Ex-Tahoe teacher: 'Death by lecture' is preventable

RENO - The clinical name is the reticular activator - a part of the brain about the size of the end of your pinky finger. Sharon Bowman calls it the "brain secretary."

"Hold up your pinky," Bowman shouts to two dozen court administrators at a recent training seminar at the National Judicial College in Reno. "Say it with me - 'brain secretary."

It's part of the lesson from the former Lake Tahoe-area school teacher turned corporate training leader who is attempting something many consider more difficult than brain surgery. She's trying to teach Fortune 500 executives, court clerks and college professors to push the training manuals aside and teach their students and co-workers in compelling ways that keep their minds from wandering.

Or as one of her book titles suggests, "Preventing Death By Lecture."

Bowman explains the "brain secretary" puts the main brain on autopilot while doing a repetitive chore, such as driving a familiar route to work. It is an enemy of good teaching.

"The brain secretary is programmed to take care of the routine. It says 'Been there, done that. I've got it covered. Your mind can take a hike.'"

If a dog darts in front of the car, the brain secretary "bangs on the door of the thinking brain," which clicks into gear.

"You have to keep the learner's brain active," she tells the students at the Judicial College "Learning is not a spectator sport." The person doing the most talking is doing the most learning."

"We remember 20 percent of what we hear but 90 percent of what we SAY and DO."

And so she flings a rubber ball at one older gentleman. Or urgently seeks an answer to a trivia question from another. Or briefly flips on an overhead projector.

"Research shows that if you leave a group of adults sitting, listening for more than seven minutes, their minds begin to drift into sexual fantasy," Bowman says.

Bowman is off and running. Literally. Up and down the aisles. Flipping on projectors. Drawing on easels.

"Move around. Ask a question. Show a video. Use a prop. Talk softer - which is a hard one for me," Bowman says.

"Do anything that will set off the brain secretary," she says. "Learning is directly proportional to the amount of fun they are having."

A Los Angeles native who taught grade school and high school mostly in California and Nevada for 23 years, Bowman decided it was time for a change in the mid-1990s.

"Teaching is my passion but I needed a different forum," she said. "I miss the kids, but not the classroom or the school district."

"People have been made to believe - even in education - 'no pain, no gain.' We think learning has to be painful, it has to be boring. It's not true," she said.

Today, Bowman makes a living writing books and giving presentations to corporate giants like Exxon, MetLife, AT&T and Adelphia Communications. Others who have heard her lecture work for Texas Instruments, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Lands' End and the Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. She also speaks at community colleges, school training seminars and professional associations.

"What a great way to enhance staff meetings and keep your employees' attention," said Duane Wallace, of the South Lake Tahoe Chamber of Commerce who attended a recent seminar.