Learning Beyond School

My beliefs about education inspired me to pursue a career as a librarian and as a writer. I believe education should be available for all and education can happen at any time at any age and by methods both traditional and unconventional.

As it’s the start of a new school year, I’ve been considering education and the learning process and what it means to me. My family has emphasized the importance of education for as long as we have memories. One of my ancestors, who’d only had about six weeks of formal education (and learned everything else from his mother) made sure to instill an importance of education in his descendants that thrives to this day.

How do we learn? Do we ever stop learning? My hope is no. We don’t stop. I believe in gaining a formal education. My children attend public school. I graduated from high school and went onto gain a bachelor’s degree followed by a master’s degree. We are so blessed to have access to these resources. Formal schooling can provide a curriculum and a structure, as well as an environment of learning together with teachers to help students along the way. You show up, do the work, and you’ll learn some things. That doesn’t mean formal schooling is without fault or is the end all be all educational resources.

 There are so many resources beyond school to learn, grow, and advance our own education.  On and on, the availability of both professional and personal development should not hinder the ability to do it. Education and growth should be a lifelong commitment. No, don’t groan. It’s not the same when you don’t have tests or homework to turn it. It’s an adventure of your own choosing. Trying new things, watching and learning. Our development is never done. And this is amazing! Our brains aren’t frozen bubbles that get stuck one way and will burst if anything disrupts them. We have the capacity to change, to grow, to learn and engage in new activities, new dreams at any age. This is encouraging, not depressing.

So how do we learn beyond school? Homeschoolers tap into this a bit more in the early years, but anyone can slip into that spirit of learning by taking advantage of free courses, books, webinars, podcasts, videos, museums, libraries, and free universities offerings. Countless resources are available. My favorite method is through books. This doesn’t have to cost any money if you have access to a library. I’ve discovered new parenting philosophies, cooking techniques, health regimes, writing skills, habit creation, meditation tools, mindful lifestyles and more through books. I enjoy podcasts and free webinars. YouTube is one of the greatest educators of our generation. You can learn anything from how to change a tire to the intricacies of the human immune system with the sacrifice of sitting through a few adds. Additionally, universities often offer some free courses or content as well. There are of course paid programs like Skillshare and masterclass that provide access to classes on a variety of skills. I’ve never taken a course through these programs, but I’ve considered it and may do so in the future.

Now that we’ve established the plethora of educational resources available, it’s important to remember it’s okay to not be a master immediately. Proficiency requires time and practice. I’ve read many, many, many books on parenting. Does that make me a perfect parent? No. Does that mean I screw up, employing the same old ineffective tactics when I know there’s a better way? Absolutely. But I am getting better. Slowly. I’m learning to fail without shame or self-blame. I’m learning growth takes time and we all deserve grace. I’m learning our effort has intrinsic value—the ‘doing’ is more important than the outcome. If I worried too much about being perfect, I wouldn’t keep trying. I would give up, and that is the biggest failure of all.

I’m learning to accept that these blog posts aren’t perfect, and they still have value. If I never post them, reworking them to death in the name of perfection, or procrastinating in the name of fear, it limits their potential for good. Something special ignites our hearts when we share our passions, our talents, our experiences, whether successes or failures. Light and hope blossom into a garden of unrestricted wisdom when we tell our stories with the intent to lift others instead of aggrandize ourselves.

Beauty and goodness thrive out there in the world if we open ourselves up to it. We can be generous with ourselves and with others as we all learn and grow.  It’s hard to admit our short comings, to acknowledge our ignorance or incompetence, especially with something we ‘should be able to do’. Nobody likes to feel stupid. We crave connection and fear ridicule or rejection. We worry we will look silly if we do something wrong.

 I’m afraid to speak in Spanish because my capacity with the language is inadequate. In refusing to try, I may be missing an opportunity to connect to someone albeit with my extremely limited skills. I can find grace for others when they speak my native English imperfectly. Why not myself? I love when people sing off key. Doing something badly is brave. Trying something new is brave. We can all be brave.

Learning can be hard, but it’s worth it. Whether in school or out, whether you’re eight, eighteen or eighty, I hope you never stop learning. Don’t let excuses get in the way of trying something you’ve always wanted to do. Enjoy looking silly. Be ridiculously bad! Let yourself fail. And then try again. In the immortal words of Aaliyah, “Pick yourself up and try again, try again.”