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ContinuingEducation

This is an update from 2005. I encourage other to update their continuing education plans.

Although I don't make resolutions, I do make rough plans. Once upon a time, when I worked for IBM, managers were required to see to it that each of their employees participated in at least two weeks of continuing education each year. I got in the habit, so when I no longer had wise IBM managers managing my life, I had to do it for myself. Here's what I planned to do last year 2005), and what I accomplished in this plan:

• a drawing class (Dani's taking it too): Taken and enjoyed.
• a class in Muslim culture: Class was cancelled, waiting for it to be offered again
• a monthly afternoon writing workshop: this and more
• a one-day science fiction writing workshop Taken and enjoyed.
• a one-week intensive writing workshop (I'm giving one, too) Taken and enjoyed.
• four three-day intensive writing workshops Taken and enjoyed.
• a one-week class in debriefing experiential exercises (I'm teaching the class, so I'll learn the most)Taken and enjoyed.
• the AYE conference (always my learning highlight of the year)Taken and enjoyed.

For a long time, I've been wanting to take an intensive Spanish class, but I still haven't scheduled it. Who knows, maybe this will be the year.It wasn't.

For this year, 2006, here's what I have on my plate:

• four three-day intensive writing workshops Taken two already.
  • a one-week class in consulting skills (I'm teaching the class, so I'll learn the most)Starting tomorrow
  • the AYE conference (always my learning highlight of the year)
  • several writing conferences (teaching and learning) Taken two already.
  • Hmm, looking at this list, I see I haven't filled my plans yet, but I will.

So, that's what I have on my plate so far. Would anyone like to share what they're going to attempt this year? We could all use some fresh ideas. - JerryWeinberg 2006.03.26

START YOUR 2006 PLANS HERE

• I take continuing education every month to maintain my EMT Certificate. This month it's self defense.
• I'll be attending a week long class in debriefing experiential exercises.
• I need to have an instructor update for Advanced Swiftware Rescue Instructor.
• I'm taking a class in wine-making at the local community college.
• I'm attending a class presented by JeanMcLendon. We're still working on the details. I'll post more when I know more.
• Diane Gibson and I are presenting at the SEPG conference in March. This should be very educational for me.
• The AYE Conference
  

- DonGray 2005.01.10

• Learn to be proactive vs reactive as my project at work winds down
• Hatha Yoga with emphasis on the tree pose, vriksha-asana, for balancing
• Incorporating better health in my life (reasonably successfully to date)
  • Better nutrition, selection of what I eat; how much I eat; and when I eat
  • Weight training
  • Walking
  • More stable sleep time (weakest of the four health changes)
• MIT's Open Course Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs
• Trying to become objectified in design
• The Six-Sigma tool kit
  • I am being initiated into the ways of the Six-Sigma high ceremony.
• Reading
  • Joyce's Ulysses (part way through in 2005)
  • Proust's In Search of Lost Time (I am currently reading Swan's Way)
  • Tolstoy's War and Peace
• AYE 2006
• Writing
• Drawing
• Transform survival rules into guides

I tried reading Ulysses and Swan's Way when I was a young sprout and didn't get much from them. It is amazing how much better Ulysses is in my middle youth versus my early youth. I expect to react in the same manner to Proust's masterwork.

I am very pleased to have started SICP. The book's emphasis on abstraction is very enlightening and profound.

For 2005 see CharlesAdamsContinuingEducation

Updated 2006.07.10

• Jerry's writers workshop in May,
• Jerry's debriefing experiential exercises workshop in July
• Human Interaction Lab
• Retrospective Facilitators Gathering

I'm also taking some beading classes, and have a goal to improve my skiing form on the steep hills.

Plus I'll be teaching workshops, speaking, and writing; I always learn from those activities.

