What we learned
As a group, below are the most important takeaways from this project.
1
Importance of documentation
As we began to study and learn about Colloquy 1968, we strived to gather all the necessary and relevant fragments of information from each available document and make sense of our findings in order to recreate the piece. Through this challenging process, we began to realize the need for clear documentation of process as well as the important decisions made at each step which led to the final outcome. This practice of documentation will not only help project collaborators make sense of what they have done at later stages but also will enable others to feel empowered to carry the project forward if they are interested.
2
Importance of frameworks and language
We realized the two factors that can be crucial to documenting the process of a project, its values, and usability are:
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Framing, which can be improved through stating goals at each section, a clear storytelling, and thoughtful transitions between each level of information.
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Language, which can be more valuable if it is inclusive, through which individuals from any educational and professional backgrounds will be able to understand and make sense of.
3
Importance of collaboration
The process of understanding the goals of Colloquy 1968, what they meant at the time
the piece was created, how it functioned, and finally helping the recreation of it, all held within it, extensive arguments, disagreements, and gaps in understandings, most of which eventually turned into consensus. Reaching a strong level of team collaboration would have not been possible without arguing and expressing disagreements through reasoning. Of course the challenge then became time management, however this was also improved as the team collaborated more, and as more trust was developed among the team members.
Also, working with multiple teams, each with distinctive goals and responsibilities makes it crucial to communicate findings and outcomes more carefully and consistently, by ensuring that the information being communicated is relevant and understandable to each individual, and everyone is being kept updated frequently.
One of the most important takeaways from this project is the value of becoming comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainty in the course of any project. Ambiguity and uncertainty, if not perceived carefully, can easily distract from and slow down the achievement of progress. However, if perceived carefully and proactively, it is possible to quickly move on and help achieve progress by making a decision based on assumptions, even if temporary, while reaching a certainty during the process.
4
Importance of being patient with ambiguity & uncertainty
5
Importance of thinking holistically
When complex information needs to be extracted, understood, and agreed upon, prior to achieving progress in a project, the ability to think holistically becomes important. It becomes important and crucial to not get stuck in the details and the minor parts, and be able to evaluate the level of importance that each part may or may not carry for the final outcome.