Panel
Discussion in Melbourne
Terrence R. Redding, Ph.D.
Terry is passionate about notions associated with self-directed
learning. Since 1989 he has been involved in research
projects associated with the development of high self-directed
learning readiness. Of great significance is the finding that
children between ages 8 and 15, who become high self-directed
learners, typically share a common childhood experience. Redding
has labeled this experience "the first moment of lasting
excitement." High self-directed learners who share this common
experience can remember some event that has captured their imagination
for life. Typically these individuals find their life long learning
endeavors in some way tied to this "first moment of lasting
excitement." He held his first insurance license in 1974
and was again licensed 1989 through 1992 as part of his responsibilities
at the Oklahoma Research Center for Continuing Professional and
Higher Education. More recently Terry has been the Director of
Corporate Training and Corporate Computer Training at Palm Beach
Atlantic College. He is the author of numerous refereed chapters
dealing with adult learning theory. He is the
First Moment of Lasting Excitement:
Fostering High Self-Directed Learners in the Information Age
A National Imperative
Greeting from West Palm Beach, Florida. It is my pleasure to
participate in the panel discussion with John Hibbs of the Benjamin
Franklin Institute of Global Education, at the WebCT conference
in Melbourne, Australia. My name is Terry Redding, I am the founder
of OnLine Training, and I have been designing and teaching adult
education courses since 1972.
I am also a past W. K. Kellogg Fellow and have a doctoral degree
in Adult and Higher Education, a Master's degree in the Psychology
of Education and a Bachelor of Science degree in Education, with
honors.
For the past thirteen years I have been involved in an on going
series of research projects associated with the development of
high self-directed learning readiness. Of great significance is
the finding that children between ages 8 and 15, who become high
self-directed learners, typically share a common childhood experience.
I have labeled this experience "the first moment of lasting
excitement." High self-directed learners who share this common
experience can remember some event that has captured their imagination
for life. Typically these individuals find their life long learning
endeavors in some way tied to this "first moment of lasting
excitement."
Today the more common term for High Self-Directed Learners
is Lifelong learners. Fostering their development is becoming
more and more important as we move further into the Information
Age.
In fact it is my contention that fostering the development
of high self-directed learners should be viewed as a national
imperative. Those nations that lack high self-directed learners
may well find themselves falling farther and farther behind as
the world responds to the explosion of knowledge, which is a characteristic
of the information age.
I have provided a few links on the voice-alert page, which
may be used during the remainder of these pre-recorded remarks.
If you will select the first link it will take you to a slide
that addresses the magnitude of the issue facing education today.
http://www.olt.net/gld/whyHSDL.html
Today, in the Information Age, knowledge is exploding. Change,
especially the pace of change is increasing. Many people around
the world cannot adequately cope with change and they are suffering
from "Future Shock."
Toffer provides a framework for understanding what is happening.
During the Agricultural Age, 10,000 years in length, man acquired
just 5 percent of the knowledge we have today. During the Industrial
Age, 400 years in length, five times more knowledge was acquired.
However, in the last 50 years, at the beginning of the Information
Age, knowledge has exploded. Most of what man knows was learned
in the last 50 of our 10,000-year history.
Dramatically, half of all the people who ever lived are alive
today. Of all those people, only a small number are truly capable
of coping with today's rapid pace of change. Even fewer, are able
to manage change.
Those who are capable of managing change are known variously
as High Self-Directed Learners, "Third Wave" people
and as lifelong learners.
Those nations who possess the most effective number of High
Self-Directed Learners may well emerge as the leading nations
of the Information age.
High Self-Directed Learners share a common experience in their
youth. They all seem to have experienced a "first moment
of lasting excitement." If you ask a lifelong learner; who
is interested in chemistry, or biology, physics, baseball, electronics
- or any particular discipline - they will be able to tell when
they first became interested in their subject. For most it will
be a single experience that continues to fuel their desire to
learn. As it has for a lifetime.
Note that this slide depicts the three waves of human endeavor
that Toffler breaks into the Agricultural Age, the Industrial
Age, and the Information Age. Toffler indicates that very different
kinds of people succeed during each of these three periods. The
First Wave people focused on the various aspects of agriculture.
Their creation of science dealt with the growing seasons, the
distribution of water, the building of communities and they established
trade routes. Over an extended period of some 10,000 years various
groups in the Middle East, Mediterranean basin, Asia, and Africa
flourished and emerged as world leaders and the distributors of
knowledge. Over an extended period of time these First Wave people
established time tested traditions and customs that served them
well.
During the Industrial Age, new nations in Europe, Asia, and
the America's emerged on the world scene and became dominated.
Over a period of 400 years critical and independent thinking emerged
to challenge the traditions of the agricultural world. The transition
to the Industrial age is not complete in all parts of the world,
and who dominates world trade is in flux as the power of commerce,
manufacturing and information collide. The Industrial Age has
been dominated by a second wave of people who valued self-reliance,
innovation, and tradition.
We are now entering the third age, which Toffler has labeled
the Information Age. Knowledge is exploding. New paradigms of
understanding are emerging - and First and Second Wave people
are overwhelmed. They are experiencing what Toffler calls "Future
Shock." The future has arrived so quickly that they are in
shock.
Toffler describes the Third Wave people as individuals capable
of taking in huge amounts of information in bleeps, and blips,
absorbing the information on the fly and building new paradigms
of understanding as they digest the new information. Unlike First
and Second Wave people, who are resistant to change and who feel
threatened by change, Third Wave people see change as an opportunity
to do something different and better. They welcome change, thrive
on it, and manage it.
Educational researchers have elsewhere described Third Wave
People as High Self-Directed Learners.
You may now click on the link below to return to the voice
alert page.
Short audio version http://users.voice-alert.com/gld6/6034.html
Long audio version http://users.voice-alert.com/gld6/6031.html
Two additional links are provided on the voice-alert page.
The second is a link to a paper I published in 1999 titled
HIGH SELF-DIRECTED LEARNING: A NATIONAL IMPERATIVE IN THE INFORMATION
AGE?
http://www.olt.net/2sdl99draft.HTML
The third link is to a canned presentation that demonstrates
the multiple modality (audio, visual visual, rhythm, rhetoric)
of Internet based presentations while discussing the importance
of high self-directed learning.
http://www.bfranklin.edu/GLD2/1stmoment.html
Thank you for your time. I look forward to participating in
the panel.
Career Highlights
1997 - Founder OnLine Training, Inc. (olt.net)
1989 - 1992 W.K. Kellogg Fellow
1985 - Founder Panama Canal Astronomical Society
Topic: First Moment of Lasting Excitement:
Fostering High Self-Directed Learning in the Information Age
Presentation Links:
www.olt.net/gld/whyHSDL.html
www.olt.net/2sdl99draft.HTML
www.bfranklin.edu/GLD2/1stmoment.html