Learners Give Advice About Learning





This is a Stub for a Work in Progress.

The expectation is that that the idea for this page will take hold, so that lots of people contribute and still more people read and think about the ideas.

Introduction and Overview
The local newspaper in my town has a 20 Below section that is written by students who are 20 years old or younger. They give their insights into various issues, writing in a manner to represent their personal view and perhaps the views of others their age.

I regularly go to lunch with some "old fogies" who are retired professors. In these lunch "meetings" we often share our opinions on education.

After thinking about the 20 Below, it occurred to me that the newspaper should also have a 65 Above section.

That thinking led to the creation of this Wiki page. I want to see IAE-related educational insights from various age groups of learners. To get us started, I have divided this page into three main age group sections, as indicated in the TOC.

The basic question that I want to see addressed by contributors is: What do you think we should be doing in informal and formal educational systems to significantly improve education. Please write in a manner that represents your personal point of view and your age group's point of view.

Young Learners
Roughly, think of this as age 18 and below. The goal is to help empower this group of people.

Sullivan, Patrick (January-February 2009). An Open Letter to Ninth Graders. Academe Online. Retrieved 2/15/09: http://www.aaup.org/AAUP/pubsres/academe/2009/JF/Feat/sull.htm.

This document is written for high school students. It has about a 10th grade level of reading difficulty. Quoting from the document:


 * Dear First-Year High School Students,


 * I am one of the co-editors of What Is “College-Level” Writing?—a 2006 collection of essays that focuses on the difference between high school writing and college-level writing. Because of my work on that book, I’ve spent a great deal of time in the last five years thinking about what students need to make the transition from high school to college.


 * Many studies and reports in recent years have argued that there’s an important “expectations gap” between the skills students are typically bringing to college and what college teachers like me think students should be bringing with them to college. This letter is an attempt to state those expectations clearly, at least from my perspective.


 * I offer you my advice and encouragement as you embark on your high school career because I think there’s a lot that you can do on your own to get ready for college. A good place to start is with some advice from Stephen Covey’s book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People: “Begin with the end in mind.” I am advising you to set clear and specific long-term goals for yourself and then work incrementally over a period of time to meet them. I would like to provide you here with a number of specific goals that you can work toward over the next four years.

Medium-Aged Learners
Roughly, think of this as ages 18 to 65. The goal is to help empower this group of people.

Older Learners
Roughly, think of this as ages 65 and above. The goal is to help empower this group of people.

Thoughts from Dave Moursund
When I was much younger, I tended to think that "older" people were out of touch with the world and were slow to adopt new ideas and technologies. As I have steadily grown in age, so that now I am one of the "older" people, I am impressed by how smart and educated we older folks are.

Sure, I don't learn as fast as I used to. Sure, I forget names of people, places, and things. However, I am still quite able of learning, and I am still quite able to use my learning. Moreover, I seem to have greater wisdom and foresight than I had many years ago.

I read some of the research and other literature about the "aging mind," and I recognize that my mind and body are not as young and agile as they used to be. However, I am encouraged about how well my mind and body still work, and the research that strongly supports "use it or lose it."

My advice to my fellow oldsters is exactly that. Get yourself into situations in which you exercise your mind and body. Get yourself into situations in which you regularly use your knowledge and skills to contribute to making the world a better place.