tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8767220857437857569.post1922675004740238781..comments2023-11-29T19:51:01.908+11:00Comments on Ruminations of a Learning and Development Professional: Why unlearning is Worth the EffortWilkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05491838543912178236noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8767220857437857569.post-35704939576143421822008-10-21T22:27:00.000+11:002008-10-21T22:27:00.000+11:00Hi Tony,Mate, essentially I agree with you but the...Hi Tony,<BR/><BR/>Mate, essentially I agree with you but there is also a core element to the cycle you point out.<BR/><BR/>At both stages you are unconscious, there are elements that force you to critically look at moving to the next stage of the cycle. It is this acknowledgment of the elements that sows the seeds for unlearning. The moment you become cognisant of your need for competence then there will be things that you begin to "unlearn" in order to gain that competence.<BR/><BR/>The theory of "unlearning" requires this cognisance. Otherwise we go through those cycles without adjustment and without the need to learn.Wilkohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05491838543912178236noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8767220857437857569.post-3489073706634014142008-10-16T17:55:00.000+11:002008-10-16T17:55:00.000+11:00Hi Rob. I haven't written before (mainly because ...Hi Rob. I haven't written before (mainly because I am not smart enough to understand a lot of what you write) but this is interesting and something which feeds into how we reinforce skills.<BR/><BR/>If we look at skill development for anything (including the way we think - or our mental patterns/models) we move from a state of Unconscious Incompetence (we don't know what we don't know) to Conscious Incompetence (where we know there is stuff that we don't know, or a better way of doing things etc), to Conscious Competence (we start to adopt the new behaviours, but it needs our mental attention) and finally to Unconscious Competence (auto-pilot). <BR/><BR/>Most people think that this last stage is the best one to be in, because it allows us to act out of instinct. But this can be a problem, epitomised by the fact that often we start driving to work, thinking "I'll stop and get the dry cleaning on the way" and then find ourselves in our carpark with no recollection of the trip and certainly no dry cleaning.<BR/><BR/>It is actually better to constantly switch between the last two stages - being conscious of what you are doing, any deviation that is happening and also any changes that need to be made, but also being able to act on pure instinct when the situation requires. <BR/><BR/>The funniest thing about the cycle is that once you are at Unconscious Competence, you are actually also back at Unconscious Incompetence........<BR/><BR/>Tony WilsonAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com