Learnlets

Secondary

Clark Quinn’s Learnings about Learning

Dropping names

5 October 2011 by Clark 7 Comments

Not irregularly, when I do presentations or workshops, I get a few accusations of “dropping names”. I know what they are talking about (I regularly throw in references to theorists or practitioners), but I think they misunderstand why I do it. And I think it is important to understand why it is a ‘good thing’.

First, I was trained in an academic environment, where you don’t claim credit for ideas that aren’t yours. Instead, what you do is point to who you are drawing on. This acknowledges that you know who has done what. It’s important that you show you have done the research to know who’s done what, because it shows what you’re unique contribution is.    

I admit I get a wee bit bent when I see folks present other’s thoughts as their own. Or, worse, presenting stuff wrong. Usually it’s innocent, but sometimes these folks have barrows to push or goods to sell. There are also folks who will take on others’s thoughts, communicate them without attributions, and imply by omission that they have ownership of intellectual property (and, yes, I am being diplomatic). Caveat emptor.

Moving on, a second reason I share names is to provide an access path for those who want to know more about a particular area. In the long run, while I like it if people trust me, I want them to have a channel to buttress their understanding. They can either check my credibility, or go to greater depth.

What I don’t get is folks thinking I’m burnishing my own image. If I am citing the relevant sources, yes I am showing I know the field. But isn’t that better than claiming the ideas of others? I’ve seen too much of the latter, and I’m sorry if the audience doesn’t know enough to call out the speaker on it.

I’m comfortable with my knowledge of what others have done and what my unique combinations and contributions are. I just want you to know who else you really *should* know, and that I know what’s known and what still are areas for intriguing exploration. And, yes, in many cases I *do* know these folks, but because I *have* been doing this for so bloody long, not because I’m superficially looking for facile props.

I guess some may view it as showing off, but I believe it’s only appropriate to give credit where credit is due, and I will counter that those who don’t are falsely implying undue credit. This is my life; I’ve been doing this now for 30 years. I continue to seek out what’s right, hype, wrong, etc. You don’t *have* to trust me, but you’ll certainly have the evidence to check me out.

I welcome your opinion, yea or nay.  

Comments

  1. David Glow says

    5 October 2011 at 6:55 AM

    This is not just being honest, it’s also a genuine service.

    When someone tweets a #ff or notes “some great insights from @ about “, it exposes me to a wider and deeper range of professionals. Or, with more traditional media, it points me to great research and resources in print.

    It’s the right thing to do-not just for giving credit-but sharing valuable resources.

  2. Mark Britz says

    5 October 2011 at 9:13 AM

    Yea from me Clark. I have come to believe (from folks like you) that real knowledge is not within people but between us…in the conversations and relationships we form. We owe it to the community to live what we preach – collaboration, community, sharing are what is important today and going forward – our connections and ability to connect are critical to success. If we don’t acknowledge that the ideas we share are not solely are own but are built upon or influenced by others we are being hypocrites.

  3. Steve Maul says

    5 October 2011 at 12:18 PM

    I agree, it adds to your credibility and clearly acknowledges that you’re not representing the thought or ideas as your own. If done too frequently, it can appear as though the entire idea was someone elses, though I doubt that’s what’s happening here.

    As someone who both speaks often and is in the audience as well, I also “drop names”… though I try to do it not with any false sense of familiarity. In other words, I don’t speak in terms of, “well, the other day when Bill Gates and I were having coffee…”. Though I will say something, such as, “when Jane Bozarth was presenting at our meeting a while back”, because that indeed happened.

    I say, go for it… tone and temperament matter, and you can’t control how other people will interpret the message. Deliver it with pure intent and let the chips fall where they may.

    In fact, when I talk about “name dropping” and the concerns around it, I’ll mention your blog as a source.

  4. Francisca Ocón says

    6 October 2011 at 2:50 AM

    I completely agree with you Clark

  5. Brian McGowan says

    6 October 2011 at 4:15 AM

    Clark:

    There is nothing more intellectually insulting than passing off someone else’s work as your own, it frays the very fabric of science. Attribution is fundamental to any profession – for exactly the reason you state above – but even more alarming is that ‘stealing’ the ideas of others undermines progress. Think of it this way…when someone passes themselves off as the expert and they con people into seeing them as responsible for a theory or practice that arose elsewhere…then that theory or practice is now damned and the field loses fidelity (understanding of who ‘owns’ it and from where it came). Yes the original ‘thought-leader’ may be pushing forward with his or her science, but the impostor is simultaneously corrupting or abusing the branch of theory & science…and the community may not be certain which to believe.

    So keep on name-dropping…I will take over-attribution over omission any day of the year…

    Brian

  6. Lilianna Taylor says

    6 October 2011 at 9:09 AM

    Definitely YEA! By sharing what you know, and “dropping the names” of those who helped you to get where you are today, you are helping others to build their own understanding. I’ll be audacious and say that information sharing and collaboration are some of the principles for the 21 century. So, keep sharing and “dropping the names” – the circle of those who appreciate, is growing =)

  7. Stephen Downes says

    6 October 2011 at 4:53 PM

    Name your sources, but if they’re not genuinely a source, don’t name them. Do that, and you have nothing to explain to anyone, either way.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Clark Quinn

The Company

Search

Feedblitz (email) signup

Never miss a post
Your email address:*
Please wait...
Please enter all required fields Click to hide
Correct invalid entries Click to hide

Pages

  • About Learnlets and Quinnovation

The Serious eLearning Manifesto

Manifesto badge

Categories

  • design
  • games
  • meta-learning
  • mindmap
  • mobile
  • social
  • strategy
  • technology
  • Uncategorized
  • virtual worlds

Blogroll

  • Charles Jennings
  • Christy Tucker
  • Connie Malamed
  • Dave's Whiteboard
  • Donald Clark's Plan B
  • Donald Taylor
  • Harold Jarche
  • Julie Dirksen
  • Kevin Thorn
  • Mark Britz
  • Mirjam Neelen & Paul Kirschner
  • Stephen Downes' Half an Hour

License

Previous Posts

  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
  • July 2010
  • June 2010
  • May 2010
  • April 2010
  • March 2010
  • February 2010
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • February 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008
  • November 2008
  • October 2008
  • September 2008
  • August 2008
  • July 2008
  • June 2008
  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • March 2008
  • February 2008
  • January 2008
  • December 2007
  • November 2007
  • October 2007
  • September 2007
  • August 2007
  • July 2007
  • June 2007
  • May 2007
  • April 2007
  • March 2007
  • February 2007
  • January 2007
  • December 2006
  • November 2006
  • October 2006
  • September 2006
  • August 2006
  • July 2006
  • June 2006
  • May 2006
  • April 2006
  • March 2006
  • February 2006
  • January 2006

Amazon Affiliate

Required to announce that, as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Mostly book links. Full disclosure.