Perspective on Learning and Teaching

Paying attention to the active subject, and the active student…

It is fitting to write a little something about students and teachers as the school year winds down.

The common proverb / saying is: When the student is ready, the teacher will appear. That takes the view that as a student, when you are ready, a teacher will be at hand.

But consider this statement: Until the student is ready, even the greatest teacher will be ignored. How about being a teacher who is unable to teach because the student is uninterested!?!

What’s a student to do? What’s a teacher to do?

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Concentrate on the lesson you are getting right now!

There are many, many things that an avid learner can look to study, but the one thing that seems to call out the loudest is the current lesson.

Don’t sign up for a cooking class and expect to learn how to sew! Concentrate on the cooking lesson at hand, and leave the next topic for the next lesson.

Since the classroom for interpersonal skills is life itself, those lessons happen everywhere. So yes, while you are learning how to use the double boiler, you may also get a lesson in tact; just stay on your toes with the burners on.

Parenting is one of those 24×7 activities. You can never figure out the timing of broken arms and broken hearts, and everyone still needs to get fed.

Just don’t put yourself in “parent school” and then fail to think about the lessons (or complain that you’re in the class in the first place!-)

So you think you’re a teacher…

Great – we all are!-)

And sometimes, the students aren’t interested.

I’m not just talking school here – teaching happens everywhere. There are others out there with a greater focus on the formal teaching environment than I and I will leave it to them to expound on that subject. [I will say this – interested students are better students.]

For a teacher of life’s lessons, if the student isn’t interested in learning, there are only two courses of action:

1. Get them to want to learn.
2. Find others that are interested in learning.

That’s it.

The first may be difficult, but a good challenge for those wanting to learn a lesson in patience, the second is more practical.

It may seem a bit cruel, but if you’re not willing to sit down at the game of life and learn what you need to know, I’m not willing to waste my time trying to teach you. Or – put alternatively – It’s great to know that you are all set to do the things you want to do. I’ll be over here if you need me.

And remember, we all know that when they are ready, they will find you!-)

Be careful what you teach, not everyone may be ready for the lesson.

Some ideas are just too advanced for their time. You cannot teach a crawling baby to run a sprint, and flying an airplane is just out of the question. In the same way, saying the world is round and orbits the sun was too much for some folks back when it was first suggested.

Be patient and don’t rush the lessons. You might have to teach lessons #2 and #3 for quite a while before you can start easing in the path toward lessons #9 and #10.

Teaching is Learning.

Most teachers will tell you that they learn just as much from their students as they teach – it’s just that the lessons are different. One may be learning about the need and ways to develop recent graduates, the other may be learning how to manage relationships with co-workers, both are important.

Two questions for you as you head out to the world – what are you learning today, and what are you teaching?