Heavy boots and communication

I’ve had my day made by the strangest of articles, Heavy Boots. I’m positively happy and have had my world view restored again. Before you tell me I have a skewed world view, you may be right. I subscribe to the belief that people are people are people and people are people everywhere.

Ok, back to this little gem. For those not willing to read the article: it outlines a question posed in a class, “If a pen is dropped will it fall to the moon or float away?”. The answer is fall, but more slowly. What the writer discovered was that people are quite willing to belief that astronauts stayed on the moon b X communicatioecause they wore heavy boots and that the pen would float away. The article is worth the read, if only for the amusement factor.

It does raise a real conundrum for educators though. We all interpret the world through our own filters and lenses that we build up through our experiences in life. The idea that heavy boots were responsible for our astronauts not floating away did not phase the philosophy class one iota. In the words of the miscellaneous author, “It was not part of their world view.” They could not understand why the world did not work this way even though at some point they would have learned the basics of gravity. It simply did not figure in their world. This strange happenstance is not unique, but affects every single discussion we join.

The idea is not a new one. A great saying is, “People do not hear what you say. They hear what they think you said!” It is rule one in Communication 101. People filter what you say through their experiences and understanding. For instance it is no good telling a colour-blind man that the sky is blue, if he sees purple. He will not understand your point of view because it does not work within his own world view.

Sometimes the difference in world views between the speaker and receiver is great enough that meaningful dialog is impossible. However if we seek to understand the position of person to whom we are communicating with we can adjust to find the point we can shift their views just that little bit. So how do we get there?

Seek first to understand

“People don’t care what you know until they know that you care.”

There are millions of experts and gurus in the world. Half of them live on Twitter. If you don’t believe me, check for yourself Some have great knowledge, some know the esoteric ways of the DVD Recorder and some make it up as they go along. The ones successful at getting you to listen (not necessarily the ones who know what they are talking about) are the ones who seem to understand where you are coming from. They make some connection with you and seem to be speaking to your need.

We as educators don’t need to be flim-flam men and women to reach this same connection with our students. The easiest way to reach the connection is to listen to what our students are telling us. It has nothing to do with what we say and everything to do with how we hear. It is a little thing called empathy and can do wonders on kicking down the pedestals on which we sometimes stand. I include myself on this list.

Our students have their own experiences and hassles, dramas, prejudices and emotions that they are working through, dealing with and filtering through. If we don’t have some idea of where they are standing, we have know way of knowing how to take them to where they need to be.

Walk a mile in these heavy boots

Once we have an idea of where they stand, we need to connect to them in a way that they can accept. Talking aerodynamics to a soccer player is potentially unhelpful and probably useless. Yes aerodynamics affect the ball in amazing ways, but talking about the Bernoille principle won’t help him put the ball in the net. Describing how the air moves around the ball when he kicks it and show him slow motion videos of the rotation and how spin affects the ball might.

People generally know when you are talking down to them or at them. The easiest way to achieve this is by over complicating things or oversimplifying.   Match your message to the marketplace and the market may listen.

Know thy stuff and make sense

Most people have some form of garbage meter in their brains. They will know when you are making it up as you go along.

We’ve all seen lecturers and teachers derailed by an errant comment. It can be really funny watch, but a nightmare to live. It also kills your credibility and makes it really hard to get back to the world view moving.

The easiest way to avoid it is: if you don’t know it, don’t say it. Get back them later after you check it out. Know what you are talking about and prepare. Structure things in a way that can be received by your audience.

Avoiding confusing explanations can also help. A rule of thumb I use is, “If I can’t finish a sentence without a breath. I’ve probably confused the heck out of my listener.” Take a breath, slow down and work through the explanation logically and be ready to expand on a point and break it down further if your listener doesn’t understand.

Listen again

Never stop listening. People will often tell you if they don’t get it. Ask questions and obtain feedback from your students. They will let you know. If their answers are garbled or don’t make sense, you probably have a clash of the world views happening and it’s time to take a different tack.

Reflective listening can be a great way to get the learner moving towards the right idea. Listen to what the student says and reflect back what they say to them either verbatim or paraphrased whilst giving them full attention. Ask questions to get them to expand on what they are thinking. You can then affirm where they have it right and either talk to the logic gap or have them fill the logic gap themselves by asking further questions.

