Learning Is a Matter of Principle: Part I - Brief Article

Information Outlook, April, 2000

SLA's Strategic Learning and Development Center (SLDC) is committed to helping information professionals become distinctive and indispensable contributors to their organizations through learning. We are confident that we can advance toward this ambitious goal by involving you in rich, meaningful learning experiences, based on core principles of learning. Throughout the year 2000, this column will examine these core principles, and we invite you to participate in the conversation by sending your thoughts to learning@sla.org.

This month, we explore the belief that learning is a primary and critical activity of human existence. Many people think that learning is something we do only from time to time, perhaps when our boss asks us to attend a training session or when we go to an off-site conference. We participate in that course or workshop, maybe we pick up a few worthwhile ideas, and then we go back to the normal activities of our lives. Such experiences generally do not have any lasting impact, and when they are completed we return learning to its appropriate mental compartment, a compartment to be reopened only on the next occasion when we need to "learn" something.

In contrast to this rather limited perspective, we believe that the capacity to learn is an extraordinary gift, and a vital part of being human. (Indeed, I feel that the only greater gift granted to human beings is the capacity to give and receive love.) Learning is as essential to us each day of our lives as breathing, eating, and the beating of our hearts. We are learning all the time, whether we are aware of it or not. We are constantly perceiving the world around us, collecting data, making observations, and experiencing both new and familiar sensations. While most of this routine learning does not create lasting change, it does provide the necessary and invaluable raw materials with which we generate new understandings, creative ideas and compelling insights. In short, "learner" is not a role that we play, but rather it is something that we are.

How does this first principle of learning relate to the mission of SLA's Strategic Learning and Development Center? Well, we believe that when you actively participate in any learning experience, the experience should not only build your understanding of key ideas and concepts, but also strengthen your relationship to learning itself. We want to help you locate and nurture your genuine commitment to learning, because it is this commitment that imbues learning with its resonance, meaning, and impact.

You've heard from us, and now we would like to hear from you. Do you believe that learning is a primary and critical activity of human existence? Why or why not? Send your thoughts and reactions to learning@sla.org. In the coming months, we will post the most intriguing and provocative comments to our web site at www.slalearning.org. We look forward to learning with you!

What's Hot in the SLDC?

Don't forget that May 1 is the deadline for discounted CE course tuition for the 2000 Annual Conference in Philadelphia. CE courses will be held on Saturday-Sunday, June 10-11 and Thursday, June 15, 2000. More than thirty-five high-quality courses will be offered, so don't miss out on these outstanding learning opportunities! (A complete listing of CE courses is available on our web site at www.sla-learning.org.)

On April 27, the SLDC will present its spring video conference, titled "Exploring the Possibilities of Information Portals" featuring Howard McQueen and Jean DeMatteo of McQueen Consulting. The video conference, sponsored by Factiva, will help you better understand what information portal is and how portals can become important information management tools for your organization.