Kolb Learning Cycle & Change
David Kolb produced this popular model for learning in 1984. The model suggests four stages of learning which most learners go through in order to learn effectively. Leaming is itself a process of change. Something is added to our perception and prepared us for the next impression, which will change our understanding yet more, however minutely. The Kolb contribution is a significant one because it practically equates change and learning.
Kolb’s Model of Experiential Learning
David Kolb's from Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio gave the model of "experiential learning" which states that humans learn continually, and, in the process, build particular strengths. He says that learning is all about having experiences and then reflects upon the experience that we have just had. We draw out some concepts and some principles from this reflection and test out the new concepts in new situations so that they become part of the ongoing experience. He described it in terms of four learning styles: Accommodating, Converging, Diverging, and Assimilating.
Kolb’s Living Experience
Kold is also a supporter of the theme of human becoming and what they become. He uses the word 'learning', and all these ideas come together and form a framework within which we can think about change and even learn to love it and welcome it. Laming is itself a process of change. Something is added to our perception and prepared us for the next impression, which will change our understanding yet more, however minutely.
What David Kolb is talking about is the normal scientific approach, where observations made are the normal scientific approach, where observations are made and reflected upon to yield theories from which hypotheses are derived and tested out in action, creating new events and experiences.
The first stage is concrete learning or concrete experience, where the learner encounters a new experience or reinterprets an existing experience. This could be where the learner is exposed to a new task or a new way of carrying out a project. This is followed by reflective observation, where the learner reflects on the experience on a personal basis. Following reflective observation is abstract conceptualization, where learners form new ideas or modify current abstract ideas, based on the reflections that arise from the reflective observation stage. The last stage is where the learner applies the new ideas to her surroundings to see if there are any modifications in the next appearance of the experience. By actively experimenting learns to associate what we have experienced with new ideas and innovations.
Change is learning
When you learn, you change. When you change, you learn. The Kolb contribution is a significant one because it practically equates change and learning. A book on change is therefore also a book about learning. Reginald Revans (1907–2003), a UK scientist and educational innovator who gave the “Action Laming framework” made a distinction with two little symbols L>C and C>L. If learning is represented by L and change represented by C then the first symbol means you are ahead in the game you are learning faster than things change. The second can spell disaster because things are changing faster than you are learning so that you are behind in the race. His contribution to our understanding of change management processes gives a central place to learning, both personal and institutional. Revans’ approach emphasizes the practical and moral significance of personal involvement in action and learning, as a means of resolving the intractable social and organizational problems that we find around us.
Revans is in harmony with Kolb in that his contribution of Action Learning is based on the concept that people learn more from reflection, discussion, and working together on real-life issues than from being lectured at. They learn from each other and the learning is relevant, and even when the classroom is being used for input, it is important to provide plenty of scope for learning in this way.
For a change initiative to succeed, project managers must effectively support those affected by the change during the project. Those grappling with the effects of change might need the training to tackle it effectively and we can use this framework to train people with different learning styles; to plan change communications; and to deal with team members who lack motivation; and more.
These perceptions of what is to be human can help us to take a positive approach to change and make it work to our advantage and to that of our enterprise. You are only really alive when you are changing. It is the essence of personal growth, it is the basis of relationships with other people, and without it, there is no learning and no progress.
Related Links
You May Also Like
-
Communication has as its central objective the transmission of meaning. The process of communication is successful only when the receiver understands an idea as the sender intended it. How does a message or an idea travel from one person to another? To transmit our message, we engage in a sensitive and complex process of communication, with different elements like sender, message, channels, receiver, noise, and feedback.
-
Collaborative leadership is all about collaborative problem-solving and decision-making or can also be defined as the leadership of a collaborative effort. . The term started to appear in the mid-1990s in response to the formation of long term public-private partnerships to rebuild public infrastructure. Learn how you can use principles of collaborative leadership to enhance your leadership skills for being an effective leader.
-
In our present Hitech scenario, society is changing very fast. What are the skills that are most relevant for leaders in relation to the changing economic environment? Leaders need to develop skills to drive innovation and change in order to play a more central role in their organizations’ activities. How do managers accept the change and meet business expectations by becoming a key figure in driving change and innovation?
-
Symbolic Interaction and Social Change
George Herbert Mead, an American philosopher, affiliated with the University of Chicago founded the theory of symbolic interactionism. A major aspect of this is that people interact by symbols both verbal and non-verbal signals and every interaction makes a contribution to the mental make-up of the mind thus every interaction with someone, changes you and you go away a different person signifying that humans and change go together.
-
Concept & Definition of Stress
Stress is a popular expression used by people in day to day life. Pressures of day to day living sometimes necessitate coping or dealing with them and stretch the body beyond its natural capacity. They are called stressors. Stress is a natural, ongoing dynamic, and interactive process that takes place as people adjust to their environment.
-
Charles Darwin had once commented that “It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change.” Agility means the capability of rapidly and efficiently adapting to changes and recently, agility has been applied in the context of software development, agile enterprise, and agile leadership. Agile leaders play an important, even essential, role in scaling agility in an organization. Understand how being an agile leader helps in effectively catalyzing organizational change.
-
A manager or an employee in an organization who is experiencing a high level of stress may develop high blood pressure, ulcers, irritability, difficulty in making routine decisions, loss of appetite, accident proneness, and the like. These can be subsumed under three general categories, physiological, psychological, and behavioral symptoms. Stress can give rise to a number of changes.
-
Team Development by Building Trust
As your team begins to work together, you need to establish a way each team member can exchange ideas and build mutual trust. Successful groups are built on trust and collaboration. A free exchange of ideas, in an open environment, will allow your team to get to know each other and enable you to check on how they work together. Learn some tips to help build team trust and establish personal bonds.
-
Understanding of how individuals of different cultures interact with each other is very important. Not all individuals can adapt to the leadership styles expected in a different culture whether that culture is organizational or national. In a fast-paced business environment, developing a richer understanding and sensitivity to other cultures is a skill that leaders must possess. Learn to be effective in a cross-cultural setting.
-
Tips for Effective Time Management
After studying and analyzing how time is spent, why time is wasted, and where time is wasted you need to decide about the changes required for effective utilization of time. For this purpose, a large number of remedial measures can be taken by you. The first and foremost determinant of a planned and purposeful utilization of time is to develop consciousness of the value of time at all levels of the organization. Planning, goal setting, and defining priorities are concerns to addressed immediately.