Esther 2005.01.10

Habits to Preserve

• Keep taking courses from the Teaching Company Doing and enjoying
• Keep lifting weights Doing and enjoying
• Play with Elmer (dog) every day Doing and enjoying
• Save money Doing and enjoying

Changes

• Return to playing basketball after taking 3 months off Done and enjoying
• Work on cardio vascular fitness, which I feel is poor Not Done
• Create a process improvement workshop series for EMC Not Done
• Publish six articles. Big challenge. I hope big growth Did 4 and enjoyed
• Ask for help in the areas that I care about the most but where I am stuck Doing and liking the results
• Follow through on help that is given Active
• Participate in SHAPE, even if that means merely lurking Doing and enoying
• Work with JeffMcKenna on the design and delivery of an AYE session Done and Enjoyed
• Work with DaveSmith on the design and delivery of an AYE session Done and Enjoyed

Events

• Participate in 90th birthday bash for father in-law Done and Enjoyed
• Take a ski vacation with Ann Rae (wife) Done and Enjoyed
• Take a four day tennis vacation with Ann Rae Not Done
• Vacation with Ann Rae and Keri (daughter) Done and Enjoyed
• Get together with close, out of town friend and play with his children Done and Enjoyed
• Visit my father, brothers, sister in-laws, nephews and nieces Done and Enjoyed
• Attend Nikon School of Photography Not Done
• Participate in Writer's Workshop Done and Enjoyed
• Participate in Debrief Workshop Done and Enjoyed
• Participate in AYE Conference Done and Enjoyed

Would Like to:

• Participate in a photography workshop Not Done
• Go hiking Done and Enjoyed
• White water the Grand Canyon Not Done
• Eagle watch in the Skagit Valley Not Done
• Take Elmer (dog) to frolic by the ocean Not Done
• Go on a sailing vacation Not Done
• Vacation in Greece Not Done

I'll stop here. This list just reminds me that I have more interests than time.

SteveSmith 2005.01.10

I rarely plan that much ahead, but what's likely for me in the coming year includes

• learning about retrospectives and facilitation at the Retrospectives Gathering
• learning about writing and workshop facilitation by giving a session on freewriting at the SPA conference
• learning about software processes and conference organization by attending XP2005, this year as one of the program committee
• learning about learning, and about teaching, by organizing a weekly class on programming technique called the "development dojo" (two installments so far)
• learning about accounting, as part of running my own business, and because I'm interested in it
• learning about consulting by practicing it, perhaps attending AYE2005
• learning music to stay ahead of my 8yo son Axel who started on the guitar, prompting me to do so as well
• learning harmony, because I don't want to just read music, but write it as well (an attitude not well catered for in the music books, courses etc. that I've found, btw)

-- LaurentBossavit 2005.01.11

Well, I'm having a year very un-like the last couple. I'm working - a lot - and it's intense and rewarding. I think I'm making a difference.

• First, I want to pay attention so I can maybe notice what I'm doing right lately, because hings are better for me lately than they have been in quite a while. No telling what I'll learn from that.
• Jerry's writers' workshop which I just noticed was available.
• Get together with the SEM02 folks in June. Fortunately we have a couple of "J" people who help folks like me agree to something specific.
• SEPG is in Seattle in March, and I'm looking to coordinate with the folks traveling there for that conference (see the related AYE Wiki page.) If my own travel works out, maybe I'll do the SEPG as well. Maybe some of you all can come play in the kitchen with me.
• Not so much learning, but something to work on - range of motion / mobility. I lost a lot of that over the last couple years. My fitness is actually better than it's been in some time.
• I'm due for some cooking lessons. I'd like to figure out currys one day and my other sauces could use some work.
• Technically, I'm learning quite enough with current work: network security event management, routing and some deep knowledge of the IP protocol stack, Java / Linux and C++ / Windows development (hands-on-ish).
• Business related professional reading is in the Java / Java tools direction (I'm writing crappy code right now in Java. Decent start after over 10 years' lay-off, but still crappy code.) Tools / practices, since I'm several years' out of the loop on some of those.
• Methodology stuff, I'm about due to read the whole whack and get up to speed on current practice again. So, the "pragmatic" series (the ones I haven't read yet.), and similar. Working through David Anderson's lean development management book - excellent. Various of the "<whatever> Extreme Programming" series - the ones of those I haven't read yet, in metered doses. Of course I'm current on Highsmith, Cockburn, and so on. Too silly for words not to keep up to date with those guys.

