The course we take in life is never truly sure and steady.
I started out thinking I was going to be a school psychologist, then the abnormal psychology course came along, and I knew it wasn’t for me. And by that I mean, I thought I had all of the disorders and didn’t see myself in a career where I would be diagnosing.
Graduating in 2001, the world changed on September 11th, and I was left reeling. Not because of 9/11 per se, but because I had no course before then. To blame my aimlessness on that tragedy would be cowardly of me. I moved forward and I worked as a merchandiser for Coca-Cola, busted my butt, and was left with neck and back pain and no plan for my future.
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Between the encouragement from my parents, research from my then-girlfriend, and a hat tip to my aunt who studied the field, I began to take pre-requisites to get into a graduate program for speech/language pathology.
17 years later, I am accomplished in my career and get to write about my experiences in education and as a parent. What brought me here? A true understanding of lifelong learning.
“The best thing for being sad,” replied Merlin, beginning to puff and blow, “is to learn something. That’s the only thing that never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins, you may miss your only love, you may see the world about you devastated by evil lunatics, or know your honour trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it then — to learn. Learn why the world wags and what wags it. That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of regretting. Learning is the only thing for you. Look what a lot of things there are to learn.”
― T.H. White, The Once and Future King
I could have looked at my life and said it was good enough. I could have continued on a course that wasn’t right for me. Lifelong learning, and understanding that to keep learning is the only path has brought me to my level of success.
What does this mean for our children?
My lens is always to look at how the behavior of adults, both as parents and educators shape the next generation. I am a true believer in the idea that the model parents show to their children influences their current and future behavior.
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Model lifelong learning
I grew up in a house of readers. Dinners sometimes had conversation, but there were always books. I can fondly remember nights where there were 3 or 4 books open at the table (with quiet chewing, of course).
It was never a question about reading in my house, we all did it. The model was there from my parents, and I have passed that to my children. My son and daughter love the local library, and spend many hours a week reading. I don’t have to push it, I don’t have to force it, they just do it. Reading was the model that was shown, and now my children take it for granted.
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I consistently hear from parents who ask what books their kids should read. Questions like “How do I get my son to read?” or “She doesn’t like to read, what books might interest her?” A simple answer, but one that requires work and modeling, is to make reading a part of every day. Show your child that you read, and they will read.
The world is constantly changing; lifelong learning is the best way to manage that change.
Your career might change. If your career is in education, it is guaranteed to change. Whether through a mandate from a principal or from the state, or worse the Federal government, you are going to have to change what you teach, how you teach, and how long you teach it.
The COVID pandemic has shown us that teachers need to adapt to the use of technology. Without lifelong learning, where would most educators have been? Even in non-education jobs, you must stay up to date to be able to be effective.
Once again, modeling lifelong learning behavior shows our children:
- when life brings up challenges learning is the key.
- when life changes, learning can help navigate the difference.
- when life is difficult, learning can help you get out of it.
As with anything, it is much easier to say be a model of lifelong learning than to actually do it. Life becomes more complicated as we go along, but there are simple behaviors we can bring to every day.
Read something and try to bring takeaways from it to your work or home life.
Try a new technique in your classroom.
Start a garden, or begin a hobby.
Challenge yourself with a new exercise or take an online class to grow in a new way.
My story could be like yours, or you could have know what you wanted to do from the day you entered school. It’s more likely that you have had to change and shift with the world as it moves along. With each change, you have had to bring new skills or ideas into your mind and into your actions. Lifelong learning is a part of any of this change. Embrace it and make it a part of every day.
