Fundamentals of Effective Education
Education Industry Association, San Francisco July 2011
James Clawson
Darden School of Business
University of Virginia
Levels of Human Activity
HABITUAL?
1.
2.
3.
VISIBLE BEHAVIOR
Conscious Thought
VABEs
(Values, Assumptions, Beliefs, and Expectations about the
way the world is or should be)
© James G. Clawson
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Aristotle
We are what we
repeatedly do.
Excellence then, is not
an act,
but a habit.
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“GENIUS
is the art
of
non-habitual
thought.”
William James
© JGSC/L3L llc
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The Human Brain …
•
•
•
•
•
Is growing at birth at the rate of 250,000 cells/min.
Has an adult complement of some 100 billion cells.
Has neurons that can make about 10,000 connections.
… or One Quadrillion synapses.
Contains the pathways we use develop and mature. The
pathways we don’t use atrophy and wither away.  speech,
handedness etc.
• Houses, over time, the physiological circuits/preferences in
the way we think, speak, behave, and even emote.
Developed by James G. Clawson
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The Formative Years …
?
TRANSCENDER?
K, L, A
?
MEMEs
VABEs
GENEs
GENES
ADD
ADHD
BPD
OCD
Key Questions
Etc.
1. When I’m cold…
2. When I’m hungry…
3. When I’m wet…
4. When I’m alone and afraid…
Generation to
Generation
Two key legacies
Newborn
Choice Theory (Glasser)
1. IKWRFY
2. IHARTTYWRFY
3. IHARTPYIYDDWRFY
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Learning Theory
(Pedagogy and Andragogy)
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Kolb’s Learning Cycle
CONCRETE
EXPERIENCE
ACTIVE
EXPERIMENTATION
REFLECTIVE
OBSERVATION
ABSTRACT
CONCEPTUALIZATION
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Kolb’s Learning ‘Styles’
CE
ACCOMMODATORS
DIVERGERS
AE
RO
CONVERGERS
ASSIMILATORS
AC
Scores computed by AE-RO and AC-CE
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Kolb’s Learning Styles
CE
ACCOMMODATORS
DIVERGERS
AE
RO
CONVERGERS
ASSIMILATORS
AC
Scores computed by AE-RO and AC-CE
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Kolb’s Learning Styles
CE
ACCOMMODATORS
DIVERGERS
AE
RO
CONVERGERS
ASSIMILATORS
AC
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Kolb’s Learning Styles
CE
ACCOMMODATORS
DIVERGERS
AE
RO
CONVERGERS
ASSIMILATORS
AC
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Kinds of Learning
Ken Bain
• Superficial: cocktail party facts
and trivia
• Strategic: to get the result
(grade/bonus)
• Deep: consider and refine world
view
What the Best College Professors Do, Ken Bain
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People learn best and most deeply when …
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
They try to answer questions or solve
problems they find interesting, intriguing,
important, or beautiful;
They can try, fail, receive feedback, and
try again before anyone makes a
judgment of their work;
They can work collaboratively with other
learners struggling with the same
problems;
They face repeated challenges to their
existing fundamental paradigms;
They care that their existing paradigms do
not work;
They can get support (emotional,
physical, and intellectual) when they need
it;
They feel in control of their own learning,
not manipulated;
8.
They believe that their work will be
considered fairly and honestly;
9. They believe that their work will
matter;
10. They believe that intelligence and
abilities are expandable, that if they
work hard, they will get better at it;
11. They believe other people have
faith in their ability to learn;
12. They believe that they can learn.
Source: The Research Academy for University
Learning at Montclair State University –
Montclair, New Jersey
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Kinds of “Thinking”
Knowing
Follow the rules
Understanding Follow the values behind the rules
Thinking
Learning
Solve problems using contingent
programmed solutions
Constant gathering of data and
constructive dissent to stay
current
“Unlearning the Organization,” Michael McGill, John Slocum, Organizational Dynamics,
Autumn 1993
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Kinds of “Learning”
Knowing
Learning the rules  learning to
conform
Understanding Learning the values  learning why we
conform
Thinking
Learning
Learning the links between problems
and solutions  learning how to solve
problems
Learning how to observe phenomena
and challenge tradition  learning to
“see” and to “adapt” and to “transcend”
“Unlearning the Organization,” Michael McGill, John Slocum, Organizational Dynamics,
Autumn 1993
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Fortune Cookie
If you know
what you’re
doing, you’re
not learning
anything.
