The kids in Ms. Cadwell’s seventh-grade remedial math class at Egan Jr. High in Los Altos, California, are doing things differently this year. They solve problems at their own pace, using a computer program that gives them instant feedback, charts their progress, and rewards them when they get 10 correct answers in a row. Instead of listening to the teacher lecture about dividing fractions, they learn from short videos that they can pause and rewind. They progress very quickly — more than doubling their scores on an exit exam in just the first 12 weeks of this pilot project. Students earn badges for solving problems rapidly and accurately, and for working hard to master a concept. It’s “like a game,” says John Martinez, 13. “It’s kind of an addiction — you want a ton of badges.”
The man behind this remarkable venture is an unabashedly geeky former hedge-fund analyst and star high-school mathlete named Sal Khan. The mission of his not-for-profit Khan Academy is “to deliver a world-class education to anyone anywhere.”
Being in the top 10 is cool enough, though I would have loved to see him in the top 3! Congratulations! His Academy rocks and is a living example how simple, but engaging e-learning could be ….
A powerful global conversation has begun. Through the Internet, people are discovering and inventing new ways to share relevant knowledge with blinding speed. As a direct result, markets are getting smarter—and getting smarter faster than most companies.
These markets are conversations. Their members communicate in language that is natural, open, honest, direct, funny and often shocking. Whether explaining or complaining, joking or serious, the human voice is unmistakably genuine. It can’t be faked.
Most corporations, on the other hand, only know how to talk in the soothing, humorless monotone of the mission statement, marketing brochure, and your-call-is-important-to-us busy signal. Same old tone, same old lies. No wonder networked markets have no respect for companies unable or unwilling to speak as they do …
Watch Chip Conley on TED.com: “When the dotcom bubble burst, hotelier Chip Conley went in search of a business model based on happiness. In an old friendship with an employee and in the wisdom of a Buddhist king, he learned that success comes from what you count. He creates joyful hotels, where he hopes his employees, customers and investors alike can realize their full potential.”
I finished reading his book “Peak: How Great Companies Get Their Mojo from Maslow“. I was truly inspired by his ideas and I introduce the essential meaning and methods to my students in entrepreneurship as well as corporate communication.