By Orianna Haman
If you are interested in contacting people with similar interests in country schools, you may want to participate in an innovative discussion group called a listserv. The one-room school listserv operated on Yahoo Groups was adopted soon after the formation of the Country School Association of America We recently talked with listmaster, Sarah S. Uthoff about how a listserv operates.
Q: When did you decide to start a listserv on one-room schools?
A: I’ve thought for a long time that people interested in one-room schools, particularly those working with one-room school museums, needed a good way to communicate. I actually thought a short hardcopy newsletter would be preferable because I know some of the local people I work with on one-room schools won’t touch a computer, cost was always a factor. I decided that it would be better to have a listserv for those people willing to take part rather than wait for funding. I tried to get someone based at one-room school museum to get a listserv started, and when that effort failed I decided to start one myself. On May 12, 2005 we went live on Yahoo, and after asking a few friends from the Laura Ingalls Wilder listserv to try to sign up as a trial run, I started actively promoting the list.
Q: Why did you choose Yahoo groups?
A: I was already familiar with it from another list I was on and it’s free. [Laughs] Also, the Yahoo list homepage allows you to do extras beyond the listserv.
Q: What do you see as the focus of the group?
A: As it says on our homepage, “This group will focus on one-room or country schools. It is aimed at one-room school museums, researchers, and people who are interested in the history of one-room schools. People involved with active one-room schools or the small school movement are also welcome.”
Q: Is it a very active list? Are there a lot of members?
A: It tends to be fairly quiet. We average between 5-15 messages a month, but occasionally some topic or call for opinions on a resource or a nugget of information will come up and there will be a burst of discussion. But, normally the list is quiet enough so even somebody easily overwhelmed by e-mail shouldn’t be bothered by it. As of now (September 2006) we have 63 list members, but we’re always looking for more. So, let's pass the word!
Q: Do you do anything to encourage more active participation on the list?
A: A listserv counts on the exchange of information and opinion, so it’s always great when somebody posts. I tend to post announcements about articles on one-room schools, announcements about conferences or events that I come across, that sort of thing. Sometimes one of my posts will remind somebody to post or to respond to my posts when the one-room tag shows up in their e-mail. I don’t really try to start discussions though. I have tried a couple of times in the past, but usually anytime you get really good discussion it comes from something somebody starts that just naturally takes off. Besides, e-mail seems to be best suited for short comments, rather than detailed discussions, because it’s very easy for things to be written quickly and taken the wrong way. Most of the lists I’m on seem to be short exchanges of information or comments.
Q: You mentioned before that you got extras beside the listserv from using Yahoo Groups, what are they?
A: Once you get a Yahoo ID and password you can sign in to the list homepage. Not only can you directly e-mail the group or individual group members from this page, but you can get into the extras as well. You can access old messages. You can view files shared by group members, handouts, curriculum guides, etc, including the CSAA brochure. You can view photos shared by group members of different one-room schools and you can get into the links section which I have worked on quite a bit, loading it with links to information and resources.
Q: How can people sign-up if they are interested?
A: The easiest way is to e-mail me directly at [email protected] I’ll then send you an invitation through Yahoo Groups and you can follow it step by step from there. You can preview current messages, but not the added benefits without signing up at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/oneroom/
I hope to hear from a lot of you soon.
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