"The world of chalk paint, distress & decoupage"A connected learning environment of furniture up-cyclers.
what is connected learning?Connected learning involves people with shared interests coming together online to learn together. Ito et.al., (2013) explains that it "seeks to build communities and collective capacities for learning and opportunity" (p 7). The core properties, crucial contexts and design principles of connected learning are highlighted below: (Ito et.al., 2013) Image by author. Made using https://www.visme.co/make-infographics/ map of the Connected learning spaceImage by author. Made using https://coggle.it/ Connected learning environment - critical commentary“Technology has reorganised how we live, how we communicate, and how we learn” (Siemens, 2005) The desire of people to paint, up-cycle, improve or refurbish their furniture is nothing new. Indeed for some this exercise extends from hobby, to passion, to career. It’s an exercise built on technique, an enormous range of products and a significant amount of trial and error, and the sharing and development of ideas and knowledge is as old as the art form itself (Reynolds, 2015). The growth of technology however, has allowed for the significant expansion and sharing of ideas and skills associated with furniture up-cycling (Siemens, 2005). There now exists a vast array of online networks dedicated to people’s interest in learning, refining and honing their skills in this area (Dron & Anderson, 2014). In particular, the Facebook group “the world of chalk paint, distress and decoupage” (CPD&D) now boasts a membership of over two hundred thousand people. According to the core properties and guiding principles of Ito et.al. (2013), who coined the framework for ‘connected learning’, this network will be explored, unpacked and analysed with a view to better understanding how it functions to grow the skills, knowledge and understandings of its members and to develop shared goals (Ito, et.al., 2013). https://www.hometalk.com/36313013/clara-s-journey-desk-redo-long-post?fbclid=IwAR2VUEehsi8QzMa3VbCGvgScVOTqUbIvuCbUI4U1HP8KrL8I6-8OB3dRy6A Images reproduced with permission from the creator. Interest Driven “Learning in networks begins with our passion to learn” (Richardson & Mancabelli, 2011) A very specific interest in one kind of furniture up-cycling drives the specialised network of people who are members of the CPD&D community, and it is this interest, not personal bonds, which has brought them together (Rheingold, 2012). While the group yields a wide variety of participation and skill levels, members are connected by their passion for learning (Richardson & Mancabelli, 2011) about chalk paint, distress and decoupage, have a common interest in developing their knowledge and skills, and a shared appreciation for the aesthetics of their work. As a result, the level of engagement with the community is high (Ito et. al., 2013) and member posts frequently attract hundreds of comments. This collective interest means that people are often motivated to share their work (Dron & Anderson, 2014). Importantly however, there is no expectation of participation and new members are free to hover in the wings as spectators (Lave & Wenger, 1991), something they often do as evidenced by new posts declaring just this. This spectatorship is encouraged within the group, both by regular calls to freely display amateur as well as accomplished work, and by the regular posting not only of ‘before and after’ pictures, but series which display the process behind the product, thus providing visible avenues for success (Ito, et.al., 2013). Peer Supported “Nurturing and maintaining connections is needed to facilitate continual learning” (Siemens, 2005) An integral part of young people’s social experience is the opportunity to share ideas with each other and receive feedback (Garcia, 2014), and effective learning communities are based on this same premise (Nussbaum-Beach & Hall, 2012). Dron & Anderson (2014) note the increase in attention and learning that occurs when people are interacting with others, and indeed the opportunities for peer connection and interaction are the fundamental reason for people’s membership of the CPD&D community. The group is populated by members with significant experience and expertise as well as novices, and feedback is not only sought, but importantly is freely given (Nussbaum-Beach & Hall, 2012). The sharing of this expert