Photo by Yasmin Dangor on Unsplash
Many parents are beginning to explore self-directed learning. Without an external system to keep things “on track,” with their child’s education, parents are likely to have many doubts, questions, and needs. Understanding the concept of a learning spirit, which I believe is foundational to self-directed learning, may be the missing piece. Let’s begin by reflecting on the purpose of learning. Where was this tour bus going, anyway?
Our culture’s illusions about the purpose of learning
We inherit an illusion that learning is organized by roles and specialties. A person is to select a specialty from a list of given options, and move into a role that represents patterned ways that that specialty has, in the past, created value. These specialties are expressed as subjects at school, then departments or concentrations in college, eventually preparing a person for a role at work. The role of our “academic advisors” or “career counsellors” has been to essentially help a person choose something from a list that will work out alright for them.
People who love us may encourage us to follow our passion, to find our calling. However, being encouraged to do that doesn’t change the underlying assumption. We still see ourselves as picking a specialty from a list of options (perhaps a larger list) and then inhabiting a role related to that speciality.
This is problematic because all those specialties are outside of you, invented for ephemeral worlds which are changing by the moment. They do not constitute a good starting point for learning, especially in the VUCA time we live in. This set of assumptions interferes with the rich way souls actually magnetize their own authentic learning experiences all the time.
How our learning spirit connects us with our life purpose
Learning spirits are indwelling forces that guide the individual toward the experiences that enables them to inhabit their life purpose. The learning spirit may express itself in the form of a passionately felt interest, a dream, and intuition or longing. It may be activated by complex systems in which the person is embedded, such as a family situation, a relationship, a health challenge, a challenge within the community, an ancestor, a connection with nature, or another way.
And, when engaged with devotion, this learning spirit is likely to create a path for the individual that is utterly unique. The path may draw on the treasures of a few different disciplines; it may catalyze the individual to inhabit a range of different roles; all those disciplines and roles are likely to evolve over time as the nature of the learning spirit becomes more and more manifest.
What becomes manifest, over time, and through the most intimate dialogue with the learning spirit, is a person’s mandate. Discovering one’s mandate may happen at any time in one’s life. It is the discovery of a sacred contract that you have promised to fulfill, in your own way, in this lifetime. You will know it when you feel it. It has a depth, an urgency, a sense of high stakes. It is infinitely generative and can take many concrete forms. It is called a mandate because there is no way to avoid it; it is required. It has the power to magnetize to you those allies and contexts that can support its realization. Through it, you naturally choose to hold yourself to a higher standard that you would without it.
A learning spirit unlocks the full potential that represented by the individual within her full life context in a manner that maximizes learning, growth, contribution, and creation.
How can I support my child’s relationship with her or his learning spirit?
Here is how you can support your child’s emerging relationship with her or his learning spirit:
Observe your child in detail. Write down your observations. Journal about them. See if you can understand the logic of her or his indwelling learning spirit. What sorts of experiences does it draw them to? What are they passionately driven to explore?
Celebrate people who don’t fit into neat roles and categories.
Facilitate mentorship with those who embody excellence.
Highlight the many ways an individual contributes to society. Contextualize the jobs people do into their larger social contribution
Normalize both linear/conventional and nonlinear paths for learning. Articulate the value that each offers. Explain what college is and the purposes it can fulfill, instead of presenting it as the only pathway forward.
Don’t imply that they must decide “what they want to be when they grow up” which implies that this is a simple answer that would take the form of a narrow role.
Don’t suggest that the “real world” is not where the child is. Make sure they know they are learning and contributing all the time in meaningful and impactful ways.
Normalize both formal education and informal learning that takes place through action research, entrepreneurial projects, community projects, and so on.