Working, living, learning, and managing abroad

A learning experience worth living

Jan Visser Learning Development Institute

jvisser@learndev.org

www.learndev.org

www.facebook.com/learndev

Presentation and discussion at IAE – Montpellier School of Management, 25-02-2014

Available at http://www.learndev.org/ppt/Montpellier_IAE_2014-02-25.pdf 1

I’m not a manager

Yet, I managed 2

René Magritte: La Trahison des Images

Key notions in the title

• Working

• Living

• Learning

• Managing

• Abroad

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and a value statement

• A learning experience worth living

Meaning of ‘abroad’

1. in or to a foreign country or countries Ex.: Studying abroad

2. in different directions; over a wide area Ex.: "millions of seeds are annually scattered abroad“

When you are abroad, you are usually sharing a space with a great many people who are not abroad. You’ll be confronted with differences:

language, customs, worldviews, stories, folklore, myths, beliefs, tastes, etc.

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An experience worth living. Why?

It exposes you to DIVERSITY.

Without diversity there can be no spontaneous growth. Evolutionary growth feeds on diversity. That’s why!

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My case of lifetime exposure to diversity: Geographical distribution of years lived in different parts of the world

Netherlands

Israel+ME

Botswana

Mozambique

Zimbabwe

France

USA

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LIFE: Brief chronology

1938 – 1966: Netherlands: childhood, adolescence, young adulthood (studied theoretical physics)

1956: First ever trip abroad: Cycle tour down south to Strasbourg

1966 – 1967: Israel: research fellow Technion, Haifa

1967 – 1970: Netherlands: research fellow Leiden University; teaching

1971 – 1974: Botswana: Junior expert with UNESCO (science educator, teacher trainer)

1974 – 1976: Middle East + Netherlands: Filmmaking

1976 – 1989: Mozambique: physicist, dean of faculty, academic advisor, teacher trainer; educational technologist; advisor to Ministry of Education; staff trainer, program coordinator

+ studied Instructional Design in the USA

1990 – 1993: Zimbabwe: UNESCO Rep to Southern Africa + Head of Office

1994 – 1999: France: UNESCO Director Learning Without Frontiers

2000 – 2014: USA + France: President + Sr. Researcher, Learning Development Inst.

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WORK: The things I did and do • Finding things out:

• Research (natural & social science) • Evaluation

• Helping people learn and improve their performance: • Teaching • Training • Mentoring

• Fomenting social change: • Activism • Advocacy • Persuasion

• Spreading ideas: • Documentary filmmaking • Authoring & editing • Public speaking • (International) event organizing

• Making things happen (by managing projects and programs): • (Co)design and (co)development • Providing leadership and facilitation • Monitoring

• Learning

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WORK: In different settings

• Working alone

• Working with others

• Small groups

• Big groups

• Institutional settings

• Non-governmental organizations

• Governmental institutions and agencies

• Supranational organizations

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LEARNING: Different kinds of learning • Formal & preparatory:

• Primary • Secondary • Postsecondary (university level):

• Theoretical physics • Cognitive science (instructional design)

• Occasional, in response to specific needs: • Language training • Skills training:

• Acculturation • Management skills

• Informal – incidental: • Learning by doing • Learning through reflection on practice:

• Personal reflection • Collaborative reflection

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MANAGING: Projects and programs • Botswana:

• Primary teacher in-service upgrading (blended face-to-face and distance education)

• Advanced Teacher Training (secondary level) • Science Education In-service Field Work

• Netherlands/ME: • Filmmaking project “The Dream”

• Mozambique: • Interuniversity cooperation program between Netherlands universities and

Mozambique’s Eduardo Mondlane University • Two staff training projects with Ministry of Education:

• Research competencies • Instructional Design competencies

• Zimbabwe: • Interactive Radio Instruction for the Lusophone Countries in Africa • UNESCO’s entire program for Southern Africa

• UNESCO-HQ, Paris, France: • Learning Without Frontiers transsectoral program

• USA: • Learning Development Institute

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Images (1)

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Images (2)

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Images (3)

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Images (4)

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MANAGING: Points to ponder (1)

International development projects and programs • Beware of ‘project culture.’ The real problems the world faces are hugely

complex. Projects are only worth undertaking if they are embedded in a wider vision and part of programs that are allowed to run over extensive periods of time.

• Care for sustainability and impact.

• Be appropriately responsive to real needs. Discriminate between needs

and desires. Carry out serious needs assessment. Consider means that are appropriate in context with a view to future developments.

• Results orientation: Product, outputs (institutional), and outcomes (societal).

• Have a baseline. Subsequently, collect and keep data + analyze and feed back.

This is also crucial for future evaluation.

• While intervening, be culturally sensitive.

• Beware of bureaucratization. Avoid it if you can. If you can’t, prepare for

survival (stress management) and be creative in inventing strategies to circumvent bureaucratic hurdles.

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MANAGING: Points to ponder (2)

The human side of things • Don’t do it alone.

• Get out of the way. Stay away from control culture. It limits creativity within

the group.

• Motivate.

• Think.

• Share.

• Engage in reflective practice (organismic learning).

• Master the language of the environment in which you work.

• Bring people together/network. Not just the ones who are or who think

like you – have people to disagree with. It sharpens the mind.

• Include different personality types and right mix of required competencies in your team.

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MANAGING: Points to ponder (3)

The technology side of things • It’s not about the machines or given machine applications.

• Rather, it’s about creative choices.

• There is great potential in our technological inventions. However, such potential will only be transformed into potent sustainable solutions with the help of the creative and scrutinous mind that considers technology in context.

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MANAGING TECHNOLOGY: Images to ponder

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Did it matter? After more than 40 years you start seeing results. Significantly shorter timeframes give less relevant information. • Countries I worked in changed significantly (for the better). • Capacity building in individuals and institutions is of paramount

importance. • Creating space for local actors is equally crucial. • There has been, and still is, much wastage in the ‘development

industry.’ • Donor action has improved thanks to better coordination. • Such quality improvement is being challenged by increased

bureaucratization and decreased personal commitment and diminished expertise of individual actors involved.

• For the real solutions, we must transition into a world which is no longer driven by shortsighted corporate and individual self-interest.

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THANK YOU

Let’s talk!

Jan Visser Learning Development Institute

jvisser@learndev.org

www.learndev.org

www.facebook.com/learndev 21