We learn through our sensory organs and their interactions with the brain. We learn when some change occurs in our brain in response to new ‘sensory inputs’. To draw an analogy, think of our brain as a ‘telephone exchange/network’ and each incoming call as a potential source of new inputs and each outgoing call as a sign of knowledge processing. Though our brain is a million times more complex, the two kinds of changes possible in any network are also the possible changes in our brain:
- The brain makes new connections when we see things from ‘new angles’ or undergo new experiences, which is similar to the addition of new telephone numbers. When we read, hear, see or do (experience) something new, we take the first step towards learning.
- The brain strengthens the existing connections when we repeat things by way of practice or recall which is much like installing amplifiers and laying optical fibres. To learn music, we repeat the notes a hundred times and more; we practice similar moves, catches, throws, lifts, leaps or postures for years to play a sport; to master a language, we read or converse (not one-way talk or hearing) continuously for years on end; to master maths, we continuously ‘think, talk, train mathematically’. ‘Practice makes perfect’ is the conclusive and continuous second step in learning.
Of course, the two are interactive processes/changes and fire and fuel each other towards a never-ending journey of learning – the exclusive privilege of Homo sapiens!
The innate ability to learn is genetic, making us instinctive learners. We are a learning machine; learning is second nature of us all. Ironically, the only thing we can deliberately do is to stop learning. Thus, the answer to the question ‘How do we learn’ is a big disappointment.
Learning is reflexive, it takes nothing to learn. A child at three is the most powerful ‘learning machine’ on earth! The more appropriate question is ‘how do we unlearn?’, ‘why do we unlearn?’ and ‘how can we retain the learning process of a three year old at the age eighteen?’
We would also wish to share another important perspective on learning without further ado. Learning is the exercise of the brain. Being a conscious-learner is a way to exercise the brain. And the hallmark of a conscious learner is being a (compulsive) THINKER! We cannot learn unless we ‘think’. Thinking is the exercise of the brain. We learn what we internalise, which becomes part of us in the brain. It is a very personal process because the triggers of thinking are very personal; for example, hundreds of people may see a garbage dump but only a few will actually register it and think more about it.
In the context of the aforementioned, it might already be clear that the verdict on the efficacy of the classrooms (the man-made learning catalyst of the past 200 years) is uncontested – we cannot learn by being taught. Teaching a class of 5 students (leave alone 40) also does not at all guarantee that all 5 students will be at similar levels of understanding of the subject taught (in most cases, not) over a period of time. Teaching has poor correlation with learning by students.
Teaching worked as an educational tool in the industrial society because the goal of education was to nurture ‘knowledgeable people’ (fill their brain with information) rather than ‘learners’ (make them thinkers).
Knowledgeable people are expected to be learners enough to keep ‘updating’ their knowledge in line with changes in ‘public domain knowledge’.
On the other hand, ‘learners’ are expected to use ‘public domain knowledge’ to invent ‘personal knowledge’ that is as ‘different’ from public domain knowledge.
We are yet to invent classrooms for ‘nurturing the natural gift of learning’! And this sits at the core of the current crisis in education.
