Of late, especially with the announcement of the iPad, there are several discussions on whether e-books (or for that matter e-textbooks) should be introduced in the classroom. For instance, in this article; the future of textbooks is discussed; while another article here provides a more balanced view of the advantages and disadvantages.
Some agree that e-textbooks will really allow learning to come alive; imagine when you are on the topic of tropical rainforest and right there, on your e-textbook, you will be able to activate a video that will show you the rainforest right there in the classroom.
Some disagree as they think that using e-textbooks readers will distract students in the classroom. In fact, not using e-textbooks will encourage students to get up and conduct their own research, instead of having research conducted for them.
Do share your thoughts with us on e-textbooks:
- What are your thoughts on this?
- What are the advantages (or disadvantages) of using it in the classroom?
- Are you an educator, student, or parent?
Thank you.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Learning Continually
Big-Pictured Thinkers learn continually. They understand that there are always new ways of doing things better, that there can be other areas of knowledge hich they have yet to learn.
Some useful benefits from continual learning include; ever expanding your map of the world, a new subject or area of knowledge will bring about new perspectives, and most importantly to me is that continual learning is fuel for ideas generation.
If we do not learn continually from things, people, books, movies, art, music, then where do we get new ideas?
What works for me is this:
Every week during your weekly review, identify the key opportunities for new learning.
This can be very exciting because let's say in your upcoming week's agenda you find that you have a meeting with an old friend, decide that you will learn something from him/her. It can be his/her pespective of work, life, certain aspects of government policies, etc.
Or let's say you are going to the movies this week with your spouse, decide to find a key learning point from the movie.
Interesting things happen when you made that decision. First, you've programmed your subconscious mind to seek out that learning opportunity that you might otherwise elude you. Second, you approach the event with humilty (to learn) instead of arrogance (of what new thing can this event or person teach me).
So can I challenge you to look at your upcoming week schedule and identify an event where you seek to learn something from it.
As we hope to engage our friends here so please share with us your experiences after you have done the action exercise.
Your friend,
Melvyn
(Posted from my iPhone)
Some useful benefits from continual learning include; ever expanding your map of the world, a new subject or area of knowledge will bring about new perspectives, and most importantly to me is that continual learning is fuel for ideas generation.
If we do not learn continually from things, people, books, movies, art, music, then where do we get new ideas?
What works for me is this:
Every week during your weekly review, identify the key opportunities for new learning.
This can be very exciting because let's say in your upcoming week's agenda you find that you have a meeting with an old friend, decide that you will learn something from him/her. It can be his/her pespective of work, life, certain aspects of government policies, etc.
Or let's say you are going to the movies this week with your spouse, decide to find a key learning point from the movie.
Interesting things happen when you made that decision. First, you've programmed your subconscious mind to seek out that learning opportunity that you might otherwise elude you. Second, you approach the event with humilty (to learn) instead of arrogance (of what new thing can this event or person teach me).
So can I challenge you to look at your upcoming week schedule and identify an event where you seek to learn something from it.
As we hope to engage our friends here so please share with us your experiences after you have done the action exercise.
Your friend,
Melvyn
(Posted from my iPhone)
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Mindset of Big-Picture Thinkers
In our advanced goal-setting seminar, the first step in the entire process is Big-Picture Thinking.
Reason why this is right at the top is because if your goals are not big (yet realistic) it will not only fail to excite you, it will also be difficult to enlist others to join you in achieving the goal.
Another key reason why this is so critical especially for advanced goal-setting is because we believe that your goals should not be about yourself (that's for first level goal-setting; where first you must be able to lead yourself before leading others). In fact your goal should be towards service and not self-serving at this level.
Here, we will like to share the four "Ls" of Big-Picture Thinking. In summary, the four "Ls" are: learning continually, listening intensely, look extensively, and live completely.
We will cover each of the "Ls" in turn, starting with 'learning continually' in the next discussion.
Your friend,
Melvyn
(Posted from my iPhone)
Reason why this is right at the top is because if your goals are not big (yet realistic) it will not only fail to excite you, it will also be difficult to enlist others to join you in achieving the goal.
Another key reason why this is so critical especially for advanced goal-setting is because we believe that your goals should not be about yourself (that's for first level goal-setting; where first you must be able to lead yourself before leading others). In fact your goal should be towards service and not self-serving at this level.
Here, we will like to share the four "Ls" of Big-Picture Thinking. In summary, the four "Ls" are: learning continually, listening intensely, look extensively, and live completely.
We will cover each of the "Ls" in turn, starting with 'learning continually' in the next discussion.
