I think a note posted by Stephen Downes got me to Alec Kouros who got me to a terrific presentation, How to Drink Water from a Fire Hose. (Click the link after “Introduction” to get started.)

Donna DesRoches and Rob Wall talk about teaching the digital generation; explain tools like blogs, podcasts, wikis; provide a chance to practice… and do it all via a wiki-based presentation.

I’m impressed (and challenged) by the effective combination of a suggested path (the next/previous navigation) with hyperlinks. For example, the page on “The Social Web” takes maybe 100 words to give an overview of how kids connectd with one another. It also provides links to four social sites (like MySpace and facebook).

I used to use a tour bus analogy in computer software workshops. This is the TourMobile analogy — hop off when you care to, and hop back on when you choose to. You don’t have a schedule to keep; the schedule keeps to you.

…I’m still mulling over how to maintain a balance in the workplace — training in the traditional sense versus self-directed, even self-chosen learning. No answers, but a hunch it’s a dynamic balance.