1.4 LEARNING is LEARNABLE
Learning is inevitable and an unavoidable constant in every aspect of our everyday lives. It is a conscious activity throughout our schooldays, in formal
education and in training but it also lives in our subconscious, in our thinking and in our reflection, and even in our imagination. Learning is innate. It is responsive to the dynamics of our personal circumstances and to our immediate environment.
So, why do we need to ‘learn to learn’ and why should it become an integral part of the school curriculum? In short, because an understanding of how we learn and how our Learning Power dictates the habits and behaviors we exhibit when coping with the challenges of change, is fundamental to the quality of our contribution to family life and to the well-being of society as a whole.
The accelerating pace of change across every aspect of society makes it necessary for all of us to hone our ‘learning’ skills, to constantly acquire new knowledge and develop and adopt new ways of working. In this climate of perpetual change, how we learn at school has an abiding influence as we grow older. Schools, therefore, have a critical responsibility to use the curriculum, classroom culture and organizational frameworks to equip their students for the demands of citizenship, ensuring that:
- they have skills in ‘learning how to learn’;
- learning is accepted as a continuous process which will extend throughout life;
- recognition is given to the fact that learning takes place in a wide variety of different
situations and contexts; - schools as organizations are structured and managed to encourage and reward learning.
Learning is a partnership between us and those around us. It adds new knowledge to what we already know, or have experienced, to enable us to respond positively to change. However, ELLI, Learning Power’s assessment instrument, is also diagnostic and profiles our ‘learning energy’ and propensity for change. There is no hiding place! If ELLI is to kick-start our ‘learning journey’ it will require a commitment to ‘welcoming difference’ and a preparedness to capitalise on our strengths whilst making good those weaknesses that are undermining our confidence and detracting from our performance.
Learning is the process that enables us to adapt to the changing circumstances in which we find ourselves as life progresses. It is Learning Power’s job to partner us through that process and give us the tools that will deliver a sustained quality of life.