendingdemocracy.WesawthatresourcesforthismustbegivenbythegovernmentortheEU,buttheeducationitselfmustbecarriedoutbyNGOswithstrongpopularsupportandthatthestudycirclemethod,withitsfocusonlearninginsteadofteachingthenispreferable."
Conclusions
GraduallyfolkhighschoolteachersandstudycircleleadershaverealisedthatitispossibletocreategoodlearningconditionsatadistancewiththehelpofmodernICT.Theyhavealsorealisedthatitispossibletocreatevirtualforumswheretheparticipantscanmeet,learnfromeachotherandgiveeachothergoodsupport.Andithasbecomemoreandmoreclearthatlearningatadistancedoesnothavetobethesecondbestalternative,butthatithassomequalitiesofitsowncomparedtoface-to-facecourses.
Toreflectupon…
–WhatsimilaritiesanddifferencesaretherebetweendistanceeducationinChinaandinSwedenWhatcouldbethereasons
–Whatcouldbeanidealnumberofparticipantsinyourcourses,ifyouwouldarrangethematadistanceandifyouemphasizeahighdegreeofcollaborationinthegroups
–Arethere"teahouses"inChinesecoursesatadistanceandhowdotheyfunction
–Wouldajointstudyproject,liketheonebetweenRomaniaandSweden,bepossibleinChinaForexample,betweenChineseandSwedishgroupsWhatsubjectcouldbeofmutualinteresttostudy
Etc…
Nexttimewewillwriteabouttheimportanceofstudycirclesandthestatesupport.
References:
–Lars-ErikAxelssonandothers(eds.).(2004).folkbildning.net–ananthologyaboutfolkbildningandflexiblelearning.TheSwedishNationalCouncilofAdultEducation&theSwedishAgencyforFlexibleLearning.Secondedition.(ThechaptersintheEnglisheditionof"Folkbildning.net–ananthologyaboutfolkbildningandflexiblelearning"canbedownloadedfrom:www.pub.folkbildning.net/English_Anthology_II)
–Biggs,J.B.(1987).Studentapproachestostudyingandlearning.Hawthorne,Victoria:AustralianCouncilforEducationalResearch.
–Lipman,M.(1991).ThinkinginEducation.CambridgeUK:CambridgeUniversityPress.
–Hill,J.&Woodland,W.(2002).AnEvaluationofForeignFieldworkinPromotingDeepLearning:apreliminaryinvestigation.Assessment&EvaluationinHigherEducation,Vol.27,No.6.CarfaxPublishing.
–Entwistle,N.J.&Ramsden,P.(1983).UnderstandingStudentLearning.London:CroomHelm.
–Tait,A.(2000).PlanningStudentSupportforOpenandDistanceLearning.OpenLearning,Vol.15,No.3,pp.287-99.
–ReportfromtheSwedish-Romanianstudy-circleintheproject"AwealthforEurope–ActivatinganeducationalwealthforEuropethroughCitizens'InitiativesandAdultEducation"(2005).
（TranslatedbyYangLiu；RevisedbyGaoShuting
【作者介绍】托瑞·波尔森，瑞典大众成人教育领域负责人，瑞典学习促进会协会负责人，学习圈圈长。