Sharing Good Practice
UNDERSTANDING ORGANIC LEARNING
BY FIROZ KHAN AZEES
U
nderstanding how we learn
is crucial to both personal
development
and
the
development of society, but
changes must be made in learning and
education, to more closely match how
we learn. We learn organically, so we
have to move to a model of education
and lifelong learning that embraces
this, instead of working against it.
When we think of learning, the image
that usually comes to mind is a school
or university. In other words, we have
a narrow view of learning as being
something that takes place at formal
institutions.
One of the first things to grasp,
however, is that education and learning
are not the same. Education describes
an organized, formal and pre-
established structure that is designed
to distribute knowledge. Learning,
on the other hand, is a natural, and
essential, biological function.
In other words, education facilitates
learning.
Learning happens outside of education
too, making education not strictly
necessary for learning to take place.
Learning is what makes us human
and it is essential to our existence.
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As newborn babies we are already
learning, and what we learn helps to
shape our personalities and determine
our path in life. Learning also shapes
families, communities, and societies.
This means we learn all the time, not
just during periods of formal education.
We learn even when we don’t know we
are learning. Sleep, for example, is part
of the learning process, as it helps the
brain to retain the information it has
acquired. In fact, both passive and
active activities contribute to learning;
from consciously learning a new skill, to
reading a book, talking to a colleague.
This means learning is both structured
and incidental.
In addition, it is not just about the
brain, memory, and thinking. Instead,
it involves our whole being, from
the things we believe, to the values
we hold dear. Personal feelings,
ambition, intuition, and our senses, are
other things that play a major role in
individual learning.
Despite this, the focus remains on
tangible learning practices, whether
they are formal or informal. This
includes the learning that goes on in
places such as schools and colleges,
but it also covers things like peer-to-
peer learning.
Class Time
What about the intangible aspects of
learning? This is learning using all of
our senses and mental capacity. The
fact is that, tangible learning accounts
for just 10 percent of what we learn.
The other 90 percent is intangible
learning, or organic learning.
If we were better at embracing organic
learning methods, improvements
would be made and greater successes
achieved. This means understanding
properly how our brains remember
the things we have learned. When we
have that understanding, we can put in
place proper learning structures and
processes.
One major problem is that the
structures that dominate learning
today, were developed for a
completely different time. The type
of education conducted in schools,
colleges, and universities has changed
over the years, but it is still rooted in
a system that is more than 200 years
old. It is a system that was developed
under leaders such as King Frederick
the Great. He ruled Prussia in the 18th
century and, at the time, had modern
views about education provision in
society. He developed a system that
was regarded by many, as being the
best in Europe.