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The TrainingZONE LearningWIRE - Issue 61
9 August 1999
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk
The Learning Community
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Copyright (C) 1999 Sift plc. All rights reserved.
May be reproduced in any medium for non-commercial purposes as long as attribution is given.
From the Editor
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Last week's opinion piece on 'Training Versus Learning' generated a lot of comment. You can read a summary of some of the issues in this LearningWire. We'd welcome your contribution for future Opinion Pieces too.
Read on also for news of several new TrainingZone features, all of which encourage you to participate, share your views and experiences, and get answers to your questions. They're called Chat, Poll and Any Answers?
Finally .... there are job opportunities .....
Tim Pickles, Editor
mailto:editor@trainingzone.co.uk
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LearningWire currently reaches over 2,800 professionals every week. Put your message before this focused audience of people engaged in training, learning and development.
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New - Online Chat
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We've just opened up our new TrainingZone Chat feature. Every fortnight, we plan to run an hour-long session where you can participate with others to discuss the topic for the session, ask questions and explore ideas.
The Topic for the first of these sessions is "Reluctant Learners" - it's wide open to discuss strategies, tactics and solutions.
The Chat Room will be open from 1.00 pm BST on Tuesday 10 August for an hour. Anyone can join in. Just go to
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/chat
and click on the Chat button. See you there!
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Opinion Piece: Training versus Learning
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Last week's article generated lots of debate. We prefer it when people add their reactions in the Comments area at the bottom of the page - that way, other people can read them too. It's easy to do. Points made so far include:
- enthusiasm and interaction in training sessions is crucial
- one-to-one processes promote real learning
- the trainer is responsible if the learner fails to learn
- new technology offers great opportunities for learners
- chasing the latest new fad is dangerous
- don't give up on tried and tested methods of training
- in selecting training methods, it's very much 'horses for courses'!
The original article, and several Comments are at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=5491&d=1
If you have a strong view on any training or development issue and would like to publish an Opinion Piece here, do please get in touch.
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WebWatch
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WebWatch brings you information about useful and relevant resources from other Internet sites around the world. Unless otherwise linked, all the following stories can be found at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/webwatch
Explore Your Values
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Apologies - the gremlins crept into the hyperlink in the last issue. This one should work:
The latest publication from Peter Honey is a 100-page guide including checklists, activities and self-study material on exploring your own values, attitudes and beliefs - and the impact and influence they have on your own work.
http://www.peterhoney.co.uk/explore.html
Vancouver Challenge
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You may have seen details of this in the professional press as its being widely supported as an excellent way to develop CPD experience. The challenge is to form a multi-disciplinary team capable of re-designing an major waterfront area in Vancouver. All the necessary information is published on CD and the Internet, but you'll need to do a lot of research in the process. Unfortunately, no free trips to Vancouver - unless you win.
http://www.shu.ac.uk/services/lc/cmeweb/vancouver/challenge.htm
Free Internet-based training site
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Freeskills is a new UK site offering free training via site downloads. There are presently 50 courses available, mostly in the computing field, and the site owners plan to publish around 100 more courses every month. You'll need Adobe Acrobat to open the documents. The company's slogan - "Open your mnd without opening your wallet"
http://www.freeskills.com
Coaching and mentoring
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Several new sites and resources have come to our attention this week. The Linkage Inc site has posted an interesting article on 'The dynamics of mentoring relationships - how mentoring supports learning'
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=5509&d=1
Wendy Hearn sends details of her coaching pages as well as her online resources for both coaching and stress reduction at work. You'll find her clear pages at
http://www.btinternet.com/~wendycoach
and there's more information about coaching practices from Bob Griffiths, - and details of an online coaching software service (which we hope to review shortly) at
http://www.coachmaster.co.uk
Multi-media education and training
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Prometeus is the European initiative to promote multimedia access to education and training in European society. The website offers a range of different sector-specific development areas depending on your own interests. The main site is at
http://www.prometeus.org
ICT and Learning Organisations
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As part of the work of the Prometeus Initiative (see above), Michael Kelleher has prepared a detailed paper for the Organisational and Cooperative Learning study group. This paper is a contribution to an e-conference and provides an excellent analysis of several current issues in Learning Organisation development.
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=5570&d=1
Family learning weekend
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Last year's Family Learning Day organised by the Campaign for Learning was so successful that this year it has been extended to a whole weekend in October. So, if you want to encourage and involve your partner / children / parents / grandparents / pets to participate in the fun of lifelong learning, check it out.
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=5510&d=1
Guide to free Internet Service Providers
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As more and more Free Internet Service Providers (ISP's) come on stream choosing the right one becomes more and more difficult. Fear not! 1-2-Free has come to the rescue. This site lists all the free UK providers and catalogues their services. Most useful are the notes on how to sign up without using the ISP's proprietary software - essential if you use IE5 and the provider's free CD-ROM only offers Netscape or IE3/4 - and the list of access telephone numbers to enable you to set up a dial- up connection. The site also lists free e-mail and webspace services.
http://www.12free.co.uk
AOL head to head with Freeserve
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AOL is to confront Freeserve and other free ISPs head on by launching its own free service in the UK. The service, called Netscape Online, will be live shortly. As the name suggests, it will use Netscape and will run over AOL's existing telecommunications links. Netscape Online will be offered alongside AOL's existing services, which include CompuServe and AOL UK. The company hope to be able to continue to offer these paid for services by significantly upgrading them and offering new features. Whistling in the wind? How likely is it that people will stick with a paid for service when the same company offers a free alternative?
