A year since Nepal - why are some learners more enthusiastic than others?

We've just been on holiday for a month, and although I had limited access to internet I did find time to write some thoughts on my training experiences here and overseas. Anyway, why would I want to be on the internet when there were whales, dolphins, bears and glaciers to be watching. (Highly recommend Alaska as a holiday destination.)

I’m starting to get Facebook reminders of our time in Nepal last year, and as each one pops up I’m thinking more about the training we did there, what I learned in those situations, what I’ve applied already and what I would do differently in those situations now.

The most significant experience at the time was seeing the enthusiasm displayed by each group of learners. These were people who were all experienced in their field (community development, nursing, community health, finance) but with limited or no experience of working with a computer. They were amazed that we had travelled to their remote communities to spend time providing training opportunities and were more excited than any learners I have come across in fifteen years training in Australia. This experience has deepened my sense of privilege of access to learning and reignited my passion for training.

Having had this experience, I now question why we don’t see that same level of enthusiasm here. One common reason / excuse for not attending professional development is “I don’t have time”. At the beginning of this year I came across a blog put together by four Educational Technologists from the UK who were experiencing the same issue with their staff. Their blog, “1 minute CPD”, offers daily bite sized, just-in-time, professional development. James Clay’s blog post “I don’t have a dog”, shared recently through my Twitter PLN, is both entertaining and enlightening as he shares his thoughts that we all have the same number of minutes in a day and how we choose to use them is a matter of personal priorities. 

Through following 1 minute CPD this year I have improved my ICT proficiency, acquired new skills in classroom technologies and learnt to use curation tools … and so much more – and I’m excited to share what I’ve learned on my social media and with my colleagues. Sharing the 1 minute CPD concept and James’ thoughts have already proved helpful to me in encouraging staff to re-evaluate their priorities and to see professional development as something desirable and enjoyable and not just a compliance “tick the box”.

I now need to build on this and, with my team, determine the best way ahead for our staff – being very conscious that one model doesn’t fit every situation.