knowledge through inclusive practices such as encouragement and empathy and the offering of constructive critique, which are all visible in the CPD&D network, is key to building a supportive community, and works toward creating a continuing cycle of knowledge building where individuals’ pursuit of learning works in turn to develop the knowledge base of the whole group (Garcia, 2014, Ito et.al., 2013). On an individual level, people who might not have a physical platform available to share their work in the community, are given a real opportunity by CPD&D to become aware of and hone their talent (Ito et. Al., 2013) through the system of peer support and the ability to connect with mentors. Participation in the group allows them to build their reputation and through engagement with like-minded peers, they are encouraged not only to build their knowledge base, but to expand their network across other digital platforms and help others do the same (Dron & Anderson, 2014), with members sometimes choosing to build their community through linking their posts to personal blogs, business pages, Youtube channels and Instagram pages (Reynolds, 2015). https://www.facebook.com/JKVintage18/ Images reproduced with permission from the creator. Academically Oriented “Cultivation of career relevant skills and recognition” (Ito, et.al., 2013) The orientation toward civic engagement and in this case, potential career opportunities is a powerful element of the CPD&D community (Ito, et. al., 2013). While some members are content to hone their craft for personal reasons and this is no barrier to involvement in the group, significant numbers are motivated by the desire to show and sell their work and for some, their craft constitutes their primary career focus. Garcia (2014) notes that while being production centred is an important feature of learning communities, connecting with tangible purpose, in this case the chance to sell items, provides even further motivation to learn. The availability to connect with mentors and experts (Ito et.al., 2013) allows members to be assured of the quality of their work, and posts are often related to the viability and potential for sale of certain pieces. Thus an important function of the group is also to build a standard of work and move collectively towards building an appreciation for the talents and skill of members within the community (Ito et.al., 2013). In accordance with this, participation in the group is not expected to be only for monetary compensation, but also for reputation-building and the mutual appreciation of each other’s work. Shared Purpose “Joint activities that are defined by a shared purpose, goals, or collaborative production." (Miell and Littleton, 2004 as cited in Ito, et.al., 2013) Members of the CPD&D community hail from around the world and from a heterogeneous selection of backgrounds, and are brought together by their common goals (Ito et.al., 2013) of sharing their knowledge and creations, developing their skills, and ultimately producing high-quality art work. Whilst furniture up-cycling itself is largely an individual pursuit, many members also share the collective desire to build awareness of, and appreciation for their craft within in the community, and this is linked to the goal of selling their creations. These goals are all facilitated by the dynamic environment of the CPD&D network where individual members work together to share, critique, support and encourage one another (Dron & Anderson, 2014). When individuals work together to test and validate knowledge in this way, the group arrives at more thoroughly investigated and tested collective understandings (Dron & Anderson, 2014). In the CPD&D learning community members frequently question and discuss ideas, techniques, products, finishes, sales strategies and prices to arrive at collective understandings about current best practice (Siemens, 2005). Characteristic of learning communities, these understandings are distributed throughout the group, with some members specialising in particular areas so that the knowledge base of the whole group is far greater than that of any one individual (Dron & Anderson, 2014). This shared knowledge base then works cyclically (Siemens, 2005) to further the goals of the learning community and provide opportunities for individuals to hone the skills necessary to produce high-quality artwork, which furthers their interests within the wider community.