http://www.aol.co.uk/press/releases/1999/pr990719.html
Free PC offer - at a price
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In another Internet first, Tiny Computers is offering to give away a PC to anyone signing up with their new telecoms company, Tiny Telecom. They are plugging the deal as the first of its kind in the UK. Customers have to sign up for a minimum of a year with Tiny Telecom and must make a minimum of 25 pounds' worth of calls a month. These can be either standard voice calls or PC-based calls and they will be routed via Cable and Wireless.
https://www.accountingweb.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=5206&d=101&h=0&f=0
Further information about all these sites, and hundreds of others, can be found at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/webwatch
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New - Poll Feature
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The Poll feature enables you to cast your vote on key issues affecting training, learning and development - and to see how others have voted. Every few weeks we will post a different question to the site for you to respond to.
This week the question is:
Trainers and consultants often attach different priorities to their work. What do you think is the most important outcome of the training and learning process?
Please cast your vote at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/vote
and review the current results.
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Latest News
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Here's a quick guide to some of the other news stories posted this week:
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/news
Lastest crop of Newsletters
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Several August issues of related email digest Newsletters have been posted to the site this week.
We have agreed to post the monthly Gower Publication newsletter, which features up to 15 of their latest titles including a brief synopsis of each and a hyperlink further information for each title. As Gower are a large and extensive UK publisher of training and management materials, this is an excellent way of previewing their materials. The July issue is at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=5508&d=1
and the latest August issue is at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=5576&d=1
Roger Greenaway's excellent 'Active Reviewing Tips' this month features an extensive article on 'How to Transfer Learning' which should be relevant reading for many people involved in staff development. This issue is posted at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=5574&d=1
Meanwhile, the European Journal for Vocational Training is looking for new articles to publish - in any of the 11 EU languages. It you think you might have a contribution, check out
http://www.trainingvillage.gr/etv/editorial/edcomm.asp
Institute of Continuing Professional Development
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The ICPD has moved offices and phone numbers. It now shares facilities with the Foundation for Continuing Professional Development. Details of the new contact information is at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=5507&d=1
The future of online learning?
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If you want to look ahead at what online learning might look like in this country, have a look through the present course catalogue offered by New York University.
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=5575&d=1
UfI has excellent response to Learning Centres call
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In its latest update, the UfI says it has "thrilled" by the response to its invitation for expressions of interest in forming local Learning Centres around England and Wales.
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=5573&d=1
All the above News stories can be found at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/news
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New - Any Answers?
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This is a new section in which your questions to the editor on any training and development topic are posted to TrainingZone encouraging anyone to reply with ideas. Here are two to get you going.
My Learning Centre is interested in purchasing a group response key pad
system for use in classroom based training. I have seen the Xtol Series 8 system which was very impressive, and I am aware of other systems on the market. Are you aware of any comparison literature, like a "road test" of group response systems?
Steve Brown
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?ap=1&id=5443&d=1
TrainingZone could be the ideal forum to co-ordinate information from training providers about what the marketplace is doing. It would certainly be of interest to know which types of training are in growth/decline, what the hot subjects are, and whether spend is increasing or declininig. The way it might work would be that each provider would submit regular (monthly?) info on its sales, and these would then go into a central pool of information which TrainingZone would then publish. Obviuosly security of info could be an issue, but I'm sure it is overcomable. What do you think?
Michael Brown
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?ap=1&id=5659&d=1
Please post your Answers in the Comments area on the relevant page given beneath each question.
Keep sending new questions to the Editor
mailto:editor@trainingzone.co.uk
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Wanted: SUB-EDITOR for TrainingZone and LearningWire
Due to rapid expansion, we're seeking an enthusiast to find interesting stories, post them to TrainingZone and prepare synopses for LearningWire. We're looking particularly for someone with good Human Resources knowledge. Freelance opportunity at this stage.
For further information, see
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Other Job Opportunities at Sift
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We are looking to expand our team of 23 staff and currently have the following openings:
Financial Controller
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Responsible for all accounting, forecasting and budget matters at Sift. Please get in touch with Ben Heald. (mailto:bheald@sift.co.uk)
Business Development
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If you know anyone currently working in a marketing or business development role in or around the accounting sector then please get in touch with David Gilroy. (mailto:dgilroy@sift.co.uk)
Technical
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If you know anyone with good software development skills who is looking to transfer to an Internet company then please get in contact with Dave Hodgkinson. (mailto:daveh@sift.co.uk)
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Product reviews
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We review books, resources, software and other products at https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/reviews
This week's reviews include:
Champions of Change - a new book with case studies of the change management process
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=5567&d=1
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About Sift
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Sift plc is the award-winning UK developer of online communities bringing
you TrainingZone, AccountingWeb, BusinessZone, Travel Mole and LawZone.
http://www.sift.co.uk
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Editor: Tim Pickles mailto:editor@trainingzone.co.uk
Sift plc., The Mill House, Redcliff Backs, Bristol BS1 6LY
Tel:+44 (0)117 915 9600 Fax:+44 (0)117 915 9630
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk
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