Avoiding 30-minute answers
Eric Bergman, president of Present with Ease, and a Toronto-based communications/presentation skills trainer, sent me his wonderful article on the perils of giving 30-minute answers.
He illustrates his points through the experience of his university-aged son who’s not willing to put up with even 15-minute answers from his profs.
Eric offers sage advice, especially for college professors! Check it out.
Great article!
Bergman raises a good point about ‘engaging’ the audience before answering the questions. He has stumbled on something Plato first documented about education, “first you entertain then you educate.”
While ‘edu-tainment’ has a negative connotation among some educators students will respond if they feel the answer holds something personally relevant to them. Prior to the advent of schools education in clans, tribes and a host of other systems was primarily done through stories and games. Not only was it more interesting - it also worked.
regards,
Brett
Brett — February 18, 2008 @ 4:53 pm