sir ken robinson >> ted talks >> do schools kill creativity?

I make no apology for posting this video, I think it has to be watched. even though I am sure many of you will have seen it before.
I also make no apology for finding directly from a link on davidthedesigner's blog.
I hope that as many of the people I work with each day both as colleagues and students get a chance to watch it as it says more in 19 minutes 29 seconds than I have done in the last 7 weeks of term.
I agree with what davidthedesigner says it is brilliant.

.ppt >> projectors and presentation

probably because I work in a room that has a fixed projector coming out of the ceiling (mounted on a piece of polished scaffold pole) connected to a desktop computer that I can set it up and make sure that I have a screen that is in focus, no reverse parallax's in my room. I think I am getting increasingly intolerant of a badly presented anything.

I work in a educational situation where so many building have been adapted, I know that my room in its fifty years has been a sewing room a science lab, and now a room full of computers.
so I have to get round the problems of a strange shaped room and odd acoustics as well as the lure of computers for students to play with and look at web based email working around the network restrictions firewalls. generally playing on line rather than studying, using proxy servers so as not to get caught.

(there is just no need for this!)

it is funny that many people who do not work on computers all the time have a different idea of what is interesting. I am still surprised that a really academic educator will sometimes arrive having spent ages on a Powerpoint and wonder way the students are so bored as soon as the presentation starts, not realising that most of the audience have been using Powerpoint since they were in year 4 (uk) 8 years old.

I am even more surprised when at supposed professional meetings presenters don't take the time to set up equipment to provide the best viewing experience.
I know that there is heaps of stuff on youtube, talking about death by Powerpoint, but I could cope with some of it if only the equipment was set up properly as well as the presenter not reading it out and then giving me a photocopy of it all!

its back to 'the hub' >> I am still trying

I haven't given up on 'the hub', I have mentioned it on this blog a few times.
it is a silly idea really, not because it wouldn't work as I believe it would but it would be just too expensive, and unless created in its entirety it would not have the same impact.

I don't now why but it has continued to make me think about the use of space in an educational situation and will still for a long time yet.
I have clearly seen that students or learners of any age react to their surrounding in such different ways but one thing they all do it respect something that had been designed with their use and only their use in mind, rather than something that just looks good.

futurelab have some really good stuff on their web site but it still follows the classroom model, in the original sense. however I like their (now unfortunately closed) invitation for ideas to create a better working and study space for learners.

I think what I am trying to say is that students are led to believe that a classroom must be quiet and the teacher speaks and the students listen the process is then repeated over and over for an hour. then they move on to someone else (another teacher) doing the same thing in another room that looks the same. in the later years of education I believe it is not really preparing them for employment or further vocational study because the situation is so different to the work place.

I know when I am studying I usually like it to be quiet but I well remember not to far from the college I graduated from there was a pub full of books looking as much like an old book shop or library as it did a pub.

it did get very lively in the evening yet within that environment some of us read books, often books we would not have even given a second chance in a way that was alien to us but good fun.

that said I want to make it absolutely clear that I am not advocating student of any age drinking alcohol in classrooms.

I do think that consideration to different solutions has to be found. just consider most of the larger waterstones book shops have a costa coffee shop in them to encourage browsers to spend more time thinking reading and in the end buying, a result as far as retail.

here are some current educational space practitioners web sites to have a look at if you are interested further.
ncaltd.com
tq.com
jisc.ac.uk

to be continued....................

thinking >> it's just words

I spend hours and hours keeping up to date with both (ICT/enterprise) educational thinking as well as current business practice.
I worked in the real world as a designer, and a retailer before hiding away in the comfortable world of education! (well perhaps not that comfortable but for different reasons).
but I find myself spending more and more time reading only half the book, the first couple of pages of an academic paper or a .pdf document only to get bored at the point when I realise that so much of the stuff I am reading is probably just common sense wrapped up in a well designed cover, perhaps by some-one who hasn't even read the book, or 'just words' telling me the same thing.

whether it is web usability or information architecture, even planning for business success through a multi layer intranet. I have say that some stuff I have seen and read lately simply is just not very good, that said I am still a great fan of jakob neilsen and the useit web site.

