In 2019 Ben, Guillaume and I ran the first In beta unconference at HESAV in Lausanne, which was, in my opinion, a great success by any measure you choose. Thanks in part to the generous support of colleagues at HESAV we were able to run a 2 day meeting at no cost for any of the participants. It was an intense but incredibly rewarding series of conversations on a wide range of topics in physiotherapy education.
In 2020 we had planned on running the conference at HAN but had to move entirely online because of the pandemic. We had double the number of participants and the podcast recordings we prepared for that meeting are consistently our most downloaded episodes every month:
- Covid 19 – Where to from here?
- Environmental physiotherapy education
- Decolonising physiotherapy education
- Placements – Innovation from a crisis
For a variety of reasons we didn’t plan an unconference in 2021 but we’re back in the process of finalising our plans for the 2022 In Beta unconference and I wanted to share some of the details around the meeting.
There are three ways to participate in this year’s unconference:
- You can join us in person at University of Birmingham in the UK.
- You can join us online from wherever you are in the world.
- Or, if you’re feeling feisty you can set up your own unconference venue to run some or all of the activities with your local colleagues.
As with our previous two unconferences, our main aim is to facilitate meaningful interaction between all participants, as we reflect on aspects of our teaching practices and share our reflections with others in a collaborative learning environment. In order to achieve this we use the four rules of unconferences:
- Whoever shows up are the right people.
- Whatever happens is fine.
- Whenever it starts is the right time.
- It is over when it’s over.
Some people like to spend their time listening to lectures (this is what typical conferences really are) and if that’s what you’re expecting then you may be disappointed. We use the unconference format to create a friendly and inclusive learning space where conversations and ideas can flourish, no matter who you are or how much ‘experience’ (read, authority) you have.
We want to create opportunities for discussion and so the sessions are structured for conversation. There are no experts who hold the floor, no presentations, and no themed tracks. Even the topics for the session are collaboratively developed through nomination and voting. We like to use the time to think, ask questions, talk, and learn from each other.
If that sounds appealing and you have a few hours to spare on the 8th and 9th of September, you may want to register for the 2022 In beta unconference.