There is a mythology ( not necessarily false - after all Troy did exist )
as old as civilization. The key is "in the world but not of it" . Leaders
had to abstract themselves from social conventions and seek a "higher
reality" or profound knowledge of whole systems, while "pretending" to
maintain customs of the people. Higher education ( see steps on
http://metro.turnpike.net/~pflaump visions.htm ) was a orderly process of
taking a look outside the cave of shadows - beyond ego-self to something
called "essence", the good, the true and the beautiful - now called
Quality. Not something hung on the tree like tinsel, but growing from the
roots - in its very being.
The educational model until the last few years was - University people did
research, 10 years later it is in the College textbooks and 20 to 40 years
for new information to be "common knowledge" in school textbooks. The
professors of subject matter - to teachers in schools was a long slow
process. The Goals for 2000 silly statement about being first in math and
science - was so silly because of this slow technology transfer process.
Now with the "information" revolution knowledge comes from all kinds of
places, even people without "degrees" and moves with the speed of light.
Institutional systems can not cope with this.. When I was at HGSE 30 years
ago (1965) we talked about "learning systems", open programs for
pre-school to death.. The plan for vouchers ( first in technical and
occupational programs ) then in some public school systems, then in
college and university training may restructure the market for fast,
smart, on-line ( private and non-profit ) learning systems. Remember more
than 25% of educational money is all ready private - the biggest school
system is the military, the next industrial ( in house training ) and
100,000 of trade schools.
John Dewey wrote in 1905 that "if we lived in a stable world, then the
traditional methods, would be OK, but we don't, so we need a strong
connection between learning and doing", The top down factory model - we do
the thinking and you do the doing - workers and students were not expected
to think but follow orders. Deming was the practical application of
learning organizations, really understand what we are doing and how to do
it better.
When Winnie the poo and Rabbit are helping Eeyore out of the river -
Eeyore says " give rabbit time and he will figure it out ". People have
survived ( so far ) in small groups that solve problems ( like wolves in
hunting pack ). Organizational learning, has roots in Industrial dynamics
and general systems (ecological roots) where there are counter-intuitive
interactions. Understanding of complex systems is "profound" because the
cultural assumptions don't work. People confuse the map ( mental
structures ) with the territory ( what is really going on ). The
brain/body works by filling in - making assumptions and jumping to
conclusions. ( Those that thought too deeply were eaten ). In times of
danger and in tennis there is no time to think ..so we reach biological
limits on speed and change..
Therefore, there maybe no "quick" fix or any fix at all.. only
approximations moving in a positive direction. There are no ends only
means. Give rabbit enough time and he will figure it out.
--"Peter Pflaum" <pflaump@msn.com>
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>