Production Centred “Structures support and encourage creating, remixing, sharing, and curating of personally meaningful work.” (Garcia, 2014) Sharing is at the heart of connected learning (Richardson & Mancabelli, 2011), and in line with the collective purpose of creating high quality works which highlight the skill of the artists and allow for sales to reflect this, the CPD&D learning community is highly production centred (Ito et.al., 2013). Significantly, learning almost always happens through the process of ‘doing’ (Ito, et.al., 2013, p 78) and the production of pieces is often experimental in nature and may be tracked closely by the group. Member posts frequently invite critique and discussion of works in progress and displays of finished pieces celebrate the beauty and aesthetic quality of the work. Production is also encouraged in line with the design principle of connected learning that ‘challenge is constant' (Ito et.al., 2013, p 78) by regular competitions and informally by the frequent requests from members for others to show pictures of finished pieces for inspiration. Constant product innovation also means that there is a steady stream of new paints and tools available to be tested, reviewed, critiqued and evaluated by the CPD&D network. In addition to the production of physical pieces, there is also constant creation of digital media within the CPD&D community. Members are able to engage with a variety of ways of learning about techniques and products (Ito, et.al., 2013). In addition to member posts and photography, the group pins a variety of instructional and informational posts, and members provide links to online tutorials, personal blogs, and video tutorials and demonstrations. Production is at the heart of the community and encouraged by the ready availability of support from peers (Garcia, 2014). The sum of the content produced by the CPD&D community, and the sharing of this content beyond the bounds of the group works to create a viable currency of appreciation for their work in the community. Openly Networked “Transparent and open standards that allow for people and institutions to connect and extend infrastructure across diverse settings.” (Ito, et.al., 2013) Of significant importance to collective learning environments is the stipulation that anyone is free to join (Ito, et.al., 2013). Despite the CPD&D community operating from the central site of a closed Facebook group, access is nonetheless open to everybody. Acceptance into the group does depend on correctly answering a few questions demonstrating a basic understanding of the focus of the group, thus highlighting the interest-driven nature of the community (Ito, et.al., 2013). The limitations of this model of participation however, will be examined in the following section. Within the CPD&D community, access to the substantial amount of pinned content is freely available as are the wide variety of cross-institutional links from members to sites such as Youtube, or personal webpages and blogs (Reynolds, 2015). Some platforms such as Instagram require access through a personal account, but these are freely available also. Garcia (2014) notes that connection is a basic human need, and one that is broadly facilitated by the internet. Indeed, the geographical and social boundaries that separate members of the CPD&D community are subsumed by the instant connection afforded them by the Facebook group and the variety of digital technologies that are linked through it (Dron & Anderson, 2014). This global collection of members also facilitates debate and discussion due to differing cultural norms (Dron & Anderson, 2014). Member sharing and active support invites others into this space and allows them the confidence to participate in this online platform (Garcia, 2014). Particularly for this connected learning community, the cost benefit of this form of open digital network is significant as the physical size of the products involved makes face to face collaboration challenging (Dron & Anderson, 2014).
Risks and Recommendations While the ever-growing membership of the CPD&D community on Facebook demonstrates an open and inclusive community, there are some elements of the group which do not appear to work completely in line with the idea that everyone can participate (Ito et.al., 2013). While only a small and as previously mentioned, interest-focused hurdle, the questions which precipitate membership may act as a barrier to some. This could mean that some individuals who may otherwise develop a keen interest in and desire to participate in the production practices of the group, could potentially be excluded. In addition to this, there exists within the group, offshoot membership opportunities which require a paid subscription to access specialised content. Some members also charge for the option of accessing additional content or tutorials that they have personally created. Whilst it is the shared purpose of many members of the CPD&D group to sell their products, and making money from their expertise is a valid and viable way for them to draw an income from their work, it may be prudent of the group to monitor the amount of direction toward paid content that is visible in the group. Whilst overwhelmingly, member posts and links offer free advice and mentorship, this aspect of the group may work to deter some members if it becomes too visible. Despite this, "The World of Chalk Paint, Distress and Decoupage" remains a lively, active, supportive and productive community where its members are continually challenged and encouraged to produce interesting and beautiful work. Members are free to ask questions and receive both complimentary and constructive feedback, leading to the significant and ongoing development of both individual and collective knowledge of this art form.
Assignment finished... time to paint some furniture! "Side tables" by Karen Wilkinson
https://www.facebook.com/TreasuresThroughTime/ Image reproduced with permission from the creator
2 Comments
Shellie Gillespie
11/4/2019 01:08:11 am
Thank you for featuring my work. Your article is informative and very nicely written.
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Asha
11/4/2019 07:22:09 am
Thank you so much for allowing me to use it! Such beautiful work.
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About meI'm a teacher, student and advocate for better education through ongoing questioning, thinking and learning.
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