Spring 1998
Vol 6 Issue 2
IN THIS ISSUE...
New Alignments in Calculus Instruction
Change: Do We Really Have a Choice?
Change, Learning, and the Future.
Using a Student's Fund of Knowledge to Guide Discovery
You Say You Want and Evolution?
SEE ALSO...
The Labyrinth
Maricopa Center for Learning and Instruction
You Say You Want Evolution
Christina Emmons, MCLI
It is easy, and somewhat simplistic, to say that "life" is one continuous
learning experience after the next and how wise you become depends upon your ability
to learn from each experience and then apply that knowledge to the next challenge.
Most of us incorporate this little bit of philosophy into our lives in principle,
but things get muddy when it becomes personal. This is especially true when it becomes
apparent that wisdom doesn't come without some pain. For most learning is easy, it's
a simple matter of gathering information and storing it. The complicated part is
using what has been learned.
Maricopa's grand initiative to become "learning-centered" strikes me as
both incredibly wondrous and incredulously ponderous. (Consider the Learner-Centered
System (LCS) project currently being developed.) To me, the idea of focusing on something
as abstract as "learning" is confusing. In theory it makes sense: we are
all learners, and every day brings new knowledge and experiences we must adapt to
in order to survive. Practically, however, the idea of focusing on "learning"
becomes a secondary consideration -- who has time to ponder the intricacies of the
universe while continuously being bombarded with the infinite trials and tribulations
of life?
As someone who doesn't particularly care for the idea of change (yet can, ironically,
adapt instantly to it) it is difficult to decide if the benefits of changing the
Maricopa system outweigh the costs. Paradoxically, I know that without change nothing
grows to its full potential. Each of us have to decide if such benefits do exist.
Personally, as long as the benefits do outweigh the costs, I'll be riding high on
the waves of change, smiling serenely.