Teachers should continually learn, unlearn, and relearn

I have realized learning is a responsibility we should take seriously. As an educator currently pursuing my doctorate degree, this realization hit me hard after my little niece asked me if going to school was important when she can learn everything (faster and better) from Google. In defense, I told her social skills and interpersonal relations are not taught online. She nodded, but I am sure she was not convinced with my indirect response.

This belief stems from having worked as a teacher for over a decade, and the personal struggle to improve and innovate. I even cloak my excuses creatively, from not having enough time to improve my craft due to family responsibilities, unbearable teaching conditions, and zero support from administrators. Educational psychology calls this condition as high external locus of control, a general belief that one's successes and failures are results of external factors we cannot control.

But I know there is a solution to this, I just don't want to put forth extra effort. After that exchange with my niece, and in an effort to understand my behavior and that of my fellow educators, I examined the basic tenets of pedagogy, and that is learning. This word, although its essence remains the same, has progressed into a more complex concept.

They say learning is constantly evolving like the world we live in. Actually, to say we live in a changing world understates the speed of both the pace and the scope of change. In fact, the top 10 most in-demand jobs today didn't even exist 10 years ago.

Hence, we should continue to be updated on the latest and relevant trends in education and accept it as a responsibility. We are not here to "chill" like the kids we are teaching. This is paid work -a job that requires dedication and passion to remain effective and significant. So embrace learning as a way of life. Sources of information spring anywhere, from taking classes, to random chats with colleagues about their best practices, and even from your students. These are all opportunities for us to experience the proverbial 'aha' moments.

This brings me to the next concept of learning, unlearning. These two are entangled, just like stripping paint from an old house. The painter who prepares the surface knows that stripping the paint is around 70% of the work while repainting is roughly 30% only. Unlearning is like this, letting go rather than acquiring. It lays the foundation for the new layer of fresh learning to be acquired. Educators should try new things, to never be afraid to experiment, to test the traditional methods and even mix it up with more recent advances in the field.

Then comes relearning; it can be more accurately described as refocused learning. If the focus, assumptions, and methods remain the same, won't we learn the same lessons? How can we "relearn" something we believe we already know? When the circumstances and challenges have changed drastically, how useful will these old ways be?

It is an uphill battle but I now consciously make an effort to learn, unlearn, and relearn for the sake of my students. The initial challenge is that our egos hate being torn down. But will you choose pride over being relevant in this day and age? As futurist Alvin Toffler puts it, "The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn." And I refuse to be an illiterate educator.

I don't claim to be a sage here. I am just like any other educator in the world. I just happened to convert a simple conversation with my niece into my personal "aha" moment.