Monthly Archives: October 2011

Sharing common frameworks for learning. Or knowing when to call a spade a spade.

I’m travelling to America for the first time this week. A trip i’m greatly looking forward to. It will be a chance to meet some old friends again and, doubtless, to make some new ones. Whilst i feel excited at … Continue reading

Posted in Communication, Concepts, Engagement, Learning, Learning Design | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Why is the iPad still top dog? Form and functionality.

In the news this week, the failure of yet another iPad competitor, this time the Motorola Zoom (http://www.forbes.com/sites/briancaulfield/2011/10/27/more-tablet-toast-motorola-mobility-sold-just-100000-xoom-tablets-in-latest-quarter/). Whilst Apple managed to sell 11.1 million tablets last quarter, Motorola managed just 100,000. Alongside the news that RIM is delaying the … Continue reading

Posted in Blackberry Playbook, iPad 2, iPhone, Learning Technology | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Meeting Alice Cooper. A gratuitous post about Rock and Roll and what we can all learn about community.

It’s painfully early, pouring with rain and everyone on the train looks tired. I shared a smile with the girl opposite me, she’s dressed in a tracksuit, obviously out of place amongst the London commuters, but clearly we were both … Continue reading

Posted in Community, Music | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Personal Disclosure in learning. How empathy and experience can shape a very different form of storytelling.

Personal disclosure is often part of storytelling. It’s a way of opening up conversations, of building a bond, of setting a context for what’s being discussed. In informal coaching or mentoring situations, disclosure can be used to help individuals to … Continue reading

Posted in Coaching, Depression, Empathy, Learning, Narrative, Reflection, Stories, Storytelling | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

The truth and the stories that surround it. Fact and fiction in interpretation.

Interpretation is the task of taking physical evidence, documentary evidence and contextual knowledge and using it to tell a story. It’s the process by which we seek to give meaning to archaeological remains, the process by which we seek to … Continue reading

Posted in Fact, Fiction, Interpretation, Museum Education | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

How long is long enough? Working on the length of a podcast.

I’m finalising my first monthly learning podcast this week. It’s been a back and forth process, both in terms of content, but also regarding the music and overall length. It needs to be long enough to get into some detail, … Continue reading

Posted in Blog, Learning, Podcast, Soundcloud, Time | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

It just works! When technology becomes seamless.

I went kayaking with my mother yesterday, which just goes to show that it’s never too late to take up something new. The subject of the iPad came up. She was wondering whether she would get on with one. In … Continue reading

Posted in iPad, iPad 2, Technology | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Designing for mobile learning. Considerations and constraints.

Tomorrow i’m facilitating a seminar on ‘Designing for mobile learning’, so i thought that today was a good opportunity to think about it before opening my mouth. Consider this my rehearsal. When we think about mobile learning, we can consider … Continue reading

Posted in Apps, Barriers to Learning, Design, Instructional Design, Learning Design, Learning Methodology, Learning Technology, Mobile Learning | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

What’s the point of a pilot? How to iterate learning to success.

Normally this question has an easy answer: to transport me to either (a) the French mountains or (b) a cheap european weekend away. In this case though, i mean a different pilot. The type that we talk about a lot, … Continue reading

Posted in Learning, Learning Design, Measurement, Pilot, Time | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Building a boat: functional and aesthetic aspects of design.

I spent time yesterday walking by the Broads, the great expanse of waterways that run through East Anglia. There are still quite a number of boatbuilders active from small yards by the side of the water, many of them working … Continue reading

Posted in Aesthetics, Craft, Craftsman, Inspiration, Learning | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment