Content area
Full Text
Introduction
How do we get students to turn off their smart phones and be cognitively present in the classroom? One technique is to use online concepts-such as the hive mind-to structure offline settings. The Hive Mind refers to the collective knowledge, resources, and ability of a group. On social media, for example, a person looking for recommendations about a great podcast for their upcoming vacation might post to Facebook, "Help me, hive mind! I need recommendations!" (See, for example, Koh, 2014). The term hive mind predates social media and references the complex group communications of honey bees (Seeley, 1995); however, most students are familiar with and associate it with social media. In the classroom, the hive mind metaphor can be used to encourage classroom interaction, peer-to-peer learning, and to elucidate core themes.
This teaching tip will first describe the project for which I use the concept of hive mind-the Nonprofit Market Research project. Next, it will describe the procedures of "Hive Mind Day" in the classroom. Finally, it will conclude by describing the benefits of process for the students. While the context here is nonprofit management, this process would translate well in many other subject matters.
Procedure: Nonprofit Market Research
"Hive Mind Days" occur...