This seems to be the year for training, at work. The company's on a growth curve, and old tactics that just got us by (on-the-job-training that was really just 'watch me while I do my job') when the company was younger are clearly not up to the task now. I find myself most days thinking about, collaborating on, developing, and giving training classes. Thankfully, this is a joy for me and not a chore. I've always felt fortunate that I have such a natural love of learning, and it is a gift to have the opportunity to share that experience with others.
Coincidentally (or not), I happen to be reading David Rock's fascinating book, "Your Brain at Work." One of the book's insights is that the human brain is wired to enjoy learning. Here I was, thinking I was special. But no. Brains love novelty. Learning embraces the 'new,' which lights up the brain. True, the discipline that learning requires is maybe not so fun for the brain: focus requires suppressing a lot of other brain activity, and focus uses up the brain's resources, which feels draining. All of which is just to say that learning is also work, not just fun and games. But does that resource drain (the work) overpower the jolt of excitement from learning?
I've always marveled at how we humans start our lives as learning animals. That's the life of a baby: eating, sleeping, and learning. This experience is not always fun: mom gets irritated when you pull her hair; there's a lot of falling down before you can walk; there's a lot of crying that happens too (but the crying generally results in being comforted -- not much to complain about there). And yet, the 'not fun' doesn't get in the way of the fun. Babies and small children just love to learn - and they happily spend most hours of the day actively learning, and it's considered 'play.' No parents would think to limit the number of hours per day their children spend learning.
As we grow up, humans slowly become accustomed to seeing learning as work. We limit the number of hours our children should spend on learning (which generally is bounded by class time and homework). It is seen as a burden, an obligation. And I must admit, there's little joyful about grades, or studying for exams, or writing essays on a deadline. Rock's book suggests to me that perhaps this is not an attribute of maturity, but rather of the way we are expected to learn as we mature. Learning becomes more about getting it right -- the grade -- rather than about learning, which by definition is about getting it wrong a lot of times first. As we get older, we realize that proficiency is valued; being a novice (a learner) is a low-status position. If you expected your baby to walk without error after having seen it demonstrated a couple of times, perhaps most of the human population would be crawling on all fours.
At the risk of over-simplifying, I suggest: Your brain loves to learn. Your mind isn't entirely convinced. It's the job of a teacher to get your mind to be quiet and step aside, so that your brain can have some fun.
If the entire human population were able to hold onto the joy of learning that we experienced as infants... if expertise were not valued more than curiosity... if failure to try was penalized more than failure to succeed... what kind of world would we pass to the next generation?
Coincidentally (or not), I happen to be reading David Rock's fascinating book, "Your Brain at Work." One of the book's insights is that the human brain is wired to enjoy learning. Here I was, thinking I was special. But no. Brains love novelty. Learning embraces the 'new,' which lights up the brain. True, the discipline that learning requires is maybe not so fun for the brain: focus requires suppressing a lot of other brain activity, and focus uses up the brain's resources, which feels draining. All of which is just to say that learning is also work, not just fun and games. But does that resource drain (the work) overpower the jolt of excitement from learning?
I've always marveled at how we humans start our lives as learning animals. That's the life of a baby: eating, sleeping, and learning. This experience is not always fun: mom gets irritated when you pull her hair; there's a lot of falling down before you can walk; there's a lot of crying that happens too (but the crying generally results in being comforted -- not much to complain about there). And yet, the 'not fun' doesn't get in the way of the fun. Babies and small children just love to learn - and they happily spend most hours of the day actively learning, and it's considered 'play.' No parents would think to limit the number of hours per day their children spend learning.
As we grow up, humans slowly become accustomed to seeing learning as work. We limit the number of hours our children should spend on learning (which generally is bounded by class time and homework). It is seen as a burden, an obligation. And I must admit, there's little joyful about grades, or studying for exams, or writing essays on a deadline. Rock's book suggests to me that perhaps this is not an attribute of maturity, but rather of the way we are expected to learn as we mature. Learning becomes more about getting it right -- the grade -- rather than about learning, which by definition is about getting it wrong a lot of times first. As we get older, we realize that proficiency is valued; being a novice (a learner) is a low-status position. If you expected your baby to walk without error after having seen it demonstrated a couple of times, perhaps most of the human population would be crawling on all fours.
At the risk of over-simplifying, I suggest: Your brain loves to learn. Your mind isn't entirely convinced. It's the job of a teacher to get your mind to be quiet and step aside, so that your brain can have some fun.
If the entire human population were able to hold onto the joy of learning that we experienced as infants... if expertise were not valued more than curiosity... if failure to try was penalized more than failure to succeed... what kind of world would we pass to the next generation?
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2 comments:
What an insightful post. I wonder, at what point does the desire to learn become a need for reenforcement of what one merely thinks one knows? We all know one or more incurious people. The best teachers, perhaps, are the those who are the most eager to learn and admit to a lack of knowledge? Is that a paradox? Hmm.
You make a great point about admitting to lack of knowledge. Unfortunately, gaining expertise (which is not only lauded in our culture but also financially rewarded) can result in a focus on what you know, rather than what you don't know. Embracing the lack of knowledge is, perhaps paradoxically, essential to learning. "The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing." Socrates nailed it 2400 years ago.
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