Finding a Model

Forgive the supermodel pun

Over in the Summary of Discussions post Anne Faulkner has suggested a model which I’ve copied below. I’ve added a link to a diagram of my own thoughts for a possible model (which you can view here).

The subsequent discussions in the comments are going well and clearly other people have other ideas - the problem though is its quite difficult to get across thoughts replying in comments. I’ve listed below a few options for tools that could be used to demonstrate potential models visually:

• Mindmeister: Map out your model, collaborate with others and then share it on here
• or alternatively you could use Webspiration or Mindomo
• If you prefer to use desktop software try Mindnode (for mac) or Freemind (Windows/Mac/Linux)
• or you could just use post-it notes & paper, take a photo and upload it to Flickr and then share the link on here

Whatever method you use I think its good to see models in a visual way. Even if you don’t have your own suggested model you could download somebody elses, add comments & scribbles and upload your modified version.

For my own model it helped me think much better about who a Digital mentor actually is, how they would be recruited and what their pathway would be to become further involved. Other people may completely disagree with this though - maybe you regard the role of Digital Mentor as a professional Social Media expert, or perhaps you think they should be other types of practitioner. Possibly you work for an organisation that has already developed a model for mentoring, or you have a programme that is proven to motivate and inspire people to take action - if so how can these be adapted into a visual model that could be used for the Digital mentor programme?

The model I’ve used is based on programmes I used to work on that worked with people living in low income communities throughout the UK to help them organise their own projects and activities to improve local communities. How this was approached varied between programmes - some used professional trainers, others involved volunteers, some provided grant funding & some didn’t - so I’ve combined all of these into a model I think could work well for this programme.

Hopefully some of you have your own ideas - if so it would be good to see some examples and then maybe the best elements of the various models can be combined in to one that really will work for Digital Mentors.

Annes original proposed model is this:

Phase 1

1) Start with putting together a bank of trainers, with a combination of skills from the three areas above (one person is unlikely to have them all).
2) At the very start of the project, design a programme and hold a series of face-to-face training events at regional and sub-regional level, aiming to engage a wide range of community development practitioners (in the hundreds). These become your bank of Digital Mentors.
3) For a limited period, go with the ‘let a thousand flowers’ bloom philosophy, supported and encouraged by ongoing online and face-to-face resources. Encourage the Digital Mentors to be creative, challenging and consider the social change they want to achieve. My current thinking is that this would largely be unfunded but you would have a small capital/revenue pot to seed fund some projects which really needed it.
4) During this period, set up a Digital Showcase, which would provide a forum for 1) project beneficiaries, ie the communities themselves, to showcase their work and 2) for the projects to talk about the social change they want to achieve.
5) Organise a ‘people’s vote’ (a bit like the Big Lottery Fund’s People’s Millions) which would allow other practitioners and members of the public to vote for the project they think would benefit most from more resources to develop into a deeper, more impactful project.

Phase 2

6) On the basis of this vote, provide grants to a small number of projects (20-30) to develop their projects.
7) In the meantime, the existing Digital Mentors could continue to run their projects on an unfunded basis. Some of them may run aground, but others may bloom. The consortium should look for ways to leverage in other funding to support these projects and would continue to co-ordinate an online resource bank.
8 ) As part of the evaluation, CLG would have a control group (the unfunded Digital Mentors) to be able to see the impact of a funded vs unfunded model. In reality, many of the ‘unfunded’ projects may be funded through other sources, so this will need to be built into thinking about sustainability.