Your friend,
Melvyn
(Posted from my iPhone)
Saturday, January 16, 2010
ABCD of Engagement - A great teacher inspires
We all recall those days of chalky boards and flying dusters (at least for folks my age). These days in schools we aim to engage our pupils in the ABC.
A is affective, where we do things to engage them in that particular domain. I am a firm believer that the reason "we do what we do when we know what we know" is because the affective domain is not engaged.
Perhaps one of the best examples is in the health arena. We all KNOW that it is good to exercise for at least 30 minutes three times a week; but we do not DO it because we are not MOVED to act in a particular manner that inspires us to take action.
Henceforth, a child (adults alike) may be effective in the intellectual domain but if s/he is experiencing certain emotional drawbacks s/he is not likely to perform well. Of course one can argue that there are individuals who leverage on such negative emotional events to spur them on, as in Brookfield (1987).
We feel that once the affective domain is engaged, then the next domains to work on would be Behaviorial and Cognitive.
The Chinese proverb: “Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn."
This is where things get interesting. Because this is where the systemic benefits happen due to the multiplier effect.
We could explain it this way; when we are emotionally engaged, feel good about learning we tend to take action in learning which then leads to us knowing more in depth about a particular subject. And because we now know more we are more confident to share and that lead to even more learning.
The effect is just phenomenal.
Now, if we can add the "D" to the engagement; it would be Definitive Purpose. As long as there is Definitive Purpose, one would find that it begins to find learning meaningful and relevant.
Perhaps to end off this blog, to share a quote from Maya Angelou:
"I've learnt that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."
Your friend,
Melvyn
(Posted from my iPhone)
Key Goal: Learning to "Think"
One of my goals this year is to sharpen my "thinking".
My reason for the choice of the goal is simple.
If we want to thrive and be a leader in our chosen field, our success hinges on one factor; that is if we are able to be always ahead of our time.
In other words, can we continually be successful in our fields, and of course the answer is yes. The what is it that we need to do to stay ahead?
The answer, as I have figured out, is "ideas". If we are able to continually generate ideas and be effective in executing those ideas, then we will always be able to create, add, and maximize value for all those that we serve.
But where do ideas come from? And how can we be effective in executing those ideas? I believe the answer lies with our ability to think.
Hence, we will be starting a series of blogs on "thinking" from here on and we certainly hope to share these ideas with you.
Your friend,
Melvyn
(Posted from my iPhone)
My reason for the choice of the goal is simple.
If we want to thrive and be a leader in our chosen field, our success hinges on one factor; that is if we are able to be always ahead of our time.
In other words, can we continually be successful in our fields, and of course the answer is yes. The what is it that we need to do to stay ahead?
The answer, as I have figured out, is "ideas". If we are able to continually generate ideas and be effective in executing those ideas, then we will always be able to create, add, and maximize value for all those that we serve.
But where do ideas come from? And how can we be effective in executing those ideas? I believe the answer lies with our ability to think.
Hence, we will be starting a series of blogs on "thinking" from here on and we certainly hope to share these ideas with you.
Your friend,
Melvyn
(Posted from my iPhone)
Saturday, January 09, 2010
Change of Habits
Its the New Year, and with a new beginning comes new hopes. With new hopes come new dreams. With new dreams come new goals. With new goals come new actions. With new actions come new habits. Does it stop there? Some may say yes, but I will certainly say no.
Habits are essentially a manifestation of our inner beliefs and mindset. We can want to change a habit and possibly be successful for a while. But unless we change our thinking, we will fall back to our old habits.
Before we go into that, let's talk a little about habits, neural pathways, and basal ganglia.
Possibly the easiest way to discuss the above is this. Say, there is a footpath that has been paved that you should take when walking from your house to the main street. However, that footpath is somehow out of the way for you, hence instead of using that footpath, you walk on the grass patch. The initial few days when you walked on the grass patch does nothing to the grass. But with continual stepping on the grass will cause it to die and soon you will find a footpath being created by you.
Habits are just like that. Habits are essentially actions that we take when faced with a stimulus. Say, whenever we are stress, we start throwing our weight around. The first few times when we do that, it seem kinda odd, and we're probably embarrassed about it afterwards. But overtime, whenever we become stressed (stimulus), we start screaming and shouting (actions). After while, we probably even get used to it. So much so, that the next time we become stressed, even without thinking, we start screaming at the top of our lungs!
Over time, such habits are formed. Just like that brown footpath you've created.
And why is it so difficult to change our habits? Well, our brain tends to take the path of least resistance (like that paved footpath is "out of the way"), so we just blow up whenever we get stressed up.
Then, how do we change our habits? What can we do?
There are some practices that I have come across that worked for me. And I'll like you to give it a shot to.
