Llamas in my back pasture…

I’ve got llamas in my back pasture

This snippet of conversation between a couple of American conference delegates, overheard at breakfast last week in our hotel in South Korea, has stuck in my mind and will not budge from my memory. What made it stick so? Perhaps it was the drawling accent, the over-the-top bragging volume, or the stage whispers from our team of possible ointment remedies for such an ailment. The joyous kinaesthetic feeling of spitting out coffee, followed by crying with laughter with team-mates, undoubtedly helped to cement the memory. To seek such an experience was not an objective of the trip to Asia. It was just a piece of incidental and spontaneous humour that is now impossible for me to forget – and that has driven me to action in writing this post.

For me, the incidental, informal learning that took place over the course of seven days in South Korea between 14 teachers is equally as powerful- and sticky a memory as the planned experiences for fulfilling the trip’s objectives. In some ways, it was not a big deal. People chatted quite naturally, sharing ideas and exchanging experiences. Some learned how to edit a Flip video, others used Prezi, Wallwisher or VoiceThread for the first time and everyone had a go at broadcasting live over the internet using Ustream Producer. Conversations ranged from evidence gathering techniques in Foundation Stage and their application across the whole school, to the use of puppets to engage and inform pupils. The learning was informal but dynamic nevertheless – BLT sharing in action.

It felt a bit like a face-to-face version of Twitter – a drip-feed of ideas and inspiration that teachers can use as they see fit. Twitter is low-key and informal but potentially powerful at the same time. I hope some of the teachers from the Korea trip will start to make use of Twitter. The learning was ubiquitous and it seems a shame not to find some way of continuing to enjoy the dynamic and to develop it with other teachers in Northants and beyond. Twitter could be an answer.  It’s got to be better than a llama in your back pasture