Yishay Mor and Niall Winters

Editor: Ale Okada (Open U., UK)

Reviewers: Stephen Carson (MIT, USA) and Alexandra Okada (Open U., UK)

Yishay Mor and Niall Winters (2008). Participatory design in open education: a workshop model for developing a pattern language. Journal of Interactive Media in Education. http://jime.open.ac.uk/2008/13/

Abstract: Technologically enhanced learning environments raise complex challenges for their designers, developers and users. Design patterns and pattern languages have recently emerged as a potential framework for addressing some of these challenges. However, the uptake of design patterns has been slow outside of the computer science community. We argue that this is largely a consequence of a weak positioning of pattern languages, as a form of delivering expert knowledge to layperson, and suggest an alternative view: the development of a pattern language as a community endeavour. In terms of open education, the workshop model can be viewed as an open production process for developing educational resources, in our case design patterns. We propose a model of pattern elicitation workshops, in which collaborative development of a pattern language provides a framework for sharing design knowledge within interdisciplinary communities. This model was iteratively developed at five international conferences. It was then postulated as a design pattern itself, encompassing a series of practices and a set of supporting tools. We believe this model could be applied in a broad range of communities concerned with the development of open digital educational resources.

Keywords: Design Patterns, Pattern Languages, Open Learning, Case Studies, Methodology, IDR, Games, Mathematics Learning