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Paid crowdsourcing connects task requesters to a globalized, skilled workforce that is available 24/7. In doing so, this new labor model promises not only to complete work faster and more efficiently than any previous approach but also to harness the best of our collective capacities. Nevertheless, for almost a decade now, crowdsourcing has been limited to addressing rather straightforward and simple tasks. Large-scale innovation, creativity, and wicked problem-solving are still largely out of the crowd’s reach. In this opinion paper, we argue that existing crowdsourcing practices bear significant resemblance to the management paradigm of Taylorism. Although criticized and often abandoned by modern organizations, Taylorism principles are prevalent in many crowdsourcing platforms, which employ practices such as the forceful decomposition of all tasks regardless of their knowledge nature and the disallowing of worker interactions, which diminish worker motivation and performance. We argue that a shift toward post-Taylorism is necessary to enable the crowd address at scale the complex problems that form the backbone of today’s knowledge economy. Drawing from recent literature, we highlight four design rules that can help make this shift, namely, endorsing social crowd networks, encouraging teamwork, scaffolding ownership of one’s work within the crowd, and leveraging algorithm-guided worker self-coordination.

Paid crowdsourcing connects task requesters to a globalized, skilled workforce that is available 24/7. In doing so, this new labor model promises not only to complete work faster and more efficiently than any previous approach but also to harness the best of our collective capacities. Nevertheless, for almost a decade now, crowdsourcing has been limited to addressing rather straightforward and simple tasks. Large-scale innovation, creativity, and wicked problem-solving are still largely out of the crowd's reach. In this opinion paper, we argue that existing crowdsourcing practices bear significant resemblance to the management paradigm of Taylorism. Although criticized and often abandoned by modern organizations, Taylorism principles are prevalent in many crowdsourcing platforms, which employ practices such as the forceful decomposition of all tasks regardless of their knowledge nature and the disallowing of worker interactions, which diminish worker motivation and performance. We argue that a shift toward post-Taylorism is necessary to enable the crowd address at scale the complex problems that form the backbone of today's knowledge economy. Drawing from recent literature, we highlight four design rules that can help make this shift, namely, endorsing social crowd networks, encouraging teamwork, scaffolding ownership of one's work within the crowd, and leveraging algorithm-guided worker self-coordination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The e-tandem, as a means of distance learning in a hybrid system including presence learning and distance learning, makes it possible to develop oral proficiency in a foreign language and (inter)cultural competence. The tandem sessions are an extension of the oral exercises given as part of a Bac + 1 course in applied linguistics. Pairs of French-speaking (ULiège) and Dutch-speaking (KU Leuven) students contact each other every week, alternating languages. Research shows that free conversations do not de facto develop intercultural competence. It is therefore necessary to think about the types of language activities that lead to the development of oral and (inter)cultural skills. Two types of conversation scenarios are tested successively: first a macro-task (based on the pedagogy of the project) aimed at dismantling stereotypes (the project is carried out over several discussion sessions); second some conversations with specific and punctual subjects aimed at developing cultural awareness. Analysis of student perceptions shows that one-time conversations (punctual subjects) are more effective in developing targeted skills because, unlike macro-tasking, they are only carried out orally. When the task is too complex, students rather contact each other in writing. However, it seems that students prefer the script of free conversations.