I keep thinking about what my photography lecturer (in the late 70's) said to me when I was trying to measure to perfection where I was going to put my lovely art school 'black and white photo', using a really clean stainless steel ruler and my finest mechanical pencil spending ages and then finding that it still looked a bit wonky. I also remember feeling a certain amount of horror as he took the photo away from me and picked up a new clean piece of mounting board and with out measuring it at all put it in exactly the right place, saying "if it looks right it is right", but then it's just words, or is it common sense?

busy week > > new challenges

this week seemed to rush by can't believe that it is friday already.
something new I have been asked to write for a monthly magazine that is being launched at the end of the april. so I have to deliver/email my copy by thursday next, I was sort of hinting at it on yesterday's blog but things were confirmed today.
have to say that I am happy to get involved, all being well I will be writing a monthly column, making sure to add my thoughts on surfing, the surf scene in the UK and surfers (of all types). I will be sure to plug the magazine when it comes out provided that they don't cut or over edit me!
I didn't add this site yesterday so it's here today, good surf photos find your wave well worth looking at.









thought I would sneak the magazine logo in to my blog, hopefully it won't get me in to trouble.

back to today, earlier in the week I mentioned meetings and today was a day of meetings and many short conversations. I have no idea why but I found it extremely hard to engage myself in any of them.
not because I didn't think they were worthy, because they where. one faculty meeting was very productive indeed, very interesting, and working towards what I believe in. I couldn't get in to any of it. maybe it was because I am simply too tired.
so think I will get myself off to bed.

what a day >> designing for mobile communities

what a day, I really have to mention carol, first she left early this morning to drive to an interview, probably the most important in her working life to date. then she is back home after lunch when she received a call to say that she didn't get the job. next she called me very disappointed and I promised to get home as soon as I could which I did.
next early evening they were on the phone again offering her the job, quite rightly in my opinion she excepted, and got a good deal.
and there I was thinking the design/academic world was fickle.

I spent some valuable time on designs for 'the hub' today which is coming together a bit better than last week. I did take some pictures very quickly before I had to get home, but in my haste I had the camera set on macro which obviously meant that whilst the pictures are interesting they do not mean anything, I will try to get more pictures on tomorrow.

whilst looking at more stuff on the internet I again was drawn to cati's blog because I remembered a link to jeff axup who finished his thesis on 'methods of understanding and designing for mobile communities'. it sounds a bit heavy but I took it upon myself to read a large part of it. I am famous for not really liking reading a huge amount of text on screen. so as bad as it is if I have to consider an examination criteria for a new exam course I will be teaching I print it off to read it in a quiet corner somewhere at home, usually because the text has not been specifically designed for reading on screen so doesn't work.

however looking at jeff's thesis or the sections of it that I have considered and read, make it different and easier to see on screen.
the understanding of the first user seems to have been thought through in a way that suits me at least.

It would be silly of me to try and explain all that jeff axup has considered and written about but I will show a couple of screen shots and explain a little of way I think it works. obviously splitting the thesis up for download is nothing new, (the complete thesis can also be downloaded).
I like the way jeff has done this because for me anyway it makes the most important part the subject matter easier an clear to grasp.

I would be very interested to see what you think.

(NID) neo-nomad id / a digital bedouin >> & another meeting

I as I normally do check who has been looking at this blog then log on to twitter while checking the BBC news site at the same time as drinking a coffee. it's the usual way I spend a part of most evenings I was I bit late tonight as I had a meeting but still.
while in the blog land I was checking one of my favourite blogs cati vaucelle (love the jacques tati poster from monday, cati) on her blog she mention NID or neo-nomad id, intrigued by the term I looked further she had also added a link to the bbc and an article by bill thompson and all became clear.
seems yasmine abbas invented the term or certainly first used the terms (NID) neo-nomad id / a digital bedouin in a blog.
her blog in search if the neo-nomad explains. another great post from yasmine abbas is my body is a hypertext not just for a great visual/picture/text impact but as a very well observed piece of humour.
as I had a meeting tonight i thought how long would it be before I will be able to do my joawhile sitting in starbucks or another coffee shop or from the beach will I ever be working in that way I find it hard to see but even 10 years ago I had no idea I would be doing this.
I like to think I will except, embrace and use change (for the better not just as so often for changes sake) in anything/everything I do.

