Inspiration to learn about yourself

Watching this 8 minute video with Howard Gardner, I learned, for example, these 3 things: 1. Education which treats everybody the same way is the most unfair education. 2. Assessment should not be something that is done to you. It should be something where you are the most active agent. 3. The child is at the centre of learning.

Watching this 3 minute Reuters video below about WhipCar , I more or less instantaneously came to think about this innovative, well thought out transportation service as a win-win-win solution: - C ar owners can rent out their cars for money. - People, who do not own a car, and need to use one, can rent the car next door. In other words, car becomes a service more than a product. - Streets are less crowded, as fewer cars sit around in the streets doing nothing. Interested in more inputs on transportation innovation? Have a look at this presentation . 

Reading this article , I noticed, for example, the following: Insight # 1 A study showed that people with bad bosses suffered 20% - 40% more heart attacks than people with good bosses. Insight # 2 The best evidence shows that bosses rarely account for more than 15% of the gap between good and bad organizational performance . Insight # 3 The best bosses routinely give their followers more credit than they probably deserve. And when bosses do this, everyone wins. Insight # 4 "Good bosses are especially adept at protecting their people’s time - for example, by eliminating needless meetings. Take a cue from Will Wright, designer of computer games such as   The Sims: rather than automatically scheduling meetings, ask yourself if they are really needed. Wright employed a clever trick. Every time someone called a meeting, he charged that person a dollar. Although he collected a lot of dollars, this requirement made people "think twice, even though it was only a dollar." He ...

Via a tweet by Sahana Chattopathyay , I came across this fine article titled “Understanding Today’s Learner” by Jane Hart . Reading the article, I learned, for example, the following 11 things about how the new breed of learners learn: # 1: They prefer hyperlinked information from many sources # 2: They are skilled multi-taskers, and they parallel process They are used to simultaneously working with different content, and interacting with others. # 3: They are highly visual learners They prefer to process pictures, sounds, and video rather than text. # 4: They are experiential learners They learn by discovery rather than being “told.” They like to interact with content to explore and draw their own conclusions. Simulations, games, and role playing allow them to learn by “being there,” and also to enjoy themselves and have fun.    # 5: They have short attention spans They prefer bite-sited chunks of content. # 6: They are very social, and love to share with others T...

About 13 minutes into this presentation, Chip Conley mentions some of the things that GDP counts and doesn’t count. Have you thought of the fact that GDP does not count learning or the intelligence of the public debate?

Via this posting by Mitch Ditkoff, I came across this 10½ minute video with John Cleese. Listening to Mr. Cleese, I learned, for example, that to think out creative ideas, it is important to create conditions where/when you avoid interruptions for a period of time.

Watching this video with Stephen Fry, I learned, for example, that the thing you have to be honest about is whether you care enough about things to want to learn. Will, appetite, and curiosity drive learning. How much do you care about things to want to learn? Creative Thinking : Stephen Fry: Learning

Via this interesting posting by John Steen, I learned more about these  5 megatrends : I found it interesting what Mr. Steen writes at the end of his posting: “In the education business we are just starting to understand how the higher education business model will be completely reinvented by technology to focus more on a personal learning experience and less upon mass content delivery via lectures and textbooks.” Regarding the personal learning experience, consider also how Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi thought about education by clicking here . 

In this posting , I mentioned some thoughts that came into my mind about a square in Zurich . Just next to the square, I saw a statue of Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi. Please see photo below. I read here that Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi once stated: “The role of the educator is to teach children, not subjects.” Via this source , I learned that Mr. Pestalozzi, who was born in the beautiful city of  Zurich , argued that children should learn through activity and through things. They should be free to pursue their own interests and draw their own conclusions. He placed a special emphasis on spontaneity and self-activity. Children should not be given ready-made answers but should arrive at answers themselves. To do this their own powers of seeing, judging and reasoning should be cultivated, their self-activity encouraged. Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi also wanted to combine education with work. To Pestalozzi the individuality of each child is paramount; it is something that has to be cult...

Via this posting by Jane Hart, I came across this 3 minute video with the top 10 reasons why your organization should ban social media right now.  Please note what Ms. Hart writes at the end of her posting: “Be careful who you show this video to - they might actually believe it  ;) ”

As I came by the square on the photo above located between Usteristrasse and Lintheschergasse in the centre of Zurich , Switzerland, a couple of thoughts came into my mind: Thought # 1 As more or less every person has a mobile phone, I have some difficulty understanding why 4 phone booths occupy quite a lot of space on this square. Thought # 2 Another thought that struck me was the little blue house on the left. I believe the house has seen better days. What do you think? Considering the fact that quite a large number of people pass through this square in the centre of Zurich each day, I thought it would add a lot of value to make a little “square design competition”. A possibility would be to make the competition on the Internet and include possibilities for people to vote on the best designs. A spontaneous idea of mine would be to clear the square and install dynamic fountains in the ground, so kids can play. For inspiration, click here to see the creative  initiative ...