Redefining Learning: The Journey to Understanding

written by Carolyn Sloan

At TeachMe TV®, we're on a mission to redefine learning. Learning is not simply about acquiring facts or rote execution of skills. It's about the making of understanding. True learning occurs when students connect ideas across various domains, apply knowledge to real-world situations, and interpret experiences through curiosity and purpose.

The Challenge of Real Learning

This quest for understanding is not easy. It is not always straightforward or measurable.

Teaching a child to add is essential. Memorizing multiplication tables has its value. However, these are just foundational skills. Without application, they become disconnected. Without purpose, they fade away. If a student can calculate but cannot determine how much paint to buy for a mural, we’ve missed the mark. If a child excels in tests but feels adrift outside of school, we have misunderstood the true purpose of education.

“The most important attitude that can be formed is that of desire to go on learning.” — John Dewey

Exploration follows curiosity. How are we encouraging our students to be curious?

The Roots of Real Learning

So, where does genuine learning come from?

We believe it emerges through experience. It is revealed through discovery. It is strengthened through comparison, failure, and observation.

Decades ago, I noted that learning requires becoming a warrior, a scientist, a detective, and a spiritual master. This does not merely reflect philosophical ideas; it aligns with what neuroscience and education research demonstrate about how our brains learn.

According to Bransford et al. in How People Learn (National Research Council, 2000), effective learning involves organizing knowledge around core concepts. Additionally, it enables the learner to actively construct understanding through inquiry and feedback.

Empowering Students through Metacognition

Research from Stanford and the OECD reveals a crucial insight. Students who are taught metacognition—reflecting on their thinking, challenging assumptions, and regulating their learning—tend to outperform their peers in both academic achievement and long-term problem-solving (OECD, 2019).

We must move beyond merely teaching for tests. Instead, we must teach for the moment—and for the future. Learning goes beyond finding the right answer; it’s also about understanding why that answer matters.

Creating Lasting Change

This is the change we are striving for. But how can we achieve it?

We implement tools and practices that emphasize the following principles:

• Student Agency: Allowing learners to ask questions, make choices, and explore topics that matter to them.

• Teacher Empowerment: Providing educators with meaningful tools, rather than just more tasks to carry out.

• Inquiry-Based Pedagogy: Instead of simply handing out worksheets, we first ask, “What do you notice? What do you wonder?”

• Technology that Supports Curiosity: Utilizing AI and interactive tools not to replace human insight but to enhance it.

• Assessment for Learning: Transitioning from grading based solely on what is easy to measure to appreciating how a student thinks, reasons, and revises.

  
  

The Essential Nature of Wonder

Encouraging students to wonder, question, and make meaning is not just idealistic—it is essential. The world they will enter demands creativity, flexibility, and purpose.

At TeachMe TV®, we believe that students are ready to embrace this approach. The real question is: Are we ready to support them?

🔗 References

• Bransford, J.D., Brown, A.L., & Cocking, R.R. (2000). How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School. National Academies Press.

• OECD (2019). Metacognition: The underestimated secret to academic success. Retrieved from OECD Education & Skills.

• Dewey, J. (1938). Experience and Education.

  
  

Learning as discovery.