well to the meeting again and an illustration (left) by Andrew Saeger found on the blog/website seattlepi I like the illustration as it shows the frustration of so many meetings I have had to attend and continue to attend. I have had some very good meetings but they tend more in the form of constructive conversations. rather than meeting for the sake of convention.
often I am left thinking what was the real idea of that and what the point of was! not just me it seems I typed into google to find hundreds of links to all sorts of stuff related to meetings and how to waste time at work? surely if you think like that you are in the wrong job...

ideas >> associated place >> learning >> create

funny isn't it how ideas just seem to happen (or not) I always think it strange when creative agencies have a time and a date to have an idea.
I find that ideas happen, but the more I work at it the more they happen.
I am not one of those people who just has a great idea and then goes away to create.
when I have an idea usually I try it, realise that it doesn't or wont work, but the fact that I am trying to work at it makes other ideas come through. this can happen lots of times before I reach a solution to the original problem.

the reason for mentioning this is because in the normal run of things we wait for a problem think about it then spend ages working on it eventually solving it by one way or another. this includes for me pretty much everything I do from the smallest pre-prepared hand out for a specific lesson plan or a complete corporate identity.
must say the last major id I did was a few years ago and it was for a surf-wear company (flip-flops and surf sandals) three peaks see picture.

the thinking behind it took weeks but the actual design was relatively quick to do, and it came to me reasonably easily. we all have our own ways of creating and I believe it is experience that makes us able to re-think and re-design and while we continue to do this we will be able to maintain a design life. I find it much harder to try to instill in students the confidence to try.

I have had some ideas about the room I work in, teach in, spend hours in, that I am currently working on, in the hope that something may come of them.

I really believe that by changing the way the room looks/works I can start to challenge the way the students entering the room think, while challenging I hope to motivate and encourage even draw out some kind of creativity from an otherwise quietly compliant youth, who consider using msn, myspace and bebo as creative, perhaps surprising of all create graphics in ms paint 'cos thats what they have got at home', even though they have the complete macromedia studio package available to them!
we will see what happens?

found a nice pencil >> what do you always carry with you?

a few weeks ago my friend davidthedesigner posted on his blog a picture of his favourite pen a 20 year old rotring. at the time I wanted to respond with a picture of a muji pencil (silver, right) that I thought was my favourite, but at the time couldn't find it. in a way I am pleased that I didn't because the fact that I couldn't find meant that I wasn't really using it. it wasn't very comfortable to write with but it looked so good. since then I have found the bic mechanical pencil in the photo (below black/silver) which I have now replaced as my favourite. it is a budget mechanical pencil but it is just so nice to use and it looks good as well.

I got to thinking in this world of technology and digital applications why is it that I still am excited about a cheap mechanical pencil?
I have a pda, and a mobile phone that is with me almost all the time.
I thought about what I always carry with me whether working or not. I consider the glasses I wear when needed a piece of clothing, as I do my watch (as these are a given rather than considered). I though it would be interesting to find what others cannot be separated from.
I have to add that my real job is that of an ICT & enterprise teacher so I work with computers (& students) all day. with so much of my work automated it would be easy to not write anything by hand.
I could probably have one flash drive with me (as some colleagues do) and still be able to function well in my job, moving between different computers.

the picture (bottom) shows what goes with me everywhere. my filofax (I did use a pda every day for a year or so but I really missed writing on paper), the bic mechanical pencil, a 1GB flash memory drive, for documents and animations, presentations etc, and a 2GB flash memory drive for images and video.
now I realise no matter how much technology I have around me I still want to be able to write with a pencil on paper sometimes. that's why I will alway carry one with me, along with filofax (for me an 80's throwback) and my 'geek sticks'.

what do you carry with you every day?

in a rush >> waiting >> store design/layout

how many times have you rushed to get somewhere got there exactly on time only to be kept waiting and waiting! well that happened to me today I had to go into work two hours teaching then into a meeting then rush to see the consultant (about my shoulder) but ended up waiting for 2 hours 20 minutes. now I know that there are always people worse off and I realise that my need is not as great as others but it was a clinic I had an appointment time! I just had to wait quietly.

I don't want to use this blog to complain about stuff that has nothing to do with what the blog was started for so I'll stop.

I did however have a chance afterwards to go for a surprisingly nice coffee, (I chose not to have it black as would usually in case it was not very nice) at a very large retailer, as I was enjoying my coffee and carrot cake. I got set to thinking if this retailer take £1 of every £8 spent in the the UK, how does this reflect on the design/layout of the shop.