Essentially there are three steps that we need to take. (Caution: Though it is not easy, it is not impossible too).
Firstly; practice "pause". Which means, the next time when you know you are going to act up; pause. During my NLP course, our trainer made us wear our watches on the other hand. For most of us, its the left hand, so we wear it on the right instead. And from time to time, he would ask for the time. And instinctively many of us will lift up our left hand, only to remember that we have switched sides. That brought about lots of laughter but also a reminder for us to, pause, and then lift up the other hand instead. Some other variations of this practice is, if you have always brushed your teeth with your right hand, then for the next few days, try brushing with your left hand. You will find that your brushing goes haywire and what used to be a five minutes ritual can turn into a ten minutes agony.
Secondly; practice the art of "asking questions". In other words, if you have always been doing things a specific way, ask yourself questions like, "how would it be like if I change the way I approach this?" or "what are other possible ways to approach this same issue?". Some people practice this by asking themselves what other possible routes that they can take when driving to work. Of course it might not be possible for us all, but you get the idea. Next time, before you walk into class, ask yourself what and how can you do differently to achieve the same results or even better outcomes.
Finally, practice the art of changing your thinking. This is probably the most difficult of the three. But it is definitely worth it. John C. Maxwell talked about the 11 new ways of thinking that will change your life in his book, "Thinking for a Change". If you haven't read that, I strongly recommend it. One of the most important reason to "change your thinking" is because a change in thinking brings about huge systemic change. In fact, in my training as an economist, we always learn about different models and with each model, there are a specific set of assumptions. It is therefore, important, for us to know what those assumptions are because if we don't we wouldn't be able to explain why economic agents behave in a particular manner. Just like economic models and their assumptions, we also need to better understanding our thinking habits. Are we always thinking good thoughts or have we been harboring bad thoughts for the longest time? Are we always thinking empowering thoughts or are we caught up with limiting thoughts about ourselves?
These three practices, if we follow it religiously, we will definitely see dramatic changes in our lives; for the better of course. I have been thinking about the goals I have for myself in 2010 and one of my sub-goals is to think better. And that's going to be the first thing I am starting with because it has the maximum multiplier effect on all my other goals as well.
Let me know what you think (no pun intended), and if you have suggestions or better ways of sharping your thinking skills, we'd like to hear it!
Your friend,
Melvyn
Habits are essentially a manifestation of our inner beliefs and mindset. We can want to change a habit and possibly be successful for a while. But unless we change our thinking, we will fall back to our old habits.
Before we go into that, let's talk a little about habits, neural pathways, and basal ganglia.
Possibly the easiest way to discuss the above is this. Say, there is a footpath that has been paved that you should take when walking from your house to the main street. However, that footpath is somehow out of the way for you, hence instead of using that footpath, you walk on the grass patch. The initial few days when you walked on the grass patch does nothing to the grass. But with continual stepping on the grass will cause it to die and soon you will find a footpath being created by you.
Habits are just like that. Habits are essentially actions that we take when faced with a stimulus. Say, whenever we are stress, we start throwing our weight around. The first few times when we do that, it seem kinda odd, and we're probably embarrassed about it afterwards. But overtime, whenever we become stressed (stimulus), we start screaming and shouting (actions). After while, we probably even get used to it. So much so, that the next time we become stressed, even without thinking, we start screaming at the top of our lungs!
Over time, such habits are formed. Just like that brown footpath you've created.
And why is it so difficult to change our habits? Well, our brain tends to take the path of least resistance (like that paved footpath is "out of the way"), so we just blow up whenever we get stressed up.
Then, how do we change our habits? What can we do?
There are some practices that I have come across that worked for me. And I'll like you to give it a shot to.
Essentially there are three steps that we need to take. (Caution: Though it is not easy, it is not impossible too).
Firstly; practice "pause". Which means, the next time when you know you are going to act up; pause. During my NLP course, our trainer made us wear our watches on the other hand. For most of us, its the left hand, so we wear it on the right instead. And from time to time, he would ask for the time. And instinctively many of us will lift up our left hand, only to remember that we have switched sides. That brought about lots of laughter but also a reminder for us to, pause, and then lift up the other hand instead. Some other variations of this practice is, if you have always brushed your teeth with your right hand, then for the next few days, try brushing with your left hand. You will find that your brushing goes haywire and what used to be a five minutes ritual can turn into a ten minutes agony.
Secondly; practice the art of "asking questions". In other words, if you have always been doing things a specific way, ask yourself questions like, "how would it be like if I change the way I approach this?" or "what are other possible ways to approach this same issue?". Some people practice this by asking themselves what other possible routes that they can take when driving to work. Of course it might not be possible for us all, but you get the idea. Next time, before you walk into class, ask yourself what and how can you do differently to achieve the same results or even better outcomes.