Reading these lists I'm a little bothered that I don't have a specific research / investigation project on deck. Several years ago it was "all things NLP". Next was "language action". Somewhere along in there, I got *some* experience developing and delivering some experiential learning. I'm thinking that the software practices & methods resynch counts as a project. Oddly (or perhaps not) I didn't consider that stuff to count as an investigation. It's just what I do, and part of being in this particular profession.

-- JimBullock 2005.01.11, (Rev 1.1)

1. Macintosh computers
2. Matlab software
3. Penmanship (I am going through a workbook now)

DwaynePhillips 28 January 2005

• writing
• 3-day Rapid Software Testing course, taught by Michael Bolton (done)
• Jerry's 5-day Consulting Skills workshop (started today)
• co-hosting 2nd annual (2-day) Toronto Workshop on Software Testing, with Michael Bolton. This year's topic is Test Modeling, a subject dear to my heart, on which I expect to learn a great deal.
• reading about and experimenting with: learning, concentration, distraction, etc. for AYE session with Diane Gibson
• learning about how board games work plus other topics for AYE session with Michael Bolton
• AYE generally; always important
• writing about, and presenting on, the logistical aspects of systems integration testing
• learning Mozart Solemn Vespers and revisiting Coronation Mass for May choir concert

2005

I'm not really planning anything formal, other than AYE 2005, if you can call that formal.

Work is stimulating partly because I'm in a new space, telecom. Learning about that, and getting my head around doing an E2E test there, is pretty engaging. I got to do the strategy and some interesting work on preparing for the integrated test, but then my part of the project was put on hold.

Outside work, I'm:

• trying to learn how to write for publication 1st article published; lots more to learn
• going to speech therapy, to fix some vocal problems. This is the most enormous fun, and unexpectedly interesting. I've had 3 sessions so far, and learned: a speaking voice warmup to use every morning for the rest of my life, how to find my natural speaking pitch and get back lost resonance, some beginning lessons on how to project without fatiguing my voice. (It's helping my singing voice, too.)did & enjoyed, but haven't kept up daily warmups
• facilitating a workshop at a local software quality group and tossing ideas around with Michael Bolton on some sort of mini-conference on testing we hosted the 1st Toronto Workshop on Software Testing; enjoyed & learned a lot
• learning new choir music: for March, a Schubert mass and a bunch of small things including a supposedly cute little song that my choir director intends to teach a 100-voice choir to sound like a chamber group (I don't like Schubert, and he clearly hated sopranos); for May, a really lovely Mendelssohn choral symphony and some Mendelssohn small things Mendelssohn was much fun
• continuing to play with my camera and learning Photoshop Elements a feature at a time did and will carry on doing
• going to the Orkneys in May. That will be mainly a walking trip with some driving, so I'm going to take a few refresher lessons on driving a standard shift with the hope that I'll adapt to changing gears with the wrong hand. I also want to get into reasonable walking shape by starting to walk the 3 or so miles to my current client in the morning -- but not when the wind chill is -30C. The other prep will be to read the Orkneyinga Saga. wonderful trip; took the driving lessons but then hardly drove; found Saga deeply boring (unlike other Norse sagas) and read only half

FionaCharles 29Jan-2005 updated 27-Jan-2006

One real benefit so far. The day before I was supposed to speak at a conference last week, I had almost no voice from a sinus & throat infection. I did a slow careful vocal warmup, and got my voice up and running enough to speak and answer questions for an hour and a quarter. (Ok, the decongestants and cough syrup helped too, but I'd been taking them for days.) So I think the warmup exercise is definitely a keeper. - FionaCharles 11-Feb-2005

I now have

"The Annotated Alice, The Definitive Edition" with Introduction and Notes by Martin Gardner and original illustrations by John Tenniel.

I understand that some AYE participants recommend this ;-)

I do look forward to reading it.

DwaynePhillips 14 March 2006