I also remembered that in the early 90's I was responsible for designing the floor layouts for a very large menswear retailer when they opened their flagship shop on oxford street, london and across the country the group where then bought up by eventually (arcadia). the design/layout of a shop obviously makes an enormous difference on how much money it makes I then realised why I had stopped doing it!

I have added a few pictures I took while I was there. I can't say I found any of it inspiring in any sense. though is so successful perhaps i need to think why, it can't just be price can it?


love the jars of octopus, I am sure not all the shops in this group sell them, so regional tastes must be catered for.

sunday >> thought & consideration is not a weakness

strange really that I should feel guilty about not writing the blog I had planned for first yesterday and then today, I am afraid that one will have to wait for another time probably when have just returned from a heavy teaching day and feel fresh from presenting (good or bad).

I must just thank micky from france for the love of the sponge bob character. micky has been chasing me around the internet today, through my flickr, this blog and my surf web site never quite meeting me. but we will sort it.

any way to todays post, sunday and mothers day so a called to my mother in sussex (luckly the cornish flowers had arrived), after ben had presented his card to carol and some freshly picked flowers from the garden we (ben & me) had made a special vase from a powerade bottle!
then as usual I was off to rugby with ben he (I hope) loves it, I am still terrified that I am one of those pushy parents who because I liked something expect my children to like it as well.

I wanted to document the weather we had in pictures but to be honest I found it difficult to get it the wind was so strong as was the sun and then the hail I hid in the car when that came down.
I just really appreciated today what a fantastic place I live in when I can see all these things in one day never mind four seasons in one day it was more like a weather show with a rugby training match going on a bit of reading the sunday paper nice cd today (love the thom yorke songs) and trying to get my shoulder less painful (another story, seeing hospital consultant tomorrow). so apart from the last bit a really good start to the day.
even at the end when ben got the ball full in the face he was still happy, though a little disappointed that he wasn't going to have a back eye!



ok matey! what is this ramble all about well I was ready to be all academic and try to explain how through two days of concentrated teaching the way of education in this country should and will change. I am still firmly committed to this. but I had forgot that we have to have time to think, go outside feel the hail! the cold of a NW wind and enjoy the big sky, in order to except differing opinion and actually think.

that said it made me realise I am coming from a position of enormous privilege so before putting my thoughts to the blog I should for once make a fundamental change in me and consider much like I should do all the time with ben (not just in rugby), so that he is not in the position of having a ongoing problem with his shoulder also.

long day >> blog - presentation >> myearthdream

it's been an interesting day, seems that I could have actually introduced a whole new (small) group of people to blogging. in a short presentation I gave this morning I used dgthekneelo (blog) to illustrate a form of communication (blogging). the reaction that it got actually surprised me as I was presenting to the bebo generation for whom myspace, youtube, (msn) instant messaging are part of daily life. they went very quiet and became very interested while I was speaking and within minutes of being able to log on to the computers in the teaching room where creating their own blogs. I genuinely had no idea that a brief mention of blog-land would have this effect.

mike who is working with me on this two day enterprise education project I think was equally surprised at the speed of which blogging was received almost as if it were new. for me I was surprised that they weren't doing it already.
having said all this I have to refer back to davidthedesigner's blog of a few days ago questioning why people stop blogging in remains to be seen how long their newly created blogs last?


I had originally meant today's blog to be about
myearthdream I have for along time been a fan of F1 cars and motor racing (many years ago while at art school my friend ham would drive up and we would go to thruxton in hampshire to watch motor racing) but in the last years I have felt uncomfortable about liking it. even though have I always watched the grand prix on the TV and will be getting up in the middle of the night to watch the australian GP this weekend. I feel a little guilty, as even watching people driving very fast in cars that cost millions of pounds (to develop) round and round for an hour and a half does seem a little silly especially as I can't see it being very carbon friendly. however myearthdream have come up with a nice idea to help me think that it is not so bad and I would image thousands of others feel a little less worried about liking motor racing. I have made a pledge.
N.B.I am not fanatic I just like the way the cars look!

don't look into the sun >> two busy days ahead

only a short post tonight, seems like a few people today have 'bloggers block'. it is not that I have nothing to say more that I have a whole heap of other stuff to do, I even updated all my other bits and pieces on the web early tonight in order to post a good thoughtful one. sorry but that just didn't happen I just don't have the time well that is my excuse.