Finally, practice the art of changing your thinking. This is probably the most difficult of the three. But it is definitely worth it. John C. Maxwell talked about the 11 new ways of thinking that will change your life in his book, "Thinking for a Change". If you haven't read that, I strongly recommend it. One of the most important reason to "change your thinking" is because a change in thinking brings about huge systemic change. In fact, in my training as an economist, we always learn about different models and with each model, there are a specific set of assumptions. It is therefore, important, for us to know what those assumptions are because if we don't we wouldn't be able to explain why economic agents behave in a particular manner. Just like economic models and their assumptions, we also need to better understanding our thinking habits. Are we always thinking good thoughts or have we been harboring bad thoughts for the longest time? Are we always thinking empowering thoughts or are we caught up with limiting thoughts about ourselves?
These three practices, if we follow it religiously, we will definitely see dramatic changes in our lives; for the better of course. I have been thinking about the goals I have for myself in 2010 and one of my sub-goals is to think better. And that's going to be the first thing I am starting with because it has the maximum multiplier effect on all my other goals as well.
Let me know what you think (no pun intended), and if you have suggestions or better ways of sharping your thinking skills, we'd like to hear it!
Your friend,
Melvyn
Friday, January 08, 2010
Are Your People Your Assets?
It is not uncommon to hear people say that, "our people are our assets". In "It's not about the coffee", Howard Behar said that people are not your assets; you own assets but you do not own your people.
I found that thought to be quite profound. As an economist by training, I can't help but think of the law of diminishing returns when I think of assets. Assets have an economic lifespan, during which they are most productive. And after that period, you write them off. Is this the same for people?
Well, depends on our thinking and hence, our beliefs about people.
With assets, or resources, we tend to think of being efficient and effective in the use of resources. Resources, some people think of it as not only physical and financial resources but also human resources. Stephen R. Covey says you can be efficient with a machine but you cannot be efficient with a person. In other words, Stephen R. Covey is saying you need to invest in the emotional bank account. Otherwise, if we have always been efficient with people we will instead be withdrawing, rather than depositing, from their emotional bank account.
To cite an example, let's say I want to be "efficient" with my staff. And as a result, I do not take the time to understand their needs nor explain my rationale of doing things, instead I just tell them what to do and tell them to just do it. Perhaps in the past I have asked them for opinions but were impatient in hearing them out. And overtime I figured they can't give any useful suggestions anyway and hence I decided to be efficient with them. Does that sound familiar?
Then you may ask, what then can we do? To follow from Stephen R. Covey's principles, we first have to make deposits in the emotional bank account. Only by doing so, can we become effective with people.
And if we become effective with people, can we then pick up speed and be efficient with them? The answer is yes. And that can be drawn from Stephen M.R. Covey's book, The Speed of Trust. Only when you have established trust, then can you become efficient with people. Still, the underlying principles of being effective with people must come in first. Otherwise it is not possible to be efficient with people.
Your friend,
Melvyn
(0osted from my iPhone)
I found that thought to be quite profound. As an economist by training, I can't help but think of the law of diminishing returns when I think of assets. Assets have an economic lifespan, during which they are most productive. And after that period, you write them off. Is this the same for people?
Well, depends on our thinking and hence, our beliefs about people.
With assets, or resources, we tend to think of being efficient and effective in the use of resources. Resources, some people think of it as not only physical and financial resources but also human resources. Stephen R. Covey says you can be efficient with a machine but you cannot be efficient with a person. In other words, Stephen R. Covey is saying you need to invest in the emotional bank account. Otherwise, if we have always been efficient with people we will instead be withdrawing, rather than depositing, from their emotional bank account.
To cite an example, let's say I want to be "efficient" with my staff. And as a result, I do not take the time to understand their needs nor explain my rationale of doing things, instead I just tell them what to do and tell them to just do it. Perhaps in the past I have asked them for opinions but were impatient in hearing them out. And overtime I figured they can't give any useful suggestions anyway and hence I decided to be efficient with them. Does that sound familiar?
Then you may ask, what then can we do? To follow from Stephen R. Covey's principles, we first have to make deposits in the emotional bank account. Only by doing so, can we become effective with people.
And if we become effective with people, can we then pick up speed and be efficient with them? The answer is yes. And that can be drawn from Stephen M.R. Covey's book, The Speed of Trust. Only when you have established trust, then can you become efficient with people. Still, the underlying principles of being effective with people must come in first. Otherwise it is not possible to be efficient with people.
Your friend,
Melvyn
(0osted from my iPhone)
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