Innovative Ways of Learning

When I read about TIM ( Torrance Incubation Model) I was pleasantly surprised by what it entailed. The three steps that are part of TIM, Heighten Anticipation, Extend Learning, and Deeper Exploration, I find to be a great tools in the entire learning process. Not only can they be used for schooling, but in the workplace environment it would a worthwhile way of keeping employees on top of the ever changing world that we live in. I like the idea of having learners do a personal reflection that also involves setting goals. I think to often, people become styfled and if they were to write down what it is they want out of their learning process, then they would be able to set realistic goals, that for the most part, they would work hard to achieve. The concept of doing pre-learning before class begins is a good idea as long as its the kind of learning that is fun. Learning from others would be beneficial to the entire process, because have different viewpoints helps students to see things from a totally different perspective. To collaborate with others in an online environment is beneficial to keeping the dialogue moving forward. Extending the learning process through videoconference as well as with materials that can be downloaded is also a great way to keep a person on top of what is new and it would also help them to continue the collaborativ effort that they had started from the beginning. I wish that public school districts would incorporate this type of learning, instead of the boring lecture environment that seems to be everywhere. Sorry to say, for me, I can't sit in a classroom and listen to someone preach at me. My attention span is very limited and at least if I was given the opportunity to learn in a different way, I think that I would become more engaged in the process. School is not fun if kids are stuck sitting in a classroom for hours on end having to memorize a multitude of information, only to have to take a test which in essence, is testing our memory, more so than any knowledge that we hope to retain. Because, lets face facts, if something is boring, how many of us will store that information? I don't think that number will be too high. Learning needs to be fun, and it shouldn't be about testing our memory. Testing I feel should not be used as a gauge for one's intelligence, because not everyone learns the same. Each individual student has their own unique way of learning and I think that an environment that incorporates tools like those found in TIM, would be beneficial to so many students, specifically learning impaired students. I am a big believer that schools have a tendency to overlook the learning impaired students, who are extremely creative, and therefore would benefit from a more interactive learning environment. Lectures don't work for learning impaired students, I can attest to that. My memory is not good and having to be tested on what I remember, is pointless. I would much rather allow my creativity to emerge and this would allow me to grow my knowledge in a way that I would not be able to if I was just lectured at. School systems it seems have not changed with the advent of all this new technology. They are still stuck in a time warp and if they looked at educating children in todays world, they would see that what they are doing is not completely beneficial the learning process. Standardized tests have in my opinion are not a way to gauge a child's knowledge. They don't allow for creativity and they create more fear and aniexty amongst kids, especially those who are learning impaired.