Tag: brain-friendly conferences


Old Conference Education Memes Die Hard

What does it mean to learn at a conference? What tools does it take for learning to be successful in that environment? Most people say that successful learning occurs when a speaker presents to an audience. It requires a subject matter expert (SME) or panel of SMEs, research, content and a lecture. It must have … [Read more…]

Why Conferences Need More Peer To Peer Talking And Less Monologues

Hardwired into every one is the desire to communicate! We crave and need communication with each other. Listening to conference lectures is one-sided. It doesn’t provide the same fulfillment as two-way dialogue with our peers. As long as our attendees participate in speaker monologues and panel dialogues, they lack the ability to grow social bonds … [Read more…]

Conference Attendees Remember What They Think About

Conference speakers make assumptions every day about how their attendees comprehend, remember and apply the information they hear. These assumptions, as well as their presentation decisions, are based on a mix of theories, trial and error, past experiences with their own teachers and professors, and instinct. Yet are these theories, experiences and instinct serving the … [Read more…]

Becoming Conference Brain Changers

Never in society have we known so much about how our brains operate and how we learn. Today, we know what to do to foster successful learning at our conferences and events. Becoming A Brain Changer Research in cognitive neuroscience or mind, brain and education science is providing exciting new insights into how the brain … [Read more…]

Looking To Learn: Why Visuals Are So Important

How much do you learn from your sight? Take a guess. The majority of scientific and education researchers agree that about 75 percent of your learning is through your vision. Wow, that’s a lot. According to neuroscientist Dr. John Medina, “The more visual the input becomes, the more likely it is to be recognized and … [Read more…]

Overhauling Your Conference To Adapt To The Lean, Mean, Thinking Machine

Regardless of one’s age, culture, gender or race, we share one thing in common: Our human brains love to learn! Our brains are a lean, mean, thinkin’ machine. It’s always on the prowl for new things to explore. It is genetically programmed to learn. Brain Boredom Our brains are always paying attention to something says … [Read more…]

Preventing Death By Lecture Through Audience Discussion

Many people believe that PowerPoint (PPT) presentations are a leading killer of learning. We even call it “Death by PPT.” Actually, the typical 45-, 60- or 90-minute speech has a higher mortality rate than PPT. And that speech may actually be a fugitive living under an assumed name like keynote, lecture, breakout, plenary, concurrent or … [Read more…]

10 Brain-Based Learning Laws That Trump Traditional Education

If you play cards you know the importance of a trump. A trump is a card which ranks higher than the played cards. A trump suit outranks all cards of plain suits. Literally, a trump refers to any sort of action, authority or policy that automatically prevails over others. The Brain’s Natural Learning Trumps The … [Read more…]

Do You Want Your Conference Attendees To Hear Content Or Learn It?

Here’s a question to think about as a conference organizer or speaker. Do you want your attendees to hear the content or learn it? Goal: Hear The Information If your goal is for your attendees to hear the information, then continue planning like you always have. The lecture is the quickest, easiest and most efficient … [Read more…]

6 Barriers That Impede Conference Attendee Attention

Everyday our brains make a payment of their precious resources. We try to pay attention. We attempt to listen, read or work on a single task for as long as we can. Our visual and auditory systems strive to lock into the work at hand. Can I Have Your Attention? To pay attention, we have … [Read more…]