Hello dear reader,
First, a big welcome to all the new subscribers who have joined On Learning over the last month. If that’s you, I’d love to hear from you: what would you like On Learning to explore? Go ahead and let me know by email: bevan@smata.co.nz :)
And also, it would be fantastic to have you join today’s / this week’s conversation.
Let’s get into it.
I find there’s a natural rhythm to my learning. It kinda has a three-part cycle, which goes like this.
+ A hook or spark, that makes me dive in, consume, chew things over, get excited, have bursts that connections fire away. Generally, this is an internal phase.
…
+ And then, fatigue, restlessness, mental voids. I feel ‘blocked’. There’s no real rule as to how long this stage lasts. Exercise, especially running, helps.
(Isn't it odd that fatigue sits in the middle of the cycle?)
» !!!
+ But out of nowhere, flashes of invigorating inspiration. It’s like things have been distilled enough for me to work with them. I feel a harmonious, yet tough and sometimes tense, sensation of deep thinking that I can sit in for ages. Writing or drawing things out helps me find clarity. Often, I’ll want to share.
Always, this stage feeds the start of the next cycle.
Along with that internal rhythm, I’ve noticed there’s an external rhythm that pairs with it, driven by an ebbing urge to talk things over (the intensity of this urge varies, especially when the thoughts are new and fragile).
Is it the same for you?
So far in the Winter Season, I’ve thrown three fairly meaty posts your way.
Flow (paid subscribers exclusive)
“Until a paradigm shift happens that aligns the purpose of schools with something akin to Csikszentmihalyi’s question, flow will continue to be an elusive feeling that happens in those exceptional, one-off moments.”
Flow, harmony and the virtuous life
“I am suggesting that if one’s good actions are shaped by a behaviourist approach it’s the system that does the work of being good for them; all they have to do is be good.”
Fragments for focus (paid subscribers exclusive)
“given the dominance of the mind-as-computer theory in education, this partly explains why academic achievement is the fragment of focus through which all others must be viewed, and we find ourselves talking about the core curriculum, we find the arts being squeezed out, and we see time for play being questioned.”
I’d like to try something new this week, and that’s pause.
Let’s let things simmer, and give space for thoughts, wonderings, and connections to emerge.
But let’s also talk, share, and connect.
If this works, I’ll repeat it regularly.
Here are some things I’ve thrown your way that are still simmering for me:
+ What I meant when I said
Music is maths, but with a dash of magic
Dance is storytelling, but with an injection of passion
Block play is physics, but with a hint of daring.
+ The different fragments that make up the educational experience.
+ How kids can be helped to find inner harmony.
+ Whether the question, What makes a life worth living? is one schools should ask.
What’s simmering for you?
I’d love to hear from you. If you’d like to share with me, add your thoughts as a comment on this post.
You’ll inspire others by doing so. Those unique connections, questions and wonderings simmering in your head will add value to someone out there.
And feel free to go deep, to go long form, to let the thought evolve and reveal itself, to show the nuance.
Even if you feel like you don’t want to share, go ahead and peruse the comments. Who knows what new, worthy connections will emerge?