By moving away from your world and into theirs you make a connection. The connection you make helps them move forward and may even move you further along on your learning journey. Don’t be afraid to use your ears as they can be your greatest tool.

Let me know what you think. How do you overcome the Heavy Boots syndrome with your students? How do you go about understanding your learners’ world views? Leave me a comment here or Tweet me @BradStokes. I’d love to hear what you think.

Five ways to find context in training

I heard it recently said that learning is not about the content, but the conversation. I understand the sentiment, but think it misses the point. Learning is about context. The content and the conversation are but parts of this. The best of content delivered to in a format that is unable to be interpreted by its receiver is useless. Likewise a fantastic conversation can be had with out a scarric of useful information changing hands.

To say that learning is about the conversation is to confuse the medium with end goal, learning. It comes back to the idea of right place, right person, right time, right information and right tools. There are many different things to get right for the learner to be engaged and for real learning to take place. Valuable learning occurs with the information being given has relevance and meaning to the one it is being given. The context of the overall learning scenario determines how a learner is connected to learning they are attempting to embark upon. Below I look at 5 ways to find the context of learning environment and how to connect to your learners when training.

Avoid Assumption

I’ve always loved the saying, “Never assume anything. It makes an ass out of u & me!” and it is true. Unfortunately, like most people, it is one I can very easily fall foul to.

The easiest way to have meaningless conversations and provide ineffective training is to be on a completely different wavelength to the people with which you are trying to communicate. Nothing makes this quite so easy as assuming that I know where the person is coming from. It makes it too easy to sprout information, and provide a whole heap of advice that completely misses the mark at best or totally confuses and agitates at worst. One sure fire way to alienate a person is to have them think you are not listening or understanding their needs. Assumption will mean you miss the context of the training everytime be it f2f, online or distance training.

One of the common misassumptions is that current school leaders are computer literate and completely at home on the Internet and by extension should be completely able to operate in the online world. It simply is not true. Most will know how to check their facebook and send an email. They will probably be able to send and receive MMS messages. They will likely be under the assumption that Google knows all. However, you will also find kids that can’t turn on a computer. That wouldn’t know how to use the Internet. Kids that still can’t read properly and have trouble with writing. That are happy working on an engine or helping care for a sick person, but would  happily condemn all computers to be thrown by trebuchets. Engaging these people online would probably be disastrous and the context of their situation will determine how we learn together. Stopping to check your assumptions saves a great deal of angst for all.

Make assumptions at your own peril.

Find the right time

Sometimes this very much defined for you, especially in a face to face institutional environment where classes are 2-4 on Thursdays. In the workplace or in a flexible environment - online or otherwise - there is more scope for movement. There will be certain times during the days and weeks you can engage the learners fully and others that just won’t work. Finding what works for you and them will be part of the negotiations. For road transport workers, you may find that after hours on a Wednesday works, but certain days are shot because everybody is in every direction. Mondays and Fridays in an office can be a bad time to engage someone as the pressure of starting a new week or ending it with all tasks completed will drive the concentration from the minds of those you wish to train.

In every case it will be slightly different and the only way to find what works is to open the lines of communication and be aware of your students actions and what they are telling you. When you pick the right time, the learner will be alert and ready to engage with where they are about to travel. Sometimes though, there is no right time. In these cases any time is right and making it work will be about separating the individual from the rest of their environment for the period of the learning sessions. In these cases you as a trainer may need to take the lead.

Finding the right time is about what works and when it works.  Be flexible and alert to your learners and you will find it.

Find the right medium

What works best with the student for them to learn. If a student learns better face to face, classes or group sessions may work best. If the learner is time poor and wishes to study from home a distance or blended model might be better for them. Even further if they are studying at home, the might want to operate online or feel more comfortable with paper. Finding the right tool for the job is about removing barriers to learning and empowering a person to learn in their way that suits them.

But what tool should I use? There may be dozens of tools that work for the situation and and example is online conferencing: four fantastic web conferencing tools are Elluminate, Wimba, DimDim and Adobe Connect. They all do approximately the same thing. They look a little different and have different pricing models and structures, but when push comes to shove they all work. The question becomes not what works, but which is going to work best for me and my student. It may even be a case of use whichever is your preference and if that doesn’t work move onto to another tool. There are no right answers here.

