NAP Connections
Zoom Study Group Graduates Four New RPs By Dorothy L. Gordon, RP
The Ohio Association of Parliamentarians (OAP) Registered Parliamentarian (RP) Zoom study group was organized to learn Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly Revised, 11th Edition (RONR), in an in-depth online collaborative format. As an educator of 33 years, I know what the academic research reports say about properly structured study groups, and how effectively participants of these groups learn. I was motivated to be at least one of the people to network with Patricia A. Koch, PRP, to look into a teleconferencing format to lead a group of individuals who had a desire to pursue RP status in a distance-learning format. An OAP email invitation arrived in my inbox to explain a new endeavor, and to invite anyone interested in learning to become an RP. The email stated Patricia Koch would be the PRP mentor. Through trial and error, four willing participants decided to diligently connect as a Zoom group and become accountable to each other and to our mentor. Patricia Koch, William Lavezzi, Nancy Terpening, Bryon Baxter, and Dorothy Gordon all come from different areas of the state of Ohio. The Zoom interactive platform was significantly helpful to the group’s learning, and has many advantages. The Zoom group learning format 32
National Parliamentarian • Winter 2021
allowed each of us to interact with video and audio. The participant materials came from the National Association of Parliamentarians: In Order Study Guide for the NAP Registration Examination, arranged by Nylanne Scheidegger, PRP. The manual divides parliamentary topics into five succinct parts. This book arrangement accommodates different learning styles. Our mentor provided us with the opportunity to learn, and eventually to own the information. As we would repeat the questions from the manual for discussion, we would break down information into bite sized pieces (chunk) to facilitate learning. Our eyes would look down and up at the computer screen (scan, or eye-gaze) to focus on the text and participant faces. We found ourselves putting the subject matter into our own words while we continued to give eye contact to our cohorts. Eye-gaze research explains that by scanning and putting information into one’s own words helps learners to make the information their own. This significantly helps foster deeper understanding. As a bonus, each session was recorded, to be available for playback or download. This allowed group members or others throughout the state, to have access to the recordings as a learning tool.
