Is Learning Observable?

The question of if learning is observable is one which interests me quite a bit due to a reading I just completed in another class of mine. An article written by Gert Biesta entitled “Mind The Gap!” Communication and the Educational Relation found in the book No Education Without Relation addresses notions of how exactly education and learning takes place. Biesta says that learning takes place in a gap between the student and the teacher in their communication with one another. Biesta notes that this gap, and subsequent event of learning is indefinable, as the act of learning is a transformation of understanding from what a teacher says, to what the student comprehends. Possibly as a result of my just finishing this reading, I feel like I completely and utterly agree with this theory or learning. Thus, it would lead me to answer this week’s topic question by saying that learning is not observable, but perhaps the results of learning are.

The act of learning is something which is individual, and each student pulls different understanding and meaning from lessons. While a student may have not understood in the exact way that a teacher intended, the student should not be classified as not learning anything. Due to different backgrounds and experiences in a students life, their relation to teachers and subjects creates multi-faceted understandings of singular ideas. I think that transformation of understanding is something that cannot be observed. What can be observed however is the result of these transformations.

Even though a student may gain a different understanding of a topic, the results of this is what is interesting and important. While a teacher may see a students lack of understanding of exactly what they wanted to communicate as frustrating, a interdisciplinary classroom would encourage and thrive on these sorts of transformations. (Yes, once again my preference for interdisiciplinarity arises). By creating an inclusive classroom setting, which offers any different ways of teaching, I feel that the worry to reach such strict learning goals will become more relaxed while still accomplishing what is needed to my learned. Not to mention that this sort of environment would most surely aid in the eradication of extrovert and introvert personalities, as everyone would be able to communicate and work within settings and modes of thought/communication, that they are comfortable with.

In thinking about how the results of learning can be observed, my rudimentary thoughts are things like looking at student engagement, their body language, vocalization in class, and work ethics of students. I find that often if a student is idle within the classroom, it is because they are either not paying attention, but more prevalently, that they are still mulling over and trying to comprehend what they are being taught. If a student is doing any of these things, I feel as if there is some thought process going on, that result in some sort of transformation of information. While it is hard to track in progress, after a lesson has been communicated and released into “the gap,” all be can do as educators is wait for the result that comes out the other side by our students.