T is for Training 221 : Playdates for Grownups

On the call were Kate Kosturki, Jill Hurst-Wahl, Diane Huckabay, Maurice Coleman, Paul Signorelli, and Samantha (Sam) Becker. We talked about winning the war on complacency in education.    We need to illuminate exemplars and expose people to different ways of engaging learners.  Can we learn from our own experiences?

As teachers, we need to help students/learners to understand how to learn better.  We can’t just teach them the subject, but how the student can learn more about it in the future.

Technology are not a meaningless set of tools.  We need to understand how to use the technology in meaningful ways to meet our goals.

All stakeholders need to come together to think about how various disciplines play together, and how learned can acquire multi-interdisciplinary skills.

Students/learners need to acquire foundational, core and specialty skills.  Sam noted that there are a broad range of foundational skills which people need. Some of this might be done through personalized learning.   Jill noted that the acquisition of those foundational, core and specialty skills might occur with technology being a means or clue.

This conversation connected to our previous conversation with Jonathan Nalder. Sam and Jonathan have worked together and she is was part of the genesis of  First on Mars.

What are some simple things we can do to help our folks get to a place where they can be successful with technology?

• Digital literacy initiatives
• Space for collaboration using technology
• Space for using technology
• Building in professional development for staff, so staff can then support technology learning

What’s the first thing you would say directly to trainer-teacher-learners to reverse that the part of learning that is passive (referred to in our conversation as the 90% piece of the pie)?  We talked about several solutions.

Question: Can we do personalization at scale?  What can we do face-to-face as well as online?

You can listen to the entire conversation on the TalkShoe website, as well as through your favorite podcast service (e.g., iTunes).  And don’t forget to rate the show, so we might get a rating that shows during our 10th year!

Resources:

• National Entrepreneurship Week
• SAB Creative & Consulting

 

T is for Training 220 : How can we make it better for you?

ASL sign for interpret

Our topic today was how to make our training more accessible.  It is not simple to make an event accessible for all, but it is necessary that we try.   Consider physical accessibility (or mobility concerns), language accessibility (including American Sign Language), etc. as issues (opportunities) to consider.  On the call were Maurice Coleman, Paul Signorelli and Jill Hurst-Wahl.

Tips:

• If there is a microphone, use it.
• If you are working with an interpreter (sign language or non-English), try to give the person a script or notes in advance.  Also speak at a pace that is comfortable for the interpreter. (Make the interpreter part of your presentation.  That person is actually presenting with you.)
• Be mindful of your learners and their needs.
• Use the accessibility checker that is built into some products like Microsoft PowerPoint.
• In a face-to-face session, make sure everyone can see you (line of sight). Be sure to keep your face towards the audience.  Some people make be trying to read your lips.
  
• Ask your audience upfront : “How can I make the session better for you?”
• Loud noises — e.g. lots of people talking at once — can be disorienting for people, who are sensitive to sound.  For someone who is blind, a room full of sound is like fog for a sighted person.
• Check the languages that are spoken in your community.  Can you offer handouts in languages that are frequently spoken in your community?
• In selecting colors for your presentation, be aware that some people are color-blind and may not be to distinguish the colors.

Resources:

• ADA Compliance for Online Course Design – There are MANY tips in this article.
• Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) – Explained. – collection of standards and specifications for web-based electronic educational technology
• Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) – Wikipedia page
• One minute SCORM overview

You can listen to the episode here.  In two weeks, Samantha Adams Becker will be joining us on the show.  She does consulting, writing, and presenting on teaching and learning.