Design Principles for Creating Your Own Classroom as Organization (CAO)

Classroom as organization, teaching organizational behavior

This workshop will explore the Classroom as Organization (CAO) teaching methodology. CAO is a highly experiential way of teaching, at both the undergraduate or graduate level, that enables students to become fully engaged in their learning while developing practical skills. The essence of CAO is the creation of a functioning, student-run organization. The complexity of CAO, and the shift in power dynamics, can make it a challenging method to adopt. The workshop will begin with a brief overview of the CAO methodology. Participants will engage in two rounds of a jigsaw activity to learn about and discuss the ten considerations related to adopting the CAO teaching method. The session will conclude with time for questions and a discussion of the benefits and challenges of CAO.