Superflux in February

From January 19 email:

I'm writing to you on a great occasion, and looking forward to another great and momentous occasion tomorrow. And after that, well, that's when the work really begins, doesn't it? I hope you won't mind my inviting you to take part in something I'm committing my next several weeks to.

ONE: THE PROPOSAL

Until now, the Superflux Collective has been about 50% wishful thinking and 50% email exchanges, and sporadic, breathless conversations around brilliant ideas for teacher professional development in arts-in-education. Until now! Last week, after months of writing, editing, and negotiating, I submitted a detailed proposal for an online professional development course in "teaching and learning in and through the arts" to a company called Knowledge Delivery Systems (www.kdsi.org). My proposal draws together the many ideas we've discussed, in a survey of what I want to present as the best arts-ed PD currently offered by our community.

                  For a close look at what I'm offering KDS, take a look at this: http://superflux.us/sflxmenu.html. Click on any lesson description for details of the individual components of each proposed online lesson. You will see that a lot of ground is covered, and that I've incorporated dozens of ideas from people in our community. (Everyone will be credited on KDS.)

TWO: THE PITCH

The curriculum experts at KDS are very excited about what we're offering, and envision a vast online audience reaching deep into public schools and universities nationwide - even internationally. So now is the time to put these lesson plans into action for the video cameras. Are you interested?

                  If you are, this is what I propose: Rather than attempt to coordinate teaching and filming schedules with schools and the DOE, I would like to bring a large group of us together for a few dates to teach each other in front of the KDS camera team. The learners will be our peers from our arts-in-education community, and they will also rotate to teach you these lessons in visual arts, music, movement, theater, multi-discipline, applied arts, technology and arts-in-ed administration. It's a great opportunity to share our work with each other, and to simultaneously put it out there for teachers in schools in the most convenient form possible online.

                  I've worked out a survey schedule that would allow 20 or 30 of us, in small groups, to team-teach two lessons and receive two lessons from each other, all in a single day. I will take care of booking classroom space in Manhattan and Brooklyn to do this four or five times in February. If you could join in the adventure for one day, it would be fantastic. Two days would be double fantastic. Do it as many times as you like!

                  Why? What's in it for you? Well, 1) It's Free! 2) It's a great chance to collaborate with members of our brilliant community! 3) It's a way to learn new skills and methods for your own work in a fun, lively setting! And 4) The final product, the online course, will be available on KDSI.org from anywhere on earth for you to use as a demo of your work, a combination virtual business card and work sample!

THREE: TIME FOR ACTION

So I have just one question: are you interested in doing this? If so, I will ask you to 1) commit to a brief planning meeting in the coming few weeks, and 2) give up a single day (or 4!) in February, from roughly 9am to 1pm, to team-teach a few of the lessons from the list on the Superflux website (that link, above).

                  Please take a moment to send me a simple YES! or NO! regarding February, and then I'll start working on scheduling. (If you can't do this one, trust me, there will be plenty of Superfluxing opportunities in the future.) And if you know anyone else who might like to take part in this project, as an instructor, as a learner, or just to help out, please let me know. The more the merrier!

Signed sincerely your friend,

Mike Halverson