Monthly Archives: April 2011

Can you actually build an effective online community? Looking beyond the technology to create true learning environments.

Posted on April 28, 2011 by

I thought i’d start today with a question that i can’t answer. There are two aspects to this question; what do we mean by ‘community’ and what do we mean by ‘effective’. It’s like when you run a race, you … Continue reading →

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Ignorance is bliss. How to avoid learning to fail.

Posted on April 27, 2011 by

Tim Smit is the man who dreamt of the Eden Project and made it a reality. Eden is an inspiring location and ethos, a ravaged clay pit transformed into a botanical utopia. It’s the archetypal success story, the vision that … Continue reading →

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The development of skills over time. How we learn to fit within conventions, whilst learning to break out of them.

Posted on April 26, 2011 by

I’ve spent time over the last week with the oil paints, down in Cornwall, painting boats. It’s been a learning experience. I know how to paint watercolour, but never before with oils, so there’s a lot to learn. The whole … Continue reading →

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Virtual Reality. Is there still a difference between the virtual and real experience in learning any more?

Posted on April 21, 2011 by

There was a time when ‘virtual reality’ sounded exciting, when it contained the promise of spaces where we could leave our physical bodies behind and interact in other worlds in other ways. We dreamt of a time when we could … Continue reading →

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Beachcombing. The art of learning from everything.

Posted on April 20, 2011 by

I’m spending a few days in Cornwall, exploring the ancient harbours, walking on the coast, picking up driftwood on the beach. I’ve bought one of my favourite books with me, ‘Waterlog: a swimmer’s journey through Britain’, by Roger Deakin. (Vintage … Continue reading →

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What on earth are you talking about? The art of visualisation in archaeological interpretation.

Posted on April 19, 2011 by

There are lots of challenges in archaeology. You can spend days on end stood in a muddy field, trowel in hand, jeans wet, knees bruised, with nothing to show for it than a few pottery shards and some flint. If … Continue reading →

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Rules are made to be broken. Why conforming is not always a good thing.

Posted on April 18, 2011 by

In learning, as with all things, it’s sometimes good to challenge authority. Just because things have always been done one way, doesn’t mean that that’s the best way to do them. Convention is just how things have come to be … Continue reading →

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