Deciding Not to Learn at Conferences?
Ellen Behrens,
aLearning Blog,
Sept 26, 2010
I've been to a lot of conferences and so I guess I have some interest in the subject of learning at conferences. Ellen Behrens takes on the statement from Associations Now that "The preferred education format is in person, led by an instructor or presenter but not at a conference, tradeshow, or convention." How ironic to see such a statement beside two advertisements for conferences, she writes. But of course, from my experience, people go to conferences, not so much to learn, but to expose themselves to new ideas, new experiences and new people.
P.S. Behrens also trots out the now-standard "learning styles is a myth" statement. To whch I observe, yet again, that (a) a person who is blind will learn differently than a person who is not blind, and (b) a person who is illiterate will learn differently from a person who is not illiterate, and (c) educators ignore these differences - and others like them - at their peril. The fluffy descriptions of learning styles found in the literature may not satisfy - and there's tons of cheap points to be made criticizing multiple intelligences - but people learn differently in important ways.
P.S. Behrens also trots out the now-standard "learning styles is a myth" statement. To whch I observe, yet again, that (a) a person who is blind will learn differently than a person who is not blind, and (b) a person who is illiterate will learn differently from a person who is not illiterate, and (c) educators ignore these differences - and others like them - at their peril. The fluffy descriptions of learning styles found in the literature may not satisfy - and there's tons of cheap points to be made criticizing multiple intelligences - but people learn differently in important ways.
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