Fast Company posted an interesting article a few days ago on Facebook and informal learning which I finally got around to today. There aren’t many people out there who won’t agree that something can be learned out of the formal context of a school room or lecture hall, but many will argue that social networks, and Facebook (being the largest), isn’t such a place. Before I get to the nugget that I found in the article, I do have to ponder… with 500M+ people using the system, there is a good chance that a few of those are smart people who, even through what seem to them to be banal observations, can enlighten others to thinking just a little different. But now the nugget:
Facebook provides a compelling outlet for people who enjoy learning, and it helps those seeking something else to accidentally and informally learn along the way.
As we build relationships with other people, we tap into their networks of knowledge and sense, creating learning webs, making our compound knowledge more valuable than compound interest.
Accidental learning… that sounds to me like research, like exploration, like self motivation, curiosity and reflection. Take a moment to think about how many things we have today are the result of accidental events that were reflected on and then recreated before being systematized into a product, a process, or even an entire discipline.
It may very well be time that we need to stop thinking about where learning happens as being part of what gives it value; and start thinking, perhaps about who it happens with as being important as borders and walls continue to drop away and the number of informal and accidental interactions with passionate individuals from numerous disciplines begin to increase.
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