Workgroup to develop a Code of Conduct for WikiEducators

A Community Workgroup suggested by the WikiEducator Community Council

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WikiEducator Code of Conduct v11.01.00

Draft v11.01.00 originally derived from the Ubuntu Code of Conduct incorporating aspects of the Ubuntu Leadership Code of Conduct.

Introduction

WikiEducator is an evolving community engaged in the collaborative planning and development of open educational resources. Internally and externally, we are always open to collaboration and, wherever possible, work closely with existing projects and others in the open education community to exchange, improve and build upon previous work.

The Code of Conduct presents principles for positive and productive collaboration among community members, and is based in WikiEducator's core values:

diversity, freedom, innovation, transparency, equality, inclusivity, empowerment, human dignity, wellbeing and sustainability.^[1]

The principles are applicable in any WikiEducator forum, mailing list, wiki, web site, IRC channel, public meeting and private correspondence. WikiEducator workgroups and other structures are ultimately accountable to the WikiEducator Community Council who will arbitrate in any dispute over the conduct of a member of the community in accordance with our code of conduct, policies and procedures.

Be mindful of the community

While WikiEducator may be used freely and effectively by individuals working in isolation, its strength lies in its support for collaboration in the production, sharing and re-use of learning resources.

When editing pages or expressing ideas or opinions on WikiEducator fora, or when modifying code or adding features (as a system administrator), or when making decisions, be mindful of the wide and diverse community of educators, learners and other interested and affected parties.

Be collaborative

Collaboration is central to WikiEducator and to the wider open education community. Collaboration streamlines the production of learning resources, and improves the quality of our work.

Whatever the scale of the project or activity, be open to collaborators from the outset and continue with transparency, inclusivity and continuous communication of intentions and progress. Follow due process and strive for consensus, but feel free to create alternative sets of resources, or derivative works, with clear cross-referencing, so that the community can peruse the various perspectives, offer new ideas and participate in the discussion.

Be respectful

Everyone can make a valuable contribution to WikiEducator. We share our differing viewpoints and opinions freely, in a professional manner, while striving for consensus in decision making and for enhanced quality of the learning resources we produce. We may have very different perspectives and may not always agree, but at all times maintain a tone of mutual respect and acknowledge each others' contributions appropriately.

Help each other

Nobody knows everything, and nobody is expected to be perfect in the WikiEducator community. Asking questions avoids many problems down the road, and so questions are encouraged. Those who are asked (or who discover open) questions should be responsive and helpful.

Assume good faith

WikiEducator welcomes and encourages newcomers and inexperienced participants who may be unfamiliar with the emergent culture and wiki environment. Occasionally, misplaced edits or comments with unintended implications arise. Most people mean well and contribute with a view to enhancing the resources on WikiEducator. In general, assume good faith unless there is clear evidence of malice.

Encourage leadership

Leadership emerges at multiple levels within the community and our aim is to foster an environment which encourages leadership and innovation.

WikiEducator leaders epitomise this Code of Conduct, lead by example and encourage others likewise to express their ideas, try them out, and in turn encourage others to participate in bringing them to fruition.

Conclusion

We pride ourselves on building a productive, happy and agile community that can welcome new ideas in the exciting field of open education, and foster collaboration among groups with overlapping needs, interests and goals in line with the core values of the project.

The WikiEducator code of conduct is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 licence. You may re-use it for your own project, and modify it as you wish, just please allow others to use your modifications and give credit to the WikiEducator Project and to the Ubuntu project on whose code of conduct this document is based.

References

1. ↑ See Open Community Governance Policy.