I am a visual learner so I tend to prioritize visual learning when designing learning experiences: showing what I mean using diagrams and pictures, drawing on visual metaphors to invite new connections, and calling on learners to draw tables, flow charts, and diagrams that demonstrate causal or relational links from one idea or action to the next.
It can be challenging to collect meaningful data from participants while facilitating dialogue. There we stand at the flip chart with markers in hand, racing to get their insights up on the wall while the dialogue flows past us. The conversation starts to go off track...
Adapted from Susan Cain’s Quiet p342-344 and p348-9 Design Tips to Honour Introverted Learners: Include solo work as well as pair and small group work. All of us get a boost out of solo work – even if we are the type who don’t ask for it. Let learners surprise...
Participants relishing their productive silence at the October 2014 Foundations of Dialogue Education workshop in San Diego, CA With the speed of life and technology, it seems that many of us are managing our lives in 10-minute increments. Even that 10 minutes can be...
When language or memory is a challenge for learners we need to find other ways to support a learner’s learning and plan for transfer. Here are a few ideas to consider. Take a photo of the learner with his commitment. This visual cue can serve as a reminder and help...
Managing time is a challenge for even the most seasoned facilitators. Here are a few tips to help you ensure you facilitate the planned learning design in the designated time: Start on time. When learners don’t arrive on time, it can be challenging to know when to...
[This post is the last in a summer series of three posts on Three Levels of Listening. Want to learn more? We invite you to read the first and second post, and download the tipsheet Three Levels of Listening.] Imagine this: You are sitting in a café with two...
In Canada we are fortunate to live with diverse cultural groups. However, at times, the way we communicate or approach interpersonal communication in one’s culture, can influence the way we engage and participate in a learning event when diversity is present. The...
To feel a sense of belonging is important because it will lead us from conversations about safety and comfort to other conversations, such as our relatedness and willingness to provide hospitality and generosity. Hospitality is the welcoming of strangers, and...
The key to optimizing learning and building long-term memory is to create ‘ownership’ of learning content. (Jensen, 2005; Poldrack et al., 2001) Below are facilitation skills I have been especially aware of lately in my work. These go beyond technique. They are more...
How does a facilitator know when groups or individuals are hard at work on a task you have set, or are stuck and want some help? When learners are hard at work for extended periods of time, I don’t hover. These are times for me to get out of the way, so learning...
Resistance is normal – both to what is being taught and to how it is being taught. What we want to do is minimize resistance so that it does not negatively interfere with learning.