The Need For Facilitated Thinking Environments (Part II)
Input Systems that Enhance FTE Performance
Facilitated Thinking Environment effectiveness can be enhanced by integrating the following systems.
Knowledge Management: There is a correlation between people who think better and develop more ideas with those that have a wide range of relevant background knowledge. Effective thinking can only occur if a person/team acquires the right ‘critical mass’ of data and information to think upon. Good knowledge management focuses on the issues related to creating, dissemination and utilization of data, information and knowledge. They get the right knowledge to the right people at the right time which is essential for improved thinking productivity.
eLearning: More and more workers do not have time to leave their jobs to take structured training courses. In addition, while information and knowledge is available at internet speeds, the ability to leverage such knowledge is sometimes too slow to produce a favorable business outcome. eLearning promotes on-demand learning when the job requires it by developing learning objects or small granular chucks of learning. The evolution of Integrated eLearning Environments (ILE) is a natural complement to Facilitated Thinking Environments.
Subject Experts: Perhaps as much as half of all knowledge is contained in the experience and tacit know-how of real universe experience. Tacit knowledge acquisition and transfer allows the inexperienced to gain years without the trial and errors, and to apprentice with the “old hands”. A holistic facilitated thinking environment goal should be linking Users to each other so that they can share tacit knowledge. In a truly collaborative manner, this will make available the ‘best thinking practices’ of people from around the world.
Collaborative Technology: Working collaboratively brings forth a synergy that raises everyone’s level of thinking. Collaboration helps to create a shared understanding that no one person had previously possessed and co-create new ideas that no one person could have come to on their own. The integration of facilitated thinking tools and switches into collaborative technologies can be a very, very powerful combination.
Thinking Emulation Grid™ – The Heart of an FTE.
The following Thinking Emulation Grid™ essentially duplicates (emulates) how a human facilitator functions when providing intellectual guidance. The grid identifies the major thinking points and cognition resources (thought switches) needed to effectively think at each one of the thinking points.
This Thinking Emulation Grid is the heart of a Facilitated Thinking Environment. The grid organizes all of the thinking components into a smoothly coordinated and integrated environment to guide thinkers along specific thought pathways and processes (thinking strategies + thinking tasks/steps) where just-in-time delivery of the right tools (thought switches) stimulate ideas within the right context.
Evolution of Software Technology & Thinking.
The evolution of computer technology presents new opportunities to enhance human thinking like no other time in history. The following Thinking, Learning & Software Model provides the guiding principles that lead to the development of Facilitated Thinking Environment software. In summary, the model constructs different thinking layers, and builds upon these layers to show how humans think and acquire understanding, and demonstrates how technology can improve human thinking along the way.
Data Layer: The Data layer is the most elemental layer in thinking. For the most part ‘data’ is meaningless facts, figures and statistics that are represented by words, terminology, signs, numbers, etc. Thinking at this layer is essentially memory-based. It is about acquiring enough critical mental mass to allow reasoning to occur. From a computer software perspective databases and document repositories are analogous to our human memory. Just like expanding human memory, the more data that is available in computer memory the more information that can be produced.
Information Layer: The Information layer is created when understanding is added to the Data layer. Information is acquired by putting data/facts into a context in which understanding occurs. Traditionally data/facts are given meaning through teacher-lead instruction. The critical success factor here is about acquiring the right amount of relevant information to allow effective reasoning “thinking” to occur. In the computer technology world the interactive nature of software can emulate teachers and allow students to interact with the software to discover meanings. These software products not only offer ways for students to learn essential data/facts but more importantly provide the context within which the data is mentally indexed for easier retrieval and association.
Knowledge Layer: The Knowledge layer is created when experience is added to the Information layer. That is, knowledge is acquired when information becomes grounded in some reality. Typically this type of knowledge is obtained through hands-on learning and real life experiences. Simulation software becomes the closest way to acquire knowledge. Simulations can mimic real life situations so well that they prepare people for those situations without actually having to be in them. Simulation software helps people gain knowledge in the same context that they will use that knowledge. By using computer-based simulations, we can vastly expand knowledge and the range of things people can learn from ‘experience’.
Wisdom Layer: Although it is very important for people to have wide and profound knowledge, it is more important to acquire wisdom. Wisdom is acquired when practical application is added to the Knowledge layer. While wisdom can be gained when individuals put their knowledge into action, wisdom can more broadly be gained through collaboration and the sharing of experiential knowledge. The critical success factor for gaining wisdom is having a ‘shared space’. Today physical meeting rooms provide the most common shared space. Shared electronic workspaces on the Internet are evolving another way people will share experiences. As we move into an era of more complexity, we will require more collaborative wisdom from people who have a variety of different knowledge’s and experiences.
Insight Layer: Insight is the highest learning layer. It represents the power of the mind to form mental images or concepts of something that is not real or present. Gaining insight is about creating conceptualizations based on understandings acquired from all the other layers. The problem is all the previous thinking/learning layers naturally create mental routines or scripts that generally lead to a few dominant-thinking patterns. While scripts are necessary and account for most of our thinking, going by the script all the time can prevent people from seeing anything other than what can be applied to the script. Scripts in essence prevent us from gaining insights by channeling thinking down rigid mental pathways.
The critical success factor at this layer is people’s ability to think out-of-the-box (out-of-the-script). From a technology standpoint, helping people gain insight is the purpose of new Facilitated Thinking Environment software. FTEs use thought stimuli that are designed to break scripted mental patterns by prompting users to react to “Thinklets”.
MindSights: Facilitated Thinking Environments (FTE)
A first of its kind FTE, MindSights is a suite of 18 softbooks integrated into a single environment that can enhance virtually any thinking task. While the environment surrounds an individual, individual environments can be linked together to form an entire collaborative team work environment. We truly believe that MindSights will become known as the genesis of a new era of thinking productivity products!
The Need for Facilitated Thinking Environments (FTEs) by Dennis J. Heindl
Part I of this article is available here. To find out more contact Dennis by email at dj@nthdegreesoft.com
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