Learning is an acquired art
How to learn from an effective
teacher is a question that many people including educators, academics and
health care professionals ask with regard to children, teens and adults, who
appear to have learning difficulties of various kinds. Are you wondering how to learn from an effective teacher, in terms of a serious inquiry
about how to learn more easily?
Note the use of the word
effective, as used in relation to the word teacher. In effective teaching, whatever goals one has set initially, in conjunction with proposed, intended or
expected results with regard to successful learning, are realized.
Being aware that learning is an
acquired art is an important part of learning from an effective teacher. More
importantly, learning is an acquired skill that undergoes development
throughout our entire lives.
Look at what may appear to be
an ideal learning scenario.
Perhaps you or someone you know
has a photographic memory or eidetic memory and thus, “the
ability to recall images, sounds or objects in memory with extreme precision
and in abundant volume”. (1)
For example, on the television
show, Grey’s Anatomy, the character
personified as Lexie Grey (nicknamed “Lexipedia”) (2) has a photographic
memory.
While this seems to be a
scenario where learning comes easily to Lexie, eidetic memory is not a
learning process as such, even though having a photographic memory may enhance
various learning experiences she has. She has total, instant recall of what she
sees or reads. In other words, her mind takes a snapshot or photograph, which
remains in her memory.
Unfortunately, most adults and
children do not have photographic memories, like this fictitious character and they have to learn everything one way or another. Sometimes, it seems that certain
people are destined to learn everything the hard way, even when taught by an
effective teacher.
Returning to the thought that
learning is an acquired art, the following tips about the art of learning
from an effective teacher, may prove to be helpful. The question of how one can
learn to learn more easily, arises too.
Identify the learning problem,
if possible.
Try to identify what the actual
learning problem is and where the problem seems to be. In other words, does the
learning problem have something to do with the child, teen or adult, who
demonstrates difficulty learning or does it have more to do with the teacher?
Identifying the teacher as
being a truly effective teacher is important.
Educators, parents and others
are aware that we all need to need to learn many different things, sometimes
associated with various degrees of learning difficulty.
Parents are immediately aware
when their children’s teachers appear to be highly effective with other
children, but not with their own. When there appears to be a learning problem
with a child or with many children in a classroom, one must first ask whether
the area of concern is the teacher or the children. The same is true for
teenagers and adults.
Is there a more effective
teacher?
Remember that each teacher and
pupil has a different personality and sometimes, personalities clash. This kind
of a scenario is not conducive to healthy learning. When the problem appears to
be the teacher, there are other teachers, who may prove to be more
effective.
Recognize that the learning curve (3) is different for each person.
Learning is not necessarily
easy for every child, teenager or adult. Each person is different in terms of
his or her speed, ability and capacity to learn. Tabulating data on graphs,
demonstrates learning curves that vary from person to person. Some people learn
everything much easier than others do; most people learn some things more
easily than other things.
At times, even basic learning
skills that most people acquire instinctively, have to be learned by others, but only
over a long period of time and with a lot of effort and repetition on their
part.
Discuss the suspected learning
problem with the teacher.
An effective teacher knows how
to teach his or her students learning skills or how to learn. He or she will be
open to discuss areas of learning that appear problematic. When learning skills
are developed and the art of learning has been learned, most people are able to
learn many things on their own and will usually attempt to do so.
Effective teachers recognize
and draw from numerous teaching
models and theories (4) in
order to teach those who have learning problems. One particular teaching model
is not necessarily effective for teaching everyone how to learn.
Is the learning environment conducive to learning?
Provide a quiet, safe and
comfortable learning environment for anyone who demonstrates a learning
problem.
Learning is easier in a quiet,
safe and comfortable environment, where there is a minimum of interruption and
stress. This does not necessarily mean total isolation, as many people learn
more easily when they are in among their families, peers and/or friends. They
are often more likely to be comfortable and happier there.
Provide good role models for the
person who has a learning problem, to follow.
When a person has a learning
problem, he or she is not alone, as many people have difficulty learning
different things.
Note that some people tend to
learn from the left side of their brain, while others learn from the right side
of their brain. Providing an appropriate role model for the person with a
learning problem to follow, is important. In other words, a child who learns
from the left side of his or her brain may be able to learn more easily when
taught by a teacher who learns the same way.
Identify possible learning
disabilities.
Consider the possibility of a
psychological assessment to rule out possible, learning disabilities like
dyslexia, autism or brain damage. Identifying problem areas immediately helps
one to know how to learn the art of learning in his or her particular
situation. Are there obstacles to learning, like impaired vision or
diminished hearing?
Practice patience with regard
to teaching and learning.
Patience is crucial aspect of
the learning process, particularly with respect to anyone who has a learning
problem. An effective teacher will be patient with any child, teen or adult who
demonstrates difficulty learning.
Determine whether the person
with a learning problem is a visual learner, or an auditory learner.
In other
words, does that person learn by seeing something, or hearing it? We do not
always learn the same way and may learn one way or the other, or perhaps even
both ways, at different times.
Show pride in any degree of
learning success, accomplishment or achievement. Learning can be very hard work
for some people and any degree of success with respect to learning deserves a
reward, even if the reward is just in terms of verbal or non-verbal praise. When something has been
learned, achieved or accomplished, let it serve as a building block or a
stepping-stone for the next thing to be learned.
Note the order of the learning
process.
Sometimes learning steps take
on a distinct order, but not always. Eventually, all of the steps fall into
place in successful learning. Learning is like a piece of
artwork, painted in various stages. Where does one have to start or finish? Is
the learning order always set in stone? Can one achieve the same results using
variations of the learning order? Organizing the learning steps
in a way that they are easy to understand by anyone, not just the person who
has problems learning, often proves beneficial.
In summary, most of these
learning tips are common sense guidelines for those seeking to learn from
effective teachers. Seeing learning as an art to be developed, suggests that
learning is an acquired skill, which can improve over time.
Develop the art of acquired
learning and take pride in it. In time, you will become an effective teacher and
having gone through the learning process yourself, either the easy or the hard
way, you will appreciate the art of acquired learning, even more fully.
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