Gary Ackerman @garyackerman@qoto.org

Humans have been offloading cognitive load for a long time. It is what we do with the cognition that remains that matters.

All of those things that make learning easier... none work. Learning is hard work.

LLMs may reduce immediate cognitive load but simultaneously diminish critical thinking and lead to decreased engagement in deep analytical processes. #CognitiveCost

How much of #learning is really just the ability to score well in arbitrary tests?

A list of links isn’t really useful. Cull them... give them context... state strengths and limitations.

If your answer doesn’t start with “It depends,” you don’t really understand the problem.

“New and improved” has been dubious since the 1970’s (for me anyways). It is more obviously false when applied to software updates than for any other type of product in the last 40+ years.

Successful #onlinelearning develops as we help #students ask specific questions... just like we do in face-to-face classrooms.

“I don’t understand it, therefore it is false.” Yeah... when I hear that in #leaders, I slowly back away.

The number of “data driven leaders” who cannot interpret different types of distributions is distressing.

“I didn’t measure what I thought I would, so I must have measured wrong,” is a conclusion that is too commonly drawn.

What if low test scores result from a bad test and not poor preparation?

Fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves.... Bertrand Russell was right.

For a difficulty to be desirable, it must be challenging but solvable by the learner. If the learner lacks the necessary background knowledge or skills, the difficulty becomes undesirable and won't promote learning. #OptimalChallenge

Data privacy requires active protection. Practice data minimization (collect only what's necessary) and use privacy-enhancing technologies like masking and tokenization to safeguard sensitive information.

Modern security relies heavily on cryptography. It's essential for ensuring confidentiality, integrity, authentication, and nonrepudiation. Be aware of downgrade attacks that force systems to less secure modes.

Social engineering relies on human weaknesses, not just tech flaws. Principles like authority, urgency, and trust are key tools for attackers to elicit information or prompt actions.

Edtech leaders, listen up! When designing IT systems, IT professionals often present a "choose two" scenario: you can't have inexpensive, designed quickly, AND high quality simultaneously.

Watch out for the "illusion of comprehension". Conditions like massed practice or rereading can give a false sense of understanding due to familiarity, but this doesn't guarantee real learning or retention for future exams. #Metacognition

"The most erroneous stories are those we think we know best - and therefore never scrutinize or question."

Stephen Jay Gould