Flexibility leads to engagement?
We are all learners, learning all the time. Small things, big things, rolling a chapati, adding posts to a blog, figuring out how to assemble a new piece of furniture, we are all lifelong learning. But when we think of going back to school, it is often a big decision, as that calls for a bigger commitment to learning, a commitment that probably we all are scared of, owing to our busy lives. Obviously, we are all grown up now and drowned in responsibilities and to add on that learning in a committed manner- it can be a burden for sure.
Commitment to learning at an adult age is most of the times a product of extrinsic factors like promotion, certification requirements and money.
Educators teaching such a pack of students whose eyes are fixed on the wall paper to be offered after the completion of the certification face a common challenge, the challenge of engaging the students into the learning process, the challenge of making them fall in love with learning. Well that would obviously be impossible to do, considering the fact that no one can make you fall in love!! :)
As adults, we are so used to prioritizing our daily activities. When my son comes to me and wants to learn a new concept, I figure out quickly in my mind, my schedule, and my things to do and jumble them, reorganize them to accommodate his small need. If I am that busy and almost daily, it is obvious that when I take out time to be a learner in a formal classroom environment, I will have a lot of stuff rolled back in a corner of my mind, stuff I had to push back to accommodate my commitment for learning. And I guess this would be the case scenario even when I am taking out time to learn concepts for a subject that is close to me.
The simplicity of these complex e-learning environments seems like an answer to me. They offer the choice to the adult learner to study, read and participate at any time, at any place, without feeling the burden of creating a special slot for their learning needs.
I could have never imagined the power of online education, had I not witnessed it for myself. I always thought that the depersonalized e-learning environment could be engaging and could never replace the real-time learning experience.
But after just a few days of being a participant to an e-learning environment, changed my mind. The flexibility it offers have an amazing capacity. It gives me the power to choose when I want to learn. I sometimes pick up my iPad to read while on the sky train, sometimes after my kid has gone to bed, sometimes when I take my kid to the park to play. It is so flexible. And I love the format.