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Does experience lead to wisdom?
“Most people do not
accumulate a body of
experience. Most people go
through life under-going a
series of happenings which
pass through their systems
undigested.
Happenings become experiences when they are
digested, when they are reflected on, related to
general patterns, and synthesized.”
Saul Alinsky, Rules for Radicals, quoted by Henry Mintzberg in “The Five Minds of a
Manager” HBR 11/03
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Level of Educational Focus
1. Visible Behavior?
2. Conscious Thought?
3. VABEs?
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The Number One Question in Life
Will you ever be anything
more than a vessel
transmitting the GENEs
and VABEs of previous
generations on to the
next?
When you’re no longer
a defenseless child,
will you become a
transcender?
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© James G. Clawson
One Big Problem is …
SEE
SEE
SELF
SEE
OTHERS
PUBLIC
SEE
PRIVATE
BLIND
SPOTS
© JGSC/L3L llc
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In search of high performance
Ordinary
Subpar
Polar Bears
1’s
Extraordinary
Good Enough
2’s
3’s
4’s
5’s
How do you shift this distribution?
© James G. Clawson
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Did poorly in school?
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What happens when one crosses the
divide between choice and obligation?
CHOICE
2
4
© James G. Clawson
Energy?
Productivity?
Creativity?
Innovation
Engagement?
Commitment?
Buy-In?
OBLIGATION
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The obligatory commute to school …
© James G. Clawson
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Levels of BUY-IN
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Passion (“What you ask is the #1 thing in my life.”)
Engagement (“I want to do what you ask.”)
Agreement (“I will do what you ask. Period.”)
Compliance (“Okay” but where are the loopholes?)
Apathy (“I just don’t care.”)
Passive Resistance (“Oops!”)
Active Resistance (“No way in hell.”)
© James G. Clawson
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Going to Learn
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Mood and Energy Contagion
•
•
•
•
•
Mood is infectious.
Energy is infectious.
Helpful ideas (memes/VABEs) are infectious.
Fun is infectious.
Success is infectious.
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Are teachers willing to …
• Consider that they might be part of the
problem of under-motivated students?
• Consider how their style is infecting students?
• Re-examine their VABEs about learning and
learning facilitation?
• Try new skills that fit the students?
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Strategy Map Overlay
Business
Education
• Financial Results
• Learning (what kind?)
• Customer Value Proposition
• Student Engagement
• Core Capabilities/ Value
Assets! • Core Capabilities
Chain
• HC + SC + OC
Tangible
• HC + SC + OC
become
Assets
Intangible
How
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Does how you feel
affect your performance?
• How many times have you been asked by
supervision at work how you want to feel?
• Do you KNOW how do you WANT to feel?
• The pervasive management assumption:
PWD WTHTD ROHTF
• This is a formula for mediocrity.
© James G. Clawson
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Focusing on Feel to Perform
Dave Scott
49, Six-time Ironman Hawaii Champion
“During a race, I never
wear a wristwatch, and
my bike doesn’t have a
speedometer. They’re
distractions.
All I work on is finding a rhythm that feels
strong and sticking to it.” Outside, 9/03, p. 122
© James G. Clawson
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What’s the difference between
a“job” and “work?”
“I stopped loving golf at exactly the
time I decided to turn pro.”
- Tom Weiskopf , Golf, July 2004, p. 133
People pay me a lot of money to go away
from my family, stay in cheap motels, ride on
the bus all night, and eat rubber chicken. But
when the curtain goes up and the light on
the camera goes on, THAT I do for free.
- John Molo, Grammy winning musician
© James G. Clawson
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Implications for Educators
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•
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•
•
•
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Consider all three levels of learning.
Respect the energy level of learners.
Repetition is critical to building circuitry.
Make learning fun, even the repetition.
Make learning choiceful.
Re-examine your own style (habits) and energy.
Use multiple channels to engage learning
differences.
• Make learning opportunities relevant.
• Clarify your student-value-proposition. SVP
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Education is about
managing energy,
first in yourself,
and then in those
around you.
© James Clawson
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