The big trick to finding the right tools for the job are to use the ones you have at hand. If they don’t work, don’t clasp them tight. Find another tool that works. If text chat isn’t working, use Skype or VOIP and if that doesn’t work pick up the phone. The tools to use are the ones that work.

Bring the right information and know when to bring others into the conversation

Your learner knows what they want to learn and in most case you will know what they will need to learn. The best thing you can do is prepare adequately and be ready to give of what you have. The old adage of preparation being the most important thing you can do still holds true in the modern training environment. The most flexible trainers are those prepared for most eventualities. Prepare early and move as you need to when your train. Your learners will be better for it.

It goes without saying that one person can’t know everything. You will have gaps in your knowledge, and if you don’t you are not human. When you hit something that you can’t answer, bring in the help you need to address the issue. Most successful people aim to surround themselves with smarter people then they are, why should trainers be any different? Hubris is the fortitude of the week and humbleness the refuge of the strong. Admitting to a knowledge gap doesn’t diminish a person, nothing robs credibility faster than trying to bluff through a topic you know little about. Finding the right person or information for a student when they need it, even if that person isn’t you, increases your connection to the learner and meets them where they need to be met.

Listen

It’s been said that we have two ears and one mouth and we should use them in that ratio. Funnily enough in training one of the hardest things to learn is when to shut the one tool we are used to using. One of the things I’ve observed is that the most effective trainers help learners train, tutor and teach each other. The knack they have is hearing exactly what they are being asked then drawing it out of those around them. Context is gained from the  subtext of the conversation. Reading between the lines and finding the story behind the questions.

One of the most effective tools here is the art of reflective listening. For the uninitiated reflective listening is where you reflect your learners statements back to them slightly paraphrased to determine that you understand what they are saying eg “So you mean…” or “He made you feel…” You can then employ a series of questions to get the learner thinking in the right direction or to find the heart of the matter and address the real questions being asked. Finding the real context of the conversation helps you as a trainer connect with your learners and help them make real behaviour change.

Admittedly the context might be “I’m confused and what you are saying doesn’t make much sense to me”, listening and obtaining feed back from your learners will help you find when you’ve got it right, got it wrong and when it is time to move the conversation along.

Finally…

We’ve moved from the teacher centric model of past, where an esteemed wise man stood on an elevated platform and espoused the wisdom he held. The main problem with throwing information at people is most of it bounces. For a learner to engage with information and behaviour to start to change, a facilitator and trainer must meet the student where they stand now. The trainer has to find the context of where the student is coming from and fit the learning to them. In the end, a learner centric system means context is everything…

Let us know what you think, by posting your comments below.

Perpetuus Calx – Resolutions that Last

The new year has started and provides us with the opportunity to think about where we are, where we want to go and how we go about getting there. In short, we have thought, and in many cases made, our New Year’s resolutions.

 The idea of the New Year’s resolutions has unfortunately been tarnished by time and personal experiences. A number of notable newspaper columnists go so far as to suggest that because so many resolutions get broken, you shouldn’t bother making them in the first place. And while it is true that at least 80% of the resolutions this year are already consigned to the trash can of life, I think the idea misses the point. It is about the resolutions that last the distance and make the difference sought in the first place.  The thing most people don’t think about is that other word for resolution is GOAL.

Anyone that has read any self-help book or business building manual in the last 20 years, or for that matter have decided to watch Dr Phil, know about the goals (or resolutions) that don’t work. They are the goals that are vague, unmeasurable or simple unattainable. They are generally a good intention with no possible follow-through such as “I will be more attentive in class”, “I will make my business grow” or even “I will lose weight this year”. They are great ideas with no direction and with no way to know when you get there.

Likewise we have all heard about the goals that work, the SMART goals (or one of half a dozen other variants). Simply put the goals that work are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Timetabled. You should know what you want to achieve and when you will know you have made it. Your goals should be relevant to your current situation and be able to be reached. You should have a stated time to reach your goal.  So whilst “I will grow my business” might not be so great, “I will increase revenue by 10% by June by targeting product line x or service y” fits the bill. Writing down the goal and coming back to it several times before your target date can also help and make it one of the goals or resolutions that last.

