1.2 What do we mean by learning how to learn? This activity will help you to explore what we mean by learning how to learn. Think back to an example of study you have done in the past, or any fairly structured learning opportunity you remember. Focus on a particular ac 5.2 Thinking for yourself These are the kinds of questions you need to ask in order to read critically. As a higher-level student, you don't read simply to ‘find out facts’. It is assumed that you will think for yourself and question what you read and hear. The ‘truth’ is taken to be uncertain, so you weigh up ideas and arguments as you read about them. According to Marton and Saljo (1997, p. 49) research shows that successful students read as if they are constantly asking themselves questions of the kind: ‘ 5.1.3 Does the argument follow logically? As I was making sense of paragraph 3, I did pause to consider whether it was logically possible to say that on average richer people are happier, yet getting richer has not made us happier. Later, when I read that women in the US were less happy since their incomes had come closer to men's, it occurred to me that they would be unlikely to volunteer to revert to previous levels of inequality. This made me question what happiness really means, if it is not necessarily a state that a person woul 4.4.1 Engaging with the content For example, when I read in paragraph 3 of Layard's article that ‘41 per cent of people in the top quarter of incomes are ‘very happy’’ I asked myself: Why is ‘very happy’ in quotation marks? Is 41 per cent about what I'd expect? What is this telling me? As soon as I thought about it, I realised that ‘very happy’ could be a response that people had ticked on a questionnaire. Perhaps th 2.3 Coping with difficult parts Salim and Lewis mentioned that they found some sections of Layard's article difficult. So did I; for example, anyone without a background in economics would have difficulty grasping the arguments in paragraphs 13 and 14. So what should you do when you can't make sense of what you read? Should you search online to find out about taxation theory? For my own satisfaction I searched for a definition of ‘marginal rate of taxation’ just to get the gist of it. I also tried to write down th 1 The experience of reading The best way to develop your understanding of the reading process is to follow the principles of the Kolb learning cycle, by doing some reading and then reflecting on your experience. To this end, Activity 1 asks you to read an extract from an article by Richard Layard (2003) titled ‘The secrets of happiness’ which appeared in the New Statesman. To keep the task manageable I have reduced the article to half its original length and, for ease of reference, paragraph num Introduction Reading is easy, isn't it? On any ordinary day without even noticing, you read shop signs, newspaper headlines, TV listings, a magazine, or a chapter of a paperback. So why would a message like this one appear in an online student chat room in the early weeks of a course?
Clearly, readi References 10.2 Sources of help The internet There is a wealth of useful information on thinking on the internet. Putting key words (such as thinking skills, clear thinking, critical thinking, analysis, argument and so on) into one of the available search engines (e.g. http://www.google.com [accessed 10 October 2006]) will produce many useful links. American university websites contain some particularly interestin 9 Putting it all together We have covered a wide range of aspects of thinking, particularly those concerned with clear and critical thinking. At this stage, you may find it useful to consider how ideas like these can be put together in ways that will help you when you engage in activities such as reading, writing, speaking and listening. Here is a checklist to use when making judgements about things that you hear, see and experience. Who is speaking or writing? 8.2 Broadening perception Particular perspectives and points of view underpin speaking and writing. Being successful at many academic tasks, including balanced argument, often requires us to be conscious of and to try to break away from our usual perspectives and ways of thinking, and to attend to things we might not normally notice. The challenge is often to be more open-minded and broad in our thinking, to consider more than one point of view in the way that the caffeine article did. It can be useful to have strateg 8.1 Balanced argument In many instances, we are not just concerned with arguing a particular case or taking a particular point of view, we are interested in looking at all sides of an issue and producing a balanced argument. This can be helpful in drawing conclusions on an issue. 3.1 Thinking in a higher gear While we can all think, it is important to recognize that the thinking skills we have looked at so far are not all required or equally valued in academic work. Common to all subjects and levels is the concept of higher and lower order thinking skills. Higher order skills are considered to be more complex than lower order skills. The triangle model (Author(s): Introduction This Unit is designed to take you on a journey of understanding. You will be introduced to a variety of thinking skills and ways of extending and developing your thinking. You will begin by looking at why thinking skills are important in education, and what kinds of skills are valued. You will then move on to some practical strategies and ideas for further activities and reading. 5.7 Conclusion We hope that you have enjoyed Learning to change. The unit has asked you to explore your own learning and how it can be used for personal development and change. We hope that you have found that you have a combination of knowledge, skills and qualities that you can take forward in ways that will help you feel fulfilled in whatever you decide to do and will make your life more interesting and enjoyable. We also hope that you have begun to feel that in addition to being able to man 5.1 Introduction You have almost reached the end of Learning to change and we hope that you will continue to use learning to achieve change in your life. This section is an opportunity to reflect on what you have learned as a result of doing the unit. ‘Reflecting backwards’ is an important part of learning because it helps you to be clear about what you have learned. Looking back also enables you to hold on to what you have learned after the unit finishes. This means that you can ‘reflect 4.4.4 Specific You need to be quite clear what you are setting out to do. If you are not clear, your goal may be open to different interpretations and you may become unsure of what you intended. For example, suppose you chose a goal like ‘to get better at giving people feedback’. This could be interpreted in at least two ways: 4.2.2 Human capital theory This theory argues that the development of people as a resource (human capital) is as important in creating an internationally competitive country as the equipment to make things (industrial capital), or the money to set up new enterprises (financial capital). The need to develop the right sort of human capital can be seen to underpin many social, as well as economic, policies – education and training are prime examples of policy areas where human capital thinking is used to highlight the i 3.3.1 Why it might be useful The main similarity between using academic theory and getting feedback is that both can offer you a perspective that may be different from your own. We have already seen how additional perspectives can be valuable in rounding out the understanding that you have about yourself. One possible big advantage with academic theory is that this additional perspective can come from someone who has become recognised as an expert or authority. Drawing on theory opens up the possibility of building on th 3.2.2 What problems might you have with getting feedback? Only you can answer this. However, you might think that you will not find it easy to ask someone else to be a mentor and give you feedback about your own qualities, knowledge or skills. There may be all sorts of reasons for this. You might not feel that you know anyone that you would trust to give you feedback in a way in which you would find helpful. Acting as a feedback giver can put someone in such a powerful position that you might feel uncomfortable. You might feel that you do not know a
Activity 1
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de Bono, E. (1999) de Bono's Thinking Course. London, BBC Books
Entwistle, N. (1994) quoted in Supporting Open Learners Reader (1996) Milton Keynes, The Open University
Holmes, O. W. quoted in Robbins, A. (1991) Awaken the giant within. New York, Simon & Schuster
Rice, M. (1999) Observer Magazine, 7 November
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