Entertaining Information
A wise person recently remarked to me that
“learning
without
entertainment
is
only
information.”
It
did
not
take
long
to
understand
the
value
of
this
comment.
In
learning
development
forums,
we
hear
more
and
more
about
using
different
techniques
to
keep
the
learner’s
interest.
Phrases
such
as,
“engage
the
learner”
and
“maintain
the
learners
interest”
appear
regularly
in
almost
every
publication
on
learning.
The
concept
is
championed
with
contributing
to
ROI
benefits
and
the
transfer
of
learning
to
job
tasks.
However,
the
underlying
concept
is
more
information-centric
than
it
might
appear.
The “entertainment” aspect of the learning
takes
the
learner
far
beyond
staying
engaged.
It
is
meant
to
restate
the
lesson
at
hand
and
increase
the
learners’
comprehension
and
retention.
It
also
shows
the
learner
and
the
instructor
how
much
the
learners
have
truly
absorbed.
A favorite of mine is to divide the students
into
groups.
Then
assign
each
group
some
limited
information
from
the
lesson.
Each
group
is
then
asked
to
take
ownership
of
that
information
and
prepare
to
prove
to
the
other
groups
why
something
is
the
best.
Why
is
their
analysis
the
most
accurate?
Why
is
one
process
more
beneficial?
The
value
here
is
in
the
“why.”
Asking
why
forces
the
learner
to
internalize
the
new
information
and
begin
relating
it
to
information
they
already
have.
In
doing
so,
the
transfer
of
learning
into
existing
tasks
has
already
begun.
The discussion aspect of the activity helps
force
a
quality
of
thinking
by
assigning
accountability
and
offers
insight
into
the
perspectives
of
the
other
learners.
All activities should:
- Use points from the learning to design
the
activity
- Get the learners on their feet or at least
have
them
focus
in
a
completely
different
way
- Include opportunities for the learner to
show
how
the
lesson
was
applied
- Encourage accountability of applying the
information
Need
ideas?
Try
searching
the
Internet
for
teaching
sites.
There
are
countless
sites
that
offer
suggestions
for
learning
activities
that
you
could
customize
to
apply
to
your
topic.
Possible
idea
sites:
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