In the end, the New Year’s resolution is about finding the time and space to reflect on the journey thus far, look about where you are right now and start on the path to where you want to be.  There is no perfect time for setting goals and planning, but you are served much better by the goals you have than the ones you don’t. As the adage goes, “He who aims at nothing is sure to hit it”. There are times that seem to lend themselves to reflection and goal setting and planning. New Year is one of them. A New Year’s resolution is a good way to start the year with a plan that can make the difference.

So in this stream of thinking, what are Mtraining’s New Year’s resolutions? Well, we’ll play that a little close to the chest. Some of the ones that I’m throwing into the ring and that excite me are:

• Find at least 5 emerging or new technologies and pilot their usage with students by years end
• Create a bank of over 100 new Point Of View training resources (videos) by June 
• and personally, I’d like to help at least a few hundred excellent trainers reach their learners more effectively through innovative use of technology this year

2009 contains some awesome and really exciting possibilities. Our New Year’s resolutions are aimed at making them become real. 

What are you aiming for? Post a comment or contact us and let us help you get there.

Web 2.0, Privacy and ELearning

A couple of weeks ago, I was watching a program on ABC2 called hack and they were exploring in an open-forum style the issue of privacy and the world of Web 2.0. You can see the show at http://www.abc.net.au/triplej/hackhalfhour/programs/s2359534.htm and it is well worth the watch. It was quite interesting, and somewhat scary, how naive even supposedly sophisticated users are. Most were totally unaware about how much information about each of participants was available online, what a phishing attack was or how seemingly easy it is for a third party to launch a dedicated identity attack against them. A whitehat (a hacker who works for good) explained to the crowd how a spear fishing attack can occur whereby an email is sent containing information specific to the individual being targeted and looking like it came from a legitimate source, but containing a link to a spoof or fake site requesting log on details. The site looks genuine in every respect, including styling and branding, and feeling comforted by familiar surrounds a user tries to log in and in the process hands over their user name and password to a third party who then has complete access to that person’s account. Given that most people use the same password for almost everything, a successful attack can open up a user’s email account to abuse and from there a complete identity fraud, including online banking can occur. Scary stuff! The next comments from the crowd were disheartening, ’so you can get hacked by clicking on an “attachment”‘. Yes, that is true, but misses the entire point of the explanation. You were left with a sense that still most of the crowd didn’t get it. The whitehat didn’t correct; he just sat there with a sad smirk on his face. At the very least, every user involved in a social networking site or any of the available Web 2.0 services should be aware of how much information about ourselves we give away for free. From a training perspective this should very much inform us on what we need to be communicating to our learners. As part of the education landscape in Australia we are bound by legislation to protect our learners’ privacy and we have a duty of care to do so. This means we need to be aware and ahead of the game when it comes to how the technologies we use work and impact on privacy. If we are using available social networking sites such as Facebook or MySpace for communicating with and amongst our student, and this can be a very good thing, we need to be aware of who can see what and when. A gentle word that is completely appropriate in a face to face environment can very easily turn into an embarassing comment screamed out to a student’s friends, family and indeed the whole world by accident. As with most things, context is everything. From an administrative point of view, if learning is occurring in an LMS of any description the LMS should be configured correctly. Any impartation of other LMS users’ details to other users needs to be at the user’s discretion. If we by means of incorrect settings allow open access of details between users without their permission, life is by no means rosy. And of course, contingency is also important. The question how to respond to a breach should be answered well before the likelihood of a breach taking place. One great resource is http://www.privacy.gov.au. Finally we need to educate those we train on how they can protect themselves. If a learner’s details are displayed in a public space or they make a fool of themselves in spaces such as Facebook or MySpace because we didn’t prepare them adequately where does the duty of care fall? What can we do to prevent such a calamity? Now it needn’t be all doom and gloom, but we need to approach online learning and Web 2.0 with our eyes open. Failure to use the medium and tools available to us simply limits how well we interact with the digital generation. The tools available are great and incredibly useful and I argue should be used. The question is how best to do so. I’m interested in your thoughts. What do you think about the whole online privacy thing and where do you sit? What challenges have you faced? Have you been subject to ID theft or know someone who has? How do you think we as trainers, teachers, educators, students and learners need to approach our own online lives and learning? Huge questions, but well worth the asking.