One-to-Many, Many-to-Many
The traditional conference is based on the idea that a few smart people (the experts) know everything that needs to be known about the topic of the conference. The sponges (the attendees) are there to passively absorb the wisdom coming from the podium at the front of the room.
But that's not how learning happens. That model of instruction only began because there were so few printed books before Gutenberg. The word "lecture" in French actually means "reading". The "lecturer" at early universities actually stood at the front of the room and READ the books out loud to the students. That was the most efficient way to disseminate the information. Once the printing press took off, the role of the readers shifted to that of commentator on the texts. The students could read the books perfectly well for themselves now, so the teachers needed something to do. And you see that the basic model of education hasn't changed much in the last 600 years.
Brilliantly, we've taken that same model into the world of conferences. But you know as well as I do that the most meaningful parts of any conference happen in the hallways, not the ballrooms. It's the people we meet! It's the conversations we have! Yes, speakers can inform and inspire, but it's not until we connect the ideas and the people with our own lives (at work or at home) that these conferences mean anything or make a difference!
Connecting the many to the many -- that's the challenge of the new conference. The collective genius of the attendees far surpasses that of any elite set of speakers. How can we tap into that genius?
But that's not how learning happens. That model of instruction only began because there were so few printed books before Gutenberg. The word "lecture" in French actually means "reading". The "lecturer" at early universities actually stood at the front of the room and READ the books out loud to the students. That was the most efficient way to disseminate the information. Once the printing press took off, the role of the readers shifted to that of commentator on the texts. The students could read the books perfectly well for themselves now, so the teachers needed something to do. And you see that the basic model of education hasn't changed much in the last 600 years.
Brilliantly, we've taken that same model into the world of conferences. But you know as well as I do that the most meaningful parts of any conference happen in the hallways, not the ballrooms. It's the people we meet! It's the conversations we have! Yes, speakers can inform and inspire, but it's not until we connect the ideas and the people with our own lives (at work or at home) that these conferences mean anything or make a difference!
Connecting the many to the many -- that's the challenge of the new conference. The collective genius of the attendees far surpasses that of any elite set of speakers. How can we tap into that genius?
posted by Jay Smethurst at
12:12 PM
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