Category Archives: Education

My new, free, eBook “Learning, Knowledge & Meaning – the Singapore Diary”

Our relationship with knowledge is changing: the ways we find stuff out and what we do with it once we have it. We learn on the move, in the bath or on the train and come together in social learning … Continue reading

Posted in Agile, Authority, Blog, Blogging, Book, Collaboration, Community, Cycle, Discovery, e-Books, Education, Ideas, Knowledge, Learning, Meaning, Narrative, Personal Learning Network, Publishing, Reflection, Social Learning, Storytelling, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Where’s your library? Questions around sharing and social learning

As well as a museum, children’s playground and sofas, Schiphol airport boasts a library. In the days of Kindles and eBooks, it may sound slightly anachronistic, but this library has actual shelves and actual books that you can sit in … Continue reading

Posted in 'Just in time' learning, Accessibility, Book, Collaboration, Community, Connections, Culture, Discovery, e-Books, Education, Formal Spaces, Informal Spaces, Learning, Learning Culture, Meaning, Personal Learning Network, Popup Learning, Social Learning | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

The future of books: the evolution of publishing

Books capture knowledge, hold fossilised thoughts, document romantic stories, explore scientific theory, collect together poems and codify philosophy. Books are repositories of wisdom and love. We used to use books to access knowledge, we gathered them together into collections, themed, … Continue reading

Posted in Blog, Book, Community, e-Books, Education, Experience, Formal Spaces, Informal Spaces, Information, Knowledge, Narrative, Publishing, Social Learning, Stories, Storytelling, Writing | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Playing with learning: a very sociable model

A conversation on Twitter this morning has made me think about play. Playing is all about learning: it can be a solitary activity or done with friends, it can be done in dedicated ‘formally‘ defined play spaces, or it can … Continue reading

Posted in Assessment, Collaboration, Community, Context, Curiosity, Demonstration, Discovery, Education, Effectiveness, Everyday Reality, Experience, Exploration, Footsteps, Formal Spaces, Graffiti, Informal Spaces, Knowledge, Learning, Learning Design, Learning Journey, Learning Methodology, Mistakes, Play, Reflection, Social Capital, Social Learning | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

How do you grow pearls of wisdom: the importance of disturbance in learning

It’s the irritation that grows the pearl: the grain of sand that causes the oyster to lay down layers of calcium carbonate in concentric rings that are polished to a high lustre, creating the pearl. Without disturbance, little changes. It’s … Continue reading

Posted in Adaptability, Agile, Change, Collaboration, Community, Community of Practice, Curation, Disturbance, Education, Experience, Group Dynamics, Knowledge, Learning, Learning Journey, Meaning, Narrative, Personal Learning Network, Reflection, Social Learning, Worldview | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

The co-creation of meaning in social learning: adapting our view of learning

One of the strongest ideas i’ve taken out of my research into music in learning is that of co-creation: the ways that we work together, taking specialist roles and consulting within our community (be it a learning group or band) … Continue reading

Posted in Adaptability, Agile, Assessment, Blended Learning, Challenge, Collaboration, Communication, Community, Community of Practice, Control, Conversation, Culture, Dialogue, E-Learning, Education, Effectiveness, Informal Spaces, Instructional Design, Knowledge, Learning, Learning Design, Meaning, Social Capital, Social Learning | Tagged , , , , , , | 9 Comments

How do you find the time to write? Reflection and agility in learning

Is the wrong question: ‘why don’t you find the time to write?‘ would be better. Agile learners are able to pick up ideas and test them out rapidly, they iterate various behaviours and approaches to test out what lets them … Continue reading

Posted in Agile, Blog, Blogging, Book, Collaboration, Community, Community of Practice, Disclosure, Education, Ideas, Learning, Legacy, Mindset, Mobile Learning, Narrative, Reflection, Social Learning, Stories, Words, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Welcome to the Social Age

Yesterday i gave a guest lecture at Dublin City University for one of the Masters courses on ‘Creating effective learning in the Social Age‘. It was a broad approach, starting in how we communicate using stories, progressing to an exploration … Continue reading

Posted in Adaptability, Agile, Blog, Blogging, Challenge, Collaboration, Community, Control, Conversation, Education, Formal Spaces, Freedom, Group Dynamics, Informal Spaces, Knowledge, Learning, Learning Culture, Learning Design, Meaning, Mobile Learning, Narrative, Social Capital, Social Learning | Tagged , , , , , , | 24 Comments

iPads in schools: production, consumption and collaboration

First day of the school year consisted of a trip to the Book room. Here, you were issued with a stack of textbooks, piled ever higher, that you would need over the coming year. Peeking over the top of the … Continue reading

Posted in Agile, Blended Learning, Book, Change, Collaboration, Consumption, Education, Engagement, Information, iPad, Learning, Learning Technology, Mobile Learning, Productivity, Reflection | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

The redundant pyramid: how hierarchical learning structures are collapsing

The pyramidal view of learning is where you stand at the top and pour the knowledge down the sides, reaching ever increasing numbers of people as the truth flows out from it’s source. I think that today that model is … Continue reading

Posted in Agile, Authority, Blended Learning, Change, Collaboration, Community, Education, Hierarchy, Informal Spaces, Instructional Design, Learning, Learning Design, Social Capital, Social Learning, Storytelling | Tagged , , | 19 Comments