The Way We Learn

I was in a first grade class the other day. Children were asked to read independently. Some chose to pick up a book. Others chose to open an app on their iPad. Two individuals, a boy and a girl, walked up to the teacher independently at different times and asked if they could use Brainpop. My first reaction as an observer was that watching videos isn't reading. And, it isn't. However, the experience stuck with me. I've dwelled on it for the last 15 or so hours. Maybe there is more to this.

I have two children. One is a vociferous reader. Hand him a book and two hours later he is done with it. He is constantly reading text, whether in print, on the screen, or on the back of a cereal box. He tends to prefer stories, often towards leaning towards technology such as science fiction. At times he enjoys humorous fantasy or comic strips. My other child is a utilitarian reader. He reads because he has to or because he wants a specific piece of information. He is my non-fiction child. His reading is often how to do something or how something works.

When I needed to figure out how to add freon to my wife's minivan, I read the directions and that only got me so far. When I clicked over to youtube and watched some homemade videos, instantly I understood. I even had the video replay as I did it.

For both of them, and many of their friends, they learn more often through video. My utilitarian learner is constantly watching how to videos. He wants to know why something works or how he can modify something into something else. His video stream reminds me of the scenes from A-Team or MacGuyver, when they build something to solve the problem. However, instead of the montage, he is taking in the step by step analysis of how to do it. My vociferous reader seeks out videos that are either how to get through a video game level, political humor, or SpongeBob.

While we would project my vociferous reader as the one most likely to learn more because he reads more, I think my utilitarian reader is working to learn more often. In our heads, because we grew up in a text-driven society, access to print opened and closed doors. However, if a picture is worth a thousand words, how much value is there in a video? My utilitarian learner has skills at age 9 that I could only dream of. He is the curious one, wondering deeply about how the world works.

I am not sure which child will be better off. I hope for the best for both of them. Either way, I think the way we learn maybe changing. Text may not be the gatekeeper to knowledge anymore. Like those first graders, perhaps some of the time we may access learning more efficiently by clicking the video and checking out Brainpop.

Learning to Dance