Learning Myths

Why do we in Learning and Development love myths so much? Things like: 

• You only remember 10% of what you read (Thalheimer)
• The right side of the brain is the creative half (me)
• You only use 10% of your brain (me)

When faced with the mysteries of learning, it’s as if we lose control of our senses and accept the first pop-psychological explanation that comes our way. 

But I detect signs of a fight-back, a stiffening of the intellectual muscle of the L&D community – and it started last Thursday when I was on tube… 

Three minute interview on learning technologies

I’d almost forgotten about the Learning Technologies Conference this morning when a couple of Tweets popped up noting that a 3-minute interview with me had appeared on Training Zone:

Three minute interview: Donald Taylor, chair of Learning Technologies.

Of course this isn’t me, it’s a pasty, puffy eyed imposter talking drivel.

Enjoy.

9 Feb, PS: Just talking to someone on the phone as part of my post-Learning Technologies feedback wrap up. “I’m just watching your Training Zone interview, Don,” they said. “You clearly have a face for radio.”

Thoughts on Learning Technologies 2010 (#LT10uk): how social media prolong, deepen events

Well, it’s over.

Just about.

I mean in the old days, you finished the conference and everyone went back to work and that was it for another year.

These days, everything has changed.

This year, more than ever, it’s clear that social networking means a conference lasts much longer than just the face-to-face couple of days.

That makes it a richer experience. It also makes it more demanding, and gives cause for greater reflection than ever before.

So we salute the army of Tweeters and bloggers that discussed #LT10uk before, during and after the event ….

Learning Technologies 2010 is almost here

We try to make each Learning Technologies Conference better than the previous year’s. This year is no exception, and I’m proud to say that this 11th conference should be our best ever.

We have great speakers including Lord Puttnam, Josh Bersin and Prof. Heppell, a fourth track – new this year – and a great programme of over 30 presentations.

Most importantly, though, is this: despite the economic situation, despite the pressure that Learning and Development finds itself under, we have a great community of delegates signed up for the event.

How do I know this? Simple – I spent some of yesterday examining the delegate list.

LSC: Turtle or Fruit Fly?

Here’s a picture of the Learning and Skills Council doing what it should do – actively getting in the face of the public with information about skills and training. The event was a Careers Advice roadshow at London Bridge station earlier this week.

Donald Clark divides government initiatives into Turtles and Fruit flies. Turtles don’t move fast, but last (Open University), Fruit Flies make a lot of noise, move around a lot and then die and are quickly forgotten. (UKeU, Individual Learning Accounts).

Which of these is the Learning and Skills Council?

From property boom to intellectual property in Ireland

 

The Irish Knowledge Economy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was recently mailed this 11 minute clip from Irish Broadcaster RTE. Broadcast last January, its focus is that Ireland could respond positively to a dire set of economic circumstances through the smarts of its people.

As one of the interviewees says about the property boom that precipitated the crisis, it’s now time to concentrate on intellectual property.

Thanks to Barry Davis of Creganna, one of the companies featured in the clip. Barry is a member of of the Learning and Skills Group, and is using it to build his own knowledge and skills, and to share his insights with others – a good example of valuable social networking in practice.

Ireland’s been here before, of course. Before the property boom and all it brought with it, an Irish Development Agency advertising campaign in the 1980s focused on attracting external investment into the country.

It was over 25 years ago, but I have a very clear memory of reading in Scientific American an advert with the slogan We’re the Young Europeans. It grabbed my attention. It grabbed others’, too, and was part (along with some handsome EU funding) of creating Ireland’s economic success at the end of the last century.

Here’s hoping that they’ll have a similar success at the beginning of this one.

(Plays in Real Player. If no picture shows above, click here.)

What is social media? A simple social media map

Ever get tired of explaining how Wikis, blogs and social networking differ from each other? Here’s my attempt to explain it – very simply – by assessing these social media according to whether they are mostly used for viewing or for creating content, and also according to whether the focus of that content is mostly about people or about information.

It’s a Slideshare Slidecast that runs a little over 5 minutes. Click the green ‘play’ button to begin.

Graphic not showing above? Click to see the original slidecast.

#SSMMap

Education department reshuffle: DIUS goes into DBIS

As part of last week’s cabinet re-shuffle, the department responsible for the UK’s skills was once again re-shuffled. As Number 10 put it:

The Government has today created a new Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whose key role will be to build Britain’s capabilities to compete in the global economy. The Department will be created by merging BERR and DIUS.

Hhm … that will be the same government that created DIUS (the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills) two years ago at a reported cost of £7m.

Nobody’s fooled by the ‘merger’ talk. BERR is the dominant party here. The result: universities in particular are up in arms about the supposed subsidiary role that universities are now supposed to play to business. At least, that’s the view of the Guardian’s excellent Polly Curtis, according to her minute-by-minute posting of the day’s events last Friday.

Actually this is both a good move and a bad move, but not for the reasons that universities are apparently complaining about.

All ready for the Learning and Skills Group Conference

Next Tuesday sees the Learning and Skills Group Conference at Olympia in London. We have a great line up of speakers, including:

• Gordon Bull – former head of L&D at Vodafone
• Tony Buzan – inventor of Mind Mapping
• Jay Cross – learning visionary and champion of informal learning
• Jane Hart – social media learning luminary
• Nigel Paine – former head of L&D at the BBC
• Clive Shepherd – Mr e-learning

What a line up! And there are plenty of other speakers, too, with some exciting stories to share. It’s a great programme, but we haven’t made much of a fuss about it. Nonetheless, the conference is completely full.

What’s going on?

Simple – the event is guaranteed to fill up, because it is one of the benefits of membership of the Learning and Skills Group (LSG). Members have to have attended the Learning Technologies Conference in the previous January, or can apply.

It will be a very busy day, with 7 concurrent interactive events occurring at any time. I am looking forward to it immensely, and I’ll post afterwards to say how it’s gone.

We are top of the league! Performance management in practice…

Yes, it’s true. Belmont Academicals are top of the league.

My Thursday night 5-a-side team has won its first two games of the new season, bagging us 6 points and placing us firmly at the top of the ‘Premiership’, the very pinnacle of all British 5-a-side football teams. Or at least, those playing in Turnham Green, London, on a Thursday night.

During our last spell in the Premiership we managed a miserable 3 points over 10 games, with an average of 2.3 goals per game.

Last night we scored 9 and conceded one.

So what has changed?