Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency - A Change Laboratory intervention in a academic Library ISCAR conference, Juhana Rantavuori University Of Helsinki

The paper presents an analysis of participants’ transformative agency and learning process during a Change Laboratory intervention in an academic library During the intervention the workers of an academic library, together with their clients, redefined the services the library offers to research groups and the ways of organizing work in the library CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Introduction ISCAR20142

ISCAR20143 CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Expansive learning actions (Engeström, 1987)

Resisting change, new suggestions or initiatives Criticizing the current activity and highlighting the need for a change in the activity. Explicating new possibilities or potentials in the activity. Envisioning new patterns or models of the activity. Committing to concrete actions aimed at changing the activity Taking consequential actions to change the activity (Engeström 2011; Haapasaari, Engeström, & Kerosuo, 2014) CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Expressions of transformative agency ISCAR20144

1a. What expansive learning actions may be identified in a CL process? 1b. What non-expansive learning actions may be identified in the process? 2. What types of expressions of transformative agency may be identified in the process? 3. How these expressions of agency is related to expansive learning actions? CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Research questions ISCAR20145

Four research groups participated in the second phase of the project in the City Centre Campus Library: Cognitive Science, Communication Law, Gender Studies, and Finnish Language. There were altogether eight sessions during the Change Laboratory intervention in the fall of 2010 All together 18 librarians and 13 researchers from four different research groups participated in the Change Laboratory sessions CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Data ISCAR20146

DatePurpose of the sessionLCSCLFLGSIT Orientation to the process; preparing a proposal of services to be presented to research groups in the next session Presentation of the proposal to research groups Focusing on specific needs of CS and CL research groups Focusing on specific needs of FL and GS research groups Refining services for implementation and agreeing on future cooperation with CS and CL research groups Refining services for implementation and agreeing on future cooperation with FL and GS research groups Requirements of the service model for the library organization Implementation plan for the library organization CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Change Laboratory process (fall of 2010) CS = Cognitive Science research group, CL = Communication Law research group, FL = Finnish Language research group, GS = Gender Studies research group; I = Intervention group, T = Total amount of participants in the session ISCAR20147

Firstly, expansive learning actions were identified from the conversation data. Secondly, expressions of participants’ transformative agency were identified in the data Finally, relationship between the expressions of agency and learning actions was considered This study is a work in progress and our intention is to develop it further and publish it later as a journal article. CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Analysis of the data ISCAR20148

S1S2S3 Questioning1033 Analysis Modeling316 Examining000 Implementing000 Reflecting000 Informing1087 Clarifying010 Summarizing022 TOTAL46 (36)29 (18)28 (19) CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Expansive and non-learning actions in CL sessions 1, 2 & ISCAR20149

CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Expressions of transformative agency in CL session 1, 2 & 3 S1S2S3Total Resisting Criticizing Explicating Envisioning Committing to actions Taking actions 0303 TOTAL ISCAR201410

Librarian: "So University Library supports researchers. But the services that is providing, shouldn't contradict with other (services) provided by the university." "Everything that supports researcher, is also valuable for us, but we have to always think about our resources and chances." CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Resisting change, new suggestions or initiatives (informing) ISCAR201411

(Mirror data) 125. Librarian: "… for example in matters concerning web service, in dealing with electronic materials, now especially with the arrival of TUHAT [research database of the University of Helsinki], open access, and such matters, there's a lots of working and refining, thinking, and pondering. There is simply not enough time and probably not enough mental resources. One should be able to have an idea about managing collections, or at least have an idea about content descriptions and cataloguing. So, this specialization is probably one of those big challenges. So, to what extent, how much, how deep, to what an extremely small area, can we specialize on without losing the understanding of what this library completely is about." CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Criticizing current activity, highlighting the need for change (analysis) ISCAR201412

Librarian: "The best journals in our fields, there are (ranking) list made by expert panels in the Internet. We should have knowledge about these kind of things, so we are able to inform researchers, when they ask which are the best journals in our field. They may ask also, that who in our faculty, in our field are the most refereed researchers in the international journals." CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Explicating new possibilities in the activity (analysis) ISCAR201413

Librarian: "It would a benefit for the library and a benefit of the researchers and teachers that researchers themselves could be competent to teach knowledge management skills of their own subject." " Library is serving best possible way the university by training university staff to teach by themselves knowledge management skills in seminars to students..." CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Envisioning new patterns or models of the activity (analysis) ISCAR201414

Librarian: "The current problem is that, how this FeedNavigator [tool for tracking new journal articles] is possible to adapt to the Centre campus." 441: Interventionist: "Exactly! 442.Librarian: " How soon we could begin to attach feeds to journals used in Centre campus." 441: Interventionist: "Yes." 444: "But at least (we can do) some kind of trial, we can promise that we attach some journals (in the service)." CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Committing to concrete actions aimed at changing the activity (analysis) ISCAR201415

S2/255. Librarian: We met researchers of the communication law group and we settle a date at November for the training meeting, when we take a look of such data bases they wished for… ISCAR CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Taking consequential actions to change the activity (analysis)

S1S2S3Total QAMQAMQAMQAM Resisting Criticizing Explicating Envisioning Committing Taking TOTAL CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Expressions of agency related to expansive learning actions ISCAR201417

Three different expansive learning actions (questioning, analysis, modeling) and three different non-expansive learning action (informing, clarifying, summarizing) occurred in the first three CL sessions CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Conclusions: Expansive and non- expansive learning actions ISCAR201418

All six expressions of transformative agency occurred in the first three CL sessions The most common expressions were explicating (98), envisioning (41) and Criticizing (30) Resisting (17) and committing to actions occurred less frequently (12) and taking actions only 3 times CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Conclusions: expressions of transformative agency ISCAR201419

Explicating (59), envisioning (35) and criticizing (27) occurred mostly during the action of analysis, but also during modeling and questioning Resisting occurred quite evenly during analysis (8), questioning (6) and modeling (3) Committing to actions occurred only during the actions of analysis (7 times) and modeling (5 times) Taking actions occurred only during the action of analysis (2) CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Conclusions: learning actions and expressions of transformative agency combined ISCAR201420

This preliminary analysis indicates the importance of learning action of analysis in the expansive learning process as most of the expressions of agency (139) occurred during it A significant amount of expressions of agency occurred also during the learning actions of modeling (40 times) and questioning (26 times) Probably these actions also have important role in the emergence of participant's agency A larger analysis containing all the sessions of the CL process is needed to verify and expand these results CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Conclusions ISCAR201421

In what degree are the expressions of transformative agency individually or collectively produced? How does the participation of the different parties (librarians, clients, interventionists) in the production of transformative agency changes during the entire course of the Change Laboratory process? Is the occurrence of transformative agency different in last sessions were also other expansive learning actions occur (examining, implementing, reflecting on the process) ISCAR CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency Discussion: next challenges in the analysis

Engeström, Y. (2011). From design experiments to formative interventions. Theory & Psychology 21, no. 5: Engeström, Y., Rantavuori, J. and Kerosuo, H. (2013). Expansive learning in a library: Actions, cycles and deviations from instructional intentions. Vocations and Learning Haapasaari, A., Engeström, Y. & Kerosuo, H. (2014) The Emergence of learners' transformative agency in a Change Laboratory intervention. Journal of Education and Work CRADLE Rantavuori Expansive learning actions and expressions of transformative agency References ISCAR201423