Learning and Leadership
Learning and leadership – two sides of the same coin?
What is it about formal education, learning and teaching situations that make it so unattractive and wearisome, for some? For this group, at least, it seems to elicit two pertinent questions; the first question has to do with where and when will it (the programme) start and the second will inevitably have to do with how long will it take? Depending on the answers to those two questions, how the ‘situation-fits’, becomes an important consideration in the individual decision making process. As a consequence, this process, often determines whether formal learning will take place or not. Unfortunately, this ‘quick fix’ way of looking at education and learning, has I believe, more to do with the perceived purpose of formal schooling as a means to get a job and operates as a counterpoint to the human need for personal development. Personal development, in the form of hobbies and interests or home schooling is often ignored as not being a real form of learning. Often ignored too is the individual’s personal learning style, and the teaching style of the ‘teacher’ or mentor. Getting this possible mismatch right is crucial; because a mismatch of teaching and learning style leads to wearisome drudgery while on the other-hand a match of styles leads to joy, fascination and more memorable learning outcomes. Similarly, failure to deal adequately with the concept of comprehension in a world where language is daily used to envelop the learner in a ‘fog’ of meaning, where ‘clarity’ is so often desperately needed. All of this serves, but to remind us that in this the new ‘information age’ it is comprehension with literacy that remains the foundation stone upon which so much else rests.
Matching teaching and learning styles is a process like so many other things that starts in the home. It is in this constructed learning environment that the deeper learning connections are made possible. But, to really make all of the learning connections and to make the best use of these connections the family group need to know and understand ‘learning how we learn’ and the related concepts of multiple intelligences and leadership.
So in short for now, the answer to the first question where does learning start; the answer has to be in the home, but perhaps more precisely in the new born infant’s crib. The answer to the second question, how long does it take; again in short for now, is that learning never stops. Being unaware of this many people devise elaborate strategies to avoid some ‘learning situations’ and often employ ill-informed tactics to achieve this futile end. The truth is that so long as we are interested we often travel the ‘road least travelled’ desiring to create a new and personal adventure. Travelling-on, what really turns out to be our learning journey we become aware that we are constantly making choices, to turn this way or that and though our progress may be interrupted we strive to move onward and to adapt to new challenges. Adaptation leads to change and change leads to the ‘new’ you. Getting to know and understand the new you and your problem solving style presents the individual with an initial problem. That problem is akin to the line, theme followed in any discourse, it may be interrupted, it may take various twists and turns and at times through variation it may become disharmonious to the point that we find it very difficult to retrace our discursive steps that might permit a fresh beginning to an established theme. But, if we ‘learn how to learn’ we can make the connections between the many skills we accumulate as we go on our personal learning life journey; and if we are really adventurous and open our minds we will discover how to make the learning connections necessary for personal development and that this takes a most enjoyable lifetime.
A teaching colleague once described the learning process as an adventure in geographical terms. Once the miracle of a healthy birth has occurred the child has to quickly adjust to the new and changed environment. Gradually the parent sees the child as it sleeps in its crib stretch, reach and progress to the point that it needs more space. So it is that the first geography lesson begins. Pretty soon the child wants to go outside of the house not necessarily because it needs to, but because the healthy child is curious and is prone to asking the question why? Just as the child learns the early social skills necessary for life, the other basic skills of speech, reading and writing must also be coached and learned. The progress of the child in this learning sphere is influenced by the environment, the parent, other siblings and later by peers or work colleagues.
The child, the young adult and some late developing adults all have a personal reference system that involves them in moderating their perception of the exterior reality. So as they prepare to leave the nest, they wait, watch, observe, and imitate. As each receives encouragement they develop and become even more confident and adventurous. Because we operate in this world on the basis of our past experience we come to the learning situation with certain belief and value systems in place. These value systems guide much of our thinking processes and after a time we learn to decide how to act within a given situation by a self referencing system. How we act in many situations will determine whether we continue to follow others or provide leadership ourselves.
There are many factors connecting leadership and learning, but one of the first may well be the notion of an epiphany, the realisation that ‘if it is going to be, it is up-to-me’and this realisation comes early enough in life for some. The level of perceived experience will guide others; some may take a risk and lead, while others remain contented to follow. For others it’s a bit like that early childhood curiosity, that leap of faith that recurs again and again through life, that experiential lunge, accompanied by encouragement that gives us that necessary uplift so essential to serve our individual need to leave the nest. This is where education, teaching and learning begin to connect with leadership characteristics and personal traits. Those with strong personality traits such as physical, psychological, physiological health, combined with motivational, academic and vocational strengths are more likely to lead in the first instance and this is the case with any adventure, hobby or interest whether it be sailing, flying, or crossing the desert on a camel. Experiential learning is important because it teaches us a number of lessons very quickly. There may be no roads to follow, we may need to chart our own course, and this combined with the realisation that ‘the map is not the territory’, that sometimes we may need to get a new map and that we may need to check and re-set our compass regularly, to correct pattern errors is part and parcel of the process that leads us to an early epiphany.
Education and learning as with social values and a positive leadership spirit grows and is developed through the formation of ‘friendship groups’ be they within the family, extended family, or other childhood interest or experience groups. Later as an adult this development, if identified and cultivated will recur again and again through, interest, experience, social, cultural or other community group relationships. This leadership spirit and development encompasses the notion of knowledge aquisition. After all, unless you know where you are going, have the map and are able to read it; you may very well know how to fly, (the skill base) but you cannot expect the flock to follow until the group dynamics first become embedded and that the rest of the group know that you are headed in the right direction.
Education and learning as with social values and a positive leadership spirit grows and is developed through the formation of ‘friendship groups’ be they within the family, extended family, or other childhood interest or experience groups. Later as an adult this development, if identified and cultivated will recur again and again through, interest, experience, social, cultural or other community group relationships. This leadership spirit and development encompasses the notion of knowledge aquisition. After all, unless you know where you are going, have the map and are able to read it; you may very well know how to fly, (the skill base) but you cannot expect the flock to follow until the group dynamics first become embedded and that the rest of the group know that you are headed in the right direction.
It is well established now that people who share a common direction and sense of community can get where they are going quicker and easier because they are travelling on the energy of one another. Because of this we need to give encouragement to the ‘friendship group’ leader as well as to our fellow ‘group’ members. We learn to stand by one another in good as well as difficult times; we try to stay in formation and are willing to share the leadership role as and when called upon.
Among the important things I have learned about teaching, learning, education, and training in general, is that getting people connected and having them make ‘the learning connections’ themselves is a prerequisite for positive learning outcomes. Once people are connected, with one another they must then become connected to the specific material, as for example to this and future posts to this and other educational web-sites. Then through dialogue, conversation and movement each individual learner is on the road to discovery, and eventual understanding of their own personal learning style. In doing so one is faced with the reality that ‘one cannot expect to ‘discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time’. 1 The life long, life wide adventure, into Adult Learning as with any other adventure, requires us to prepare, totally, understanding as we do, that we do not always have to follow the main road and that one does not have to slavishly follow the map as it is not the real territory, new directions may have to be charted, we may have to take new bearings and re-set our compass regularly to make new beginnings.
“We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.”
2
Queries or comments mailto:info@frankmonaghan.com
- Andre Gide ↩
- Eliot, 1944, Little Gidding ↩
- This theme started at the link provided ↩