Link: http://blogs.synapse3di.com

It's 2009! Time to lose weight, get healthy, get organized, save money, make money, mend relationships, and LEARN SOMETHING NEW!

Just last night I told my husband that I wanted to try either hang gliding or paragliding in 2009. Each year I set some sort of adventure goal whether it be to go somewhere adventurous or do something I have never tried before. I've already bungee jumped, been scuba diving, skydiving, and many other exhilerating (and yes some crazy) activities.  I also said that this was the year I would, again, learn Spanish.  I've taken a class and bought the CD', but this year, I will dive in again-learning something new.  I have several learning goals and that brings me to you!

Within classrooms-both academic and corporate-we have been seating students in seats and forcing them to listen to an instructor for thousands of years (and that's how long it seems to the students too!).  We may purchase and use, what we call, Computer Based Learning Systems, or plop the students in front of a small television in the breakroom and have them watch a learning video that was professionally created for their specific industry. After they come out of the isolation tank and recover from the coma they had been in, we check "training" off of our list. But what is retained? What knowledge has transfered back onto the job? Who is coaching and helping in that transfer? Not the managers. Not other team members.

What if we learned differently? What if we blew up the classrooms (well not literally--I don't want to be named in a law suit, stating the terrorist activity was somehow linked back to my ideas here) or the concept of the typical classroom? What if we have shared spaces to gather and discuss ideas instead? What if participants were encouraged to learn every day and from everyone in the organization--from the CEO to the Janitor?  Would it be possible to learn without a "trainer" coming in and working with a group for an entire day, or longer? Could learning be done through social networking, video-bytes, podcasts, articles, books and Group Applicaiton Sessions (hmmm we could called them GAS for short! "I can't attend the meeting today, I've got GAS! ..Okay that would never fly!) instead of single chunk learning?

My goal is to help organizations think and learn differently.  I beleive people are tired of having to GO TO a learning event. Instead they want the learning to COME TO them when they need it.  I believe learning is a social activity and we learn so much more and so much deeper when we share what we've learned with others on our teams and discuss how to apply the learning and how to tweak the application to overcome the challenges of implementing new ideas.  

We are working with a few organizations right now, experimenting with this concept.  They take assessments online to discover the learning path they will take.  They meet with a coach in Second Life to lay out their initial learning plan and are placed into small accountability groups with others that are on similar learning paths.  Eeach week an assignment or learning nugget is delivered for them to read, listen to, watch or participate in. After completion, they meet back in the Second Life campus to discuss applicaiton and receive further coaching if needed. They are given an assignment, to apply the learning, and have the opportunity to practice and role play scenarios before trying it live.  They have a few days to apply before reporting back to the group with stories of success or challenges they need help on.

We also have small, task specific, groups creating learning video-shorts, where they teach others something about what they do. This becomes an archive of knowledge that is easy to transfer to new employees and since the videos are all under 8 minutes, they are easy to digest when needed.  We are creating Social Learning Sites where learners can post discussions, share information and basically create their own WIKI for the company.  Senior employees are encouraged to post often and help mentor the newer members.  Outside experts are brought in for special events that are taped and archived here as well.  These experts might join groups in the Second Life campus to help with a task or project that relates to their area of expertise. They post articles, podcasts and videos for the groups to access with additional information and learning nuggets as well.

Another social networking tool we are experimenting with in the learning environment is Twitter.  By setting up internal Twitter accounts and allowing people to share short learning bytes and have access to the experts in a more open and shared environment, learning is brought out and encouraged, beyond the classroom!

Look at what is going on around you-how are people communicating and networking? Can you some how incorporate these concepts into your organization this year to develop a learning culture? Let me know what you are doing to stretch yourself and grow beyond the classroom.  

Gina

For free articles, podcasts and video bytes, check out http://www.synapse3di.com/media_library 

Link: http://www.Synapse3di.com

Do you remember when you were very young and in school? Come on, think back. Everyday we learned something new. There was so much we still didn't know. How to add double digit numbers and then how to carry over a number when adding.  How to spell tough words like "THEIR" and "BELIEVE" - well okay, I still struggle with those, but our brains were alive and taking in (and retaining) new informaiton every day.

Sure we have tons of informaiton coming our way now, and perhaps that is why we don't hang on to much of it, but each day we have to be intentional about learning something new. Will it be a new word for the day? How about how to use a feature on that cell phone you use? Learn about new technology, a new language, how to ballroom dance, anything new.  

Being around professional speakers and trainers all the time and attending so many wonderful educational events, I find it easy to learn lots every day.  Being in the technology and education arena has me trying to learn too much every day.  Whether it is in Virtual World technology and how it is being used effectively in business and educaiton, or how to add new featrues and applicaitons on my Facebook or LinkedIn profiles.  There is lots to learn.

Each day on Twitter I encourage people to learn something new and share  WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED TODAY? (#WHYLT before the post codes the remarks so you can see what others have learned too.)

Now of course it's not only what you learn, but what learning you apply! So please share what you are learning and how you have used it.  Let's learn together!

Remember, if you check out our Media Library on Synapse you will find lots to learn every day, and I would love to connect on Twitter. 

Link: http://www.Synapse3di.com

Want to check out a great site for educators in Second Life? Take another look at Second Life with "Guest Host" of Gettin Geeky, Jianna Zerbino.

Be sure to watch other episodes of Gettin Geeky in our Media Library! 

Link: http://www.synapse3Di.com

Gina explains what Second Life is and has a warning for the meetings and events industry.  Speakers and trainers, listen up!

Link: http://www.Synapse3Di.com

After a phone call with a seasoned professional speaker last week, I hung up wondering how people can ignore the changing technology in the days we live in. I mean being busy is just not a good excuse any more. I am amazed by how few speakers and trainers are technologically savvy or even want to be. I still have speakers tell me they don’t have a FaceBook page or they don’t understand how Twitter can help their business. “Those are all time wasters” they say. After all, if you have a website why would you need a LinkedIn or FaceBook page?

To address the time waster comment, let me just say that the telephone can be a total time waster if you aren’t using it right. If you have meaningful conversations and engage people with discussions that actually TEACH them something, it’s not a time waster. If you just Twitter about how cute your kids are and that they are the cutest baby’s on the planet, well then you are wasting your time and especially my time.

It’s about engaging a whole new audience member and using the tools they are using, Just look at the elections this past November. Obama’s camp had a Twitter account, a FaceBook page and even held rallies in Second Life with an Obama avatar appearing on the scene. They were everywhere the young people were. They engaged the youth, they got them to take action. McCain’s camp did not think to use these tools. Hmmm what can we learn from this?

People don’t want to read stupid brochures or text heavy websites any more. Give me a 5 min video instead. Engage me in a discussion on Twitter or your blog. What's your cool quoitent? Are you hanging with the right crowd anymore?

Now about how these tools help your business? For the most part, these are FREE marketing and PR for you and your organization. And If used correctly, they can create an engaging environment for your potential customers or employees to learn, share, discuss and check you out. In your organization, are you banning employees from using FaceBook or Twitter? Is Second Life just too “out there” for you or your stodgy training department?

One company told me they couldn’t use any of these tools because their IT department would have to get involved. Oh boo hoo! Put them to work on the future of learning in your organization or when it comes time to elect the next great company to work for…your ballot box won’t be getting the check mark.