ideas Archive

Keeping learning experiences fresh

I went to the farmer's market this weekend and had what was possibly the freshest, most tasty nectarine I've ever had. It probably sounds like I'm making light of this, but it truly was the most delicious nectarine. It keeps popping into my head probably twice a day...
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Inspiration from Clay Christensen

Thank you for your inspiration, wisdom, and lessons on humility, Clay Christensen. I think that’s the way it will work for us all. Don’t worry about the level of individual prominence you have achieved; worry about the individuals you have helped become better people. This is my final recommendation:...
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Waiting for Superman — Pledge to see the film

Looks like this is going to be an important movie. A great infographic video from the creative studio Buck TakePart: Participant Media - Waiting For 'Superman' - Infographic from Jr.canest on Vimeo. If you're inspired, Pledge to watch the movie ...
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Teach it or Lose it

Steve Blank, startup guru and author of Four Steps to an Epiphany, writes about an anecdotal experience that speaks to the importance of informal learning and mentoring that very few people seem to take advantage of. I love this lesson learned: If you don’t teach it or write it down, the...
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Going Deep to Learn — On “In Depth” Learning

I (Ash) just learned a little more about the Learning in Depth project. Here's a description from their site: "Learning in Depth: A simple innovation that can transform schooling. This simple but dramatic program is designed to combat the superficiality of so much of students' learning and the unnecessary extent of ignorance...
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70:20:10

Charles Jennings, global head of learning for Reuters (known to most as the knowledge driven organization paragon), employs a useful 70:20:10 rule about organizational learning. Read all about it here. Too many learning professionals and managers are obsessed with transferring information into employees' heads, even though they know that the...
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On video instruction and open educational resources

We use groups of people to contextualize models and content for us. As content and choices to learn ANYTHING proliferate, the scaffolding of our peers and mentors increases in importance. Here's a great NYTimes article that discusses open educational content. Joel Smith, vice provost and chief information officer at...
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Helping us move from DIY to DIT [Do it together]

CBTs (Computer based training) of days passed were rote, CD-ROM-ware that allowed a person to traverse through some content with minimal engagement from any outside party. If one were lucky, there might have been some educational games to make the medicine go down. We're living in an entirely different world...
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Pilot participant in GS Troop 21812: “Can we use this for school stuff too?”

Yesterday, we started a new group of pilot participants on using BettrAt. We had several girls trained on how to use BettrAt for their informal interests. We were excited to see how enthusiastic they all were with using the site for the things they cared about. People...
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The Art of Learning from a Peer, Colleague, or Friend

Came across this article, entitled "The Art of Learning from a Colleague" HBR by Steven DeMaio about learning from a colleague. Here's the A-ha moment in the passage: Indeed, my best learning experiences are when I get to see how someone else's mind works. That usually doesn't come with...
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