I have got two days of teaching enterprise education ahead and am trying to organise some video content for them in an effort to make them even more thoughtful and creative. I enjoy doing them but it is very mind demanding, so is off to read some more of 'sticking widsom', (yes I know its old news but I like the security it builds in my creative thought process and enables me to be silly) and build on my well worn creative skills to try and meet the challenge of 40 students wanting to suck me & mike minds dry of ideas.

the pictures are incidental (or not) I was waiting in the bright spring light this afternoon, and wondered what it would look like if I took a picture of the sun, (I wasn't looking directly at the sun I just pointed the camera to the sky) I think the result is quite nice. remember don't look into the sun!

different >> but all linked

It has been a long funny kind of day, long in the sense that I have been awake for a long time, funny (I don't mean full of jokes) but I had to see a few people to discuss stuff as well as contact people who are making decisions that could effect my future.
oh yes and teach!

just a normal day you think for most of you I would expect. but I also spent some time talking to students and their parents who are currently making decisions that will at least make a difference to the next 2 years of their lives (probably more), if not the whole of their lives.

amongst all this I was sending and receiving emails and even twittering a little.
I received a very interested email, fully work related and I will hopefully attend some of the events that were documented in the email. it had a list of interesting links with it I thought of adding all the links but to put them all on one post would have been too much information would be too much so I have added just 4.

I am posting them out of context but I don't think that really matters have a look you might well find some interesting I did.

kurator
pirate university
signwave
andy pink

3 things from the kichen >>

I have been trying perhaps too hard to be inventive, informative and or complex in the last week or so in this blog.

but after a very interesting conversation this afternoon which ranged from barcelona to goudi, creativity to starbucks, ICT and the performing arts, I realised that sometimes you can try just too hard.

in the so called creative/design world things/images are so often not that good, it's more the explanation or intellectualisation of them that convinces you that it is good.

so I thought i would go it my kitchen a photograph 3 things that I liked for no other reason other than I liked them for some reason. Some cake, left over from carols birthday, a waitrose espresso tin (I just liked the red), and some chilli plants that we are growing as I like chilli's.
as I was thinking in 3's I have included in no particular order and for no particular reason 3 blogs that I looked at and enjoyed today that I wanted to pass on art design by, urban fonts and idealist, none of them new to you all I'm sure, but never the less still worth a look.

oh yes I ordered the (what if) 'sticky wisdom', book as well a good day all in all.

not much time >> surprised to be 46

well I didn't think I would manage to get a blog written tonight been at work and had a whole heap of stuff to sort before indulging myself. I will not be long and very few words of wisdom (nothing new). I did spend a long time today discussing the way that the adobe applications photoshop CS and illustrator CS series software that we have used for ages. are not as intuitive for the students we currently are teaching as the macromedia suite with fireworks as the main web graphic software, but much more of that another time.
I also spent a long time reminiscing today with my line manager/boss bob, about the first few Apple Macintosh's, the Archimedes, and the Amiga computers that I worked with in the '80s. we were both thinking about how we would like the the 17" MacBook pro as it seems a good combination of power and usability and it looks nice! just a bit pricey. that's from two people who have to spend all or most of our time working on PC's.
however it could be all the reminiscing today was because I was thinking about the passing of time as it was my birthday (not that I have an issue at all with age) but I was actually very surprised to realise that I was 46! thanks for all the cards and presents, especially carol.

hours in front of computer screens ends in pictures of fins

strange isn't it I have spent so many hours in front of different screens today. testing software, running and evaluating new applications. looking at endless websites, blogs and virtual spaces and in the end I have to find something real to touch and look at and hold it happens to be a surfboard I mentioned a few posts ago when I was talking about the twin fin, this is a quad fish and it's is mine I love the look of it and setting the fins in a formation such as this really does make the board very fast as there is no central drag. it was made in byron bay, australia by ex-world champion david parkes a master when it comes to making surfboards that work.
so rather than write about stuff I have spent the last 12 or so hours looking at I will list some of the good stuff I have seen today + open office 2.1 + russell davies + lindsay.at + chocolate and vodka + my flickr + ma.gnolia.com + firefox2.com + 1-2know +
I won't go in to the 'educational' stuff that I have been trawling through for work as I want to stay awake a little bit longer. don't worry I will save that for another day.