CREATED Learning Space: Explore, Exposure and Experience

Dear all

Welcome to the second blog of the series. In last blog, we shared 'What is CREATED Learning Space' and what is it's purpose. We also talked about our blended learning methodology of 'Explore, Exposure and Experience'. As promised in the earlier blog, we wanted to share this methodology in detail.

Let us first try to understand three distinct dimensions of one's learning. As in, how learning happens in any human being from the perspective of  development. 

The very first dimension is 'Explore'. In this particular dimension, the child or any adult tries to explore the surrounding, what is there for him to learn, understand and grasp through his sensory systems. As an infant, he will observe, taste, smell, touch and hear. As he grows up, he will utilize these sensory means to read, observe others practicing or doing. He would want to mimic and repeat what his sibling, parents, his peers and his teachers are doing. He will continue to explore (read, watch, observe and understand) some novel things through books, movies, encyclopedias, articles, audio-visual documentaries and also through classroom learning. This is a first step, wherein one grasps or tries to grasp the concepts theoretically or as a hypothesis without questioning much. The best part of this dimension is- when we as a parent or facilitators allow the child to explore and just be there to facilitate this process to be able to let him explore the unexplored. This will enable the next two dimensions to happen automatically and wonderfully. 

The second dimension is 'Exposure', which is as important and as necessary as that of the first one. In this dimension, the child or any human being, would want to do, learn and practice what he has explored in the earlier stage. He wants to understand it through doing. He will keep on co-relating what he has seen/read (in explore stage) to what is required to be done (in this stage). He may re-read, re-observe to make sure he has understood it correct and thereby, he explores it further as he continues to DO. In this stage as well, as a parent or a facilitator, we need to be just there to allow the child to do and facilitate this process to happen. Without him doing or practicing what he has explored, he will not be able go the third dimension of experiencing it beyond just exposure. 

The third dimension is something that is mostly not given an importance in our current education system. It is all about 'Experience'. The child does go through a limited doing or practicing in the earlier stage and proceeds to learn something new before he masters or develops this particular learning as a skill, forget about creating something wonderful out of this learning. In this stage, one needs to re-do, re-practice, repeat the task, challenge self and develop this as a SKILL that enables him to CREATE. How many of us are confident enough that whatever we have studied in our schooling or our graduation is what we are skilled in? It can very well be applied to our professional tasks or our daily chores like cooking, driving or for that matter parenting 😊. In this stage as well, as a parent or a facilitator, we need to be just there to allow the child to gain or master the skill and facilitate this process to happen.

All of this needs curiosity and perseverance, which all children have. It is a matter of how we facilitate this as a process.

Then only this learning methodology would be a 'Self Directed Learning' in it's true nature.

Well, the old saying is-  I hear and I forget | I see and I remember | I do and I understand.

What we believe in- I hear and I forget | I see and I remember | I do and I understand | I repeat and I master it.

More on Developing skill, competence in our workshops 😊

Below are some of our observations with regard to these stages/dimensions of child's learning process. As shared in our first blog, the following video is of my child exploring what Hanoi tower puzzle is all about. In this example, he is exploring beyond solving this just as a puzzle. The child is exploring patterning, rhytheming (I even do not know if rhytheming is a proper dictionary word 😊)

As he continued to explore this almost for a couple of days by seeing and reading, he wanted to get an exposure by doing and practicing this further all by himself. He kept working on this process for another couple of days by the time he learned to solve this puzzle all by himself ONLY and ONLY by practicing. He was now able to solve two of the Hanoi tower puzzles simultaneously with two hands. Following is the video, wherein we can see him practicing it further. ** The speed of the original video is jumped up for a purpose. The actual speed of the task is 3 times less than this. 

Two more days gone, he continued to do, re-do, re-do, repeat, repeat and re-practice this further. He kept giving him an experience and challenges by doing a lot of variations in speed, position of two towers, the direction of solving two puzzles and one point came, when he practiced it blindfolded. By this time, he was able to solve two of the Hanoi tower puzzles simultaneously with two hands and blindfolded with variations in solving. He got a skill, mastery over this puzzle (as I said earlier, this is not just a puzzle but a mathematical formulation and computer programing as well). It is his CREATIVITY 😊

** The speed of the original video is jumped up for a purpose. The actual speed of the task is 3 times less than this.

Our methodolgy summarized: