The WHY of Learning
Photo by Evan Dennis on Unsplash

The WHY of Learning

There are many conversations going on (online) around all things learning. I like these conversations because they help me learn. Also I often experience that the conversations lead to Babilonic confusion based on different starting points, assumptions and the different context that people have in mind (and there can be countless differences in context). When this confusion occurs, often the conversation moves to some kind of debate in which participants try to win and convince others that they are right. I’ve been puzzling lately trying to create an overview that shows a clear picture of why people are learning to bring clarity to conversations. I now think the first draft is ready to share and get some feedback on (see below).

No alt text provided for this image

The distinction of ‘instrumental’ versus ‘intrinsic’ coined by Scott H. Young in his book ‘Ultralearning’ was very useful to me. Instrumental learning is learning for a non-learning result so learning as a means and not an end. Here I added ‘Access’ and ‘Application’ as two subcategories. Access is focussed on learning to get access to certain industries, jobs or tasks and to be (legally) allowed to work in certain industries or jobs or to do certain tasks. Think of all kind of licenses and certifications that professionals need to do a job. Application is focussed on application of what you have learned to get a job done that you weren’t able to do before the learning because you missed certain knowledge and/or skills. Of course there often can be an overlap between Access and Application: if you invested time sand money to become certified and get acces to a job you likely also want to apply it to really do that job. Intrinsic is based on learning for the sake of learning itself, let’s say for hobby, interest or to satisfy your curiosity. It’s focussed on amusement. Think of learning photography or a different language. Also here can be an overlap with application, that it starts focussed on amusement but eventually you want to really make nice photo’s or speak that other language when you’re on holiday. There might also be an overlap between amusement and access that you need a license to be allowed to practice your hobby: think of water sports, a boat license or diving license. Instrumental also suggests that there might be other solutions then learning to get what you want. Think of ‘performance support’ or a specific app or tool that can help you reach your goal. Until now, I covered this theme from the perspective of the ‘learner’ but I hope it will also be useful for learning professionals representing an organization and learning designers. Being explicit about intentions and goals to achieve is also helpful for them I think. Now back to you dear reader. As I mentioned: this is a first draft and I’d like to receive some feedback and your ideas for improvement, so please share your thoughts and comments, thanks!

Rachel Arts, FCIPD, CMgr MCMI

Learning Strategist | Leadership, Skills Development & Digital Learning Solutions

2 年

Nice model - I think learning happens best when there is a bigger overlap of the three.. reminds me of my efforts to learn Dutch :). It was hard during lockdown as there was not much 'access' to practice, and when I am driven more by amusement (wanting to learn) than access (needing to learn) then I am more motivated... I'm a big fan of Scott Young too, I get his blogs, but maybe I should check out Ultralearning...

Guus van Deelen

Learning & Development | Published Author | Speaker | Talent Management | Change | HR | Consultant

2 年

Nice way to kick off the conversation Ger! This helps me to structure my idea as well. Five days old...0 comments! Come on, guys! I want to add that learning doesn't happen solely for personal reasons in organizations. Learning may need to take place to tackle a performance issue or accelerate an organizational change. On top of that, you want to encourage team and even organizational learning. And to make it more complex, a lot of learning happens unconsciously (implicitly) without recognizing it and acknowledging it.?? Putting all these variables into the blender...how does this fit into this explanation? Sorry, I know, I'm not bringing the solution, only the problem. Can maybe others build on these ideas?

要查看或添加评论,请登录

Ger Driesen的更多文章

  • WISH I WAS METHOD MAN

    WISH I WAS METHOD MAN

    Not that I ever aimed for a career as rapper, director, actor or Kung Fu Master (although Kung Fu Master would have…

    6 条评论
  • Hoe Karin de Galan en Peter Baggen de 'wet van het theezakje' vermorzelen.

    Hoe Karin de Galan en Peter Baggen de 'wet van het theezakje' vermorzelen.

    Hoe maken startende trainers hun training? Meestal door een aantal stukjes training die zijzelf ooit hebben gevolgd aan…

    1 条评论
  • New Year’s resolutions and the Four Forces

    New Year’s resolutions and the Four Forces

    New Year’s resolutions are a bit like babies: easy to concieve but hard to deliver. The mental decision to do something…

    2 条评论
  • Book Review: The Trusted Learning Advisor

    Book Review: The Trusted Learning Advisor

    By Dr. Keith Keating In the field of Learning and Development (L&D) most books are about learning design.

    20 条评论
  • The 9th Habit

    The 9th Habit

    Sometimes I'm curious what departed thought leaders would have offered us more if they had to lived longer. An exciting…

  • Prompt Engineering for Human Intelligence (HI)

    Prompt Engineering for Human Intelligence (HI)

    Fascinated by AI, particularly Chat-GPT, I recently delved into the world of prompt engineering. After completing…

    10 条评论
  • #BANI is the new #VUCA

    #BANI is the new #VUCA

    Did you ever hear about ‘the BANI world’? Don’t ask ChatGPT because it has nothing to tell us about #bani nor the…

  • Wellness warning from a stroke survivor: there are no 'normal' days at work anymore

    Wellness warning from a stroke survivor: there are no 'normal' days at work anymore

    In September 2020 I ended up in a hospital with a significant stroke. I stayed in different hospitals for almost half a…

    5 条评论
  • The JTBD 4 Forces Diagram for Transfer and Behavior Change

    The JTBD 4 Forces Diagram for Transfer and Behavior Change

    Learning Transfer and related behavior change are ‘Golden Oldie’ topics in Learning & Development. In fact I did one of…

    10 条评论
  • Onboarding: the 7x7 approach

    Onboarding: the 7x7 approach

    I was at a conference in India in 2013 when this approach was presented. I’m sorry that I can’t remember the name of…

    11 条评论

社区洞察

其他会员也浏览了