RKCS Learning Solutions

As this is an e-learning blog, the majority of the topics I write about deal directly with e-learning, software, processes and things that have to do directly with e-learning. Most of the other blogs/bloggers that I am connected to do the same. However, this morning, I decided to veer in a slightly different direction. One of the things that I do as part of my daily routine is some general surfing, getting familiar with other blogs, randomly looking at information that may or may not apply to me. Why? It’s sometimes in this randomness that I find things that make life a bit clearer or even provide a perspective that I had either forgotten about or did not realize previously. This morning, I came across an article on health. It pertained specifically to men, but we are all adults here, so I figured I would link the article so that you could read it at your leisure. The article listed 25 health tips, but a few points hit home specifically. The first was #10 – Don’t be an island. As someone who works virtually a great deal of the time, it is extremely easy to become isolated. With the advent of social networking, twitter, Facebook, etc, it is also easy to trick yourself into feeling like you are connecting with people because you have sent them a text, posted a message on their wall, sent them a Mafia Wars or Farmville request, or some other action that may or may not provide specific interaction with other people. But the truth of the matter is, we all need human connection. It’s healthy for us. If we are not healthy, then this work that we do is not going to be at it’s best anyway. Yesterday, I had an issue that I was thinking about and because I had formed a connection with someone, I was able to speak to them via Skype and get another perspective. This helped to ease some anxiety and also let me know that I was not alone.

The second one that connected with me was #3 – Hit the sack. #10, then #3?? OK, so I read backwards a little. In any case, the benefits of getting to bed at a certain time and getting a sufficient amount of sleep cannot be denied. I have 3 young kids and so I am definitely guilty of not getting enough sleep on a regular basis. In fact, I often wonder if it is even possible to get everything done, take care of a family and still get enough sleep. Yeah, it is. I definitely have to re-prioritize some things. But, it definitely is possible.

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I don’t mean to be cynical in any way. But, I sometimes laugh when fads, phases and buzzwords come about. I laugh because, in a lot of cases, those things have been around for a long time. They have just been called by a different name. It reminds me of childhood when I “discovered” something and told my parents. They would laugh and say something to the effect of. “Boy, we’ve been doing that since 1952!” The same happens in fashion. A few years ago (well, a few years in my head, I could be wrong), it became fashionable to wear “flare” pants. When my parents saw this, the wondered out loud why they were now calling “bell-bottom pants” flares? They thought it was utterly silly.

So now, there is this thing called social learning. I see a new blog post referring to social learning, social networking, or some sort of social theory all the time. For some, its “brandy” new. For others, it has just been recognized. For others, its been around for a long time but the tools are different. Yes, social learning has been around for a long time. People have always met together to discuss life. Before books and writing came about, families and communities sat together to talk about family history, genealogy and how to improve life. Students have always found ways to connect with each other and learn specifically in a language only they can apparently discern. My greatest example of this came as I was teaching a science class one day. I explained a concept and thought that I had broken it down QUITE explicitly. However, there was one student who still did not understand. So, I went over to his desk and sat with him trying to explain the concept with as many different examples as I could think of. He still didn’t get it. Over comes one of his friends who then goes ahead and explains the concept to him in words that I thought were the EXACT ones that I had used previously. Apparently they weren’t because the concept immediately clicked for the student once his friend explained it. This might have been the generational factor of social learning. Apparently that “Charlie Brown teacher language” really exists.

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