Full Circle Associates

I was clicking into the articles and landed on Donald Clark's review of Techlearn 2005. I've gone to one of these confabs and one was enough for me. (I'm not fond of big conferences nor am I fond of people who control agendas as firmly as Maise did. Or does. I can't say now!) But it's a big conference and learning is part of my domain, so I was eager to read the review.

The first thing that caught my eye was this bit:

"Elliot introduced us to a particularly dull video (really an animated PowerPoint), but the kids were having none of it and proceeded to fidget, dance and generally muck about. More mucking about was precisely what the conference needed at this point."

I am a fan of mucking about, so much that I co-produced a couple of events that were MUCKabouts! What we learned from both of those is the importance of mucking into ideas and mucking out of our normal circles for new inspirations and perspectives. So three cheers for mucking about.

The second thing I learned was that we need to let go of this "unconference" idea because it is a sham. What we need to focus on is productive group gatherings, be they conferences, open spaces, muckabouts, or whatever. Instead of the "un" what is the "IT?" (I know, that sounds half baked. That's because it is. I'm tired today!)

The third thing I realized at the end of the article. There was no way to comment. I was taken aback. I have become SO USED to being able to comment, to reply, to add, to kibbutz, that it has become something I take for granted. When I run up against an old fashioned webpage, I'm stumped.

That was somehow the most important thing I took away. And I never got to tell Donald I appreciated his report, nor did I get to suggest that Maise should quit producing a conference and instead simply create a great environment for a giant open space on learning. Now THAT I would go to! Especially if there were some mucking about included!

[Via Downes? I can't remember!]

Categories: muckabout,, unconference,, techlearn,, Maise