Non Sequitur: On Humor and Confidence and Compassion

Watch the video, then read on....



Research has found that laughter enhances memory. This little story is also a good reminder about other great qualities that serve a trainer, and their learners, well:

An Easy, Quiet Confidence
Gracious Hospitality (no matter where you are or what role you are playing)
Inclusiveness
Generosity of spirit
Benevolence

I would love to leave a class or audience knowing I had inspired those with me this authentically and deeply.

What implications do you see in this for training?

Finds: Designing for Big Data

Here is Jeff Veen talking about principles for effective use of visualization in communicating data, and how Web 2.0 is both leveraging and transforming those principles by providing tools and a new expectation of end-user control.




Jeff describes three main principles for communicating data visually:

1. Storytelling: Find a story in the data
2. Visualization: Assign visual cues to each dimension of the data
3. Editing: Remove everything that isn't telling the story, as long as the type and dimensions of the data do not change

He then discusses how the culture of Web 2.0 demands (and the tools enable) a shift of control to the user so they can create their own story from the data:

• From storytelling to discovery
• From visual cues to interactivity
• From editing to filtering

I see an opportunity to leverage this in instructional design by utilizing the Storytelling approach at the start of a learning experience and finishing at the Discovery end of this spectrum. It would be, effectively, the use of scaffolding to build confidence and research, analysis, synthesis, and interpretive skills in any area that includes large quantities of data.

What ideas and reflections does this presentation spark in you? How might you use this approach?

del.icio.us Tidbits: Attention Management

Here is the periodic sampling from my del.icio.us favorites list. This time I chose the tag "Moodle." This is what I found I have:

"Zerstreutheit" and the Attention Management Cure: From 43Folders, Linda Stone — who coined the phrase “continuous partial attention” — makes a thoughtful distinction between managing time and attention, deflating the misconception that making long lists and then overscheduling your day can be a bulwark against distractions, interruptions, and the crippling feeling of being overwhelmed.

In this recent blog entry from the Huffington Post, Stone talks about a pattern she’s noticed from talking with people about how they think about and plan their day.


The Future of Ignoring Things: From Internet Evolution, an article by Cory Doctorow on the need for technology to help us filter information and distractions.

del.icio.us Tidbits: Moodle

Here is the periodic sampling from my del.icio.us favorites list. This time I chose the tag "Moodle." This is what I found I have:

Moodle: Moodle is a Course Management System (CMS), also known as a Learning Management System (LMS) or a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). It is a Free web application that educators can use to create effective online learning sites.

Moodle Rooms: By leveraging the power of Moodle, Moodlerooms has created an online learning platform that solves the instructional, financial and technology needs for K-12, Higher Education, Corporations, Government Agencies and Non-Profits.

Social Media makes this Course Stand Out: From Ignatia Webs, a review of a course developed by a colleague on Moodle using a variety of free social media tools.

Moving to Moodle: Reflections Two Years Later: From Educause Quarterly, this article outlines the issues Royal Roads University encountered during its transition to Moodle between mid-2006 and mid-2007, including lessons learned, some of the university's ongoing work, and anticipated future directions.

del.icio.us Tidbits: Competencies

Here is the periodic sampling from my del.icio.us favorites list. This time I chose the tag "Competencies." This is what I found I have:

Do competency approaches really improve performance?: From Gram Consulting, a discussion of the relative merits of three different competency philosophies.

Link between Learning Objectives and Competencies: From Tier 1 Performance Solutions, and article on competencies and learning objectives as they relate to formal and informal learning.

Competency and competency frameworks: From the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, an article on development of both the framework and the competencies themselves.

Data is good, data is your friend, but beware of GIGO!: From The Pursuing Performance Blog, a discussion of data as they inform the development of competencies.