What is Learning?

Learning is a process of combining skills with resources and knowledge obtained from multiple sources about a given subject. When most people think of learning it is usually associated with school at all levels, but learning should be occurring on a constant basis. Learning is simply obtaining information from environment and external sources that is constantly being processed and associated for future reference. For example, it would be foolish to pick up a log that is glowing red with ambers from a bonfire, but this only seems foolish because we have learned we will be harmed if we were to attempt this. If a very small child attempted this it is assumed they "did not know any better" or did not learn of the consequences.

Learning is a constant function happening sometimes unknowingly. I struggle with learning only being associated with school because on a daily basis I hear people state "oh, I didn't know that", in fact I use the phrase a lot myself. I have also herd many people make the statement that television just rots the mind, apparently these people have never watched the National Geographic Channel or the show MANswers. The point is that information can be useful no matter what the medium is, and we will disseminate weather the information is useful or not on an individual basis. For example, is it imperative to my survival that I know how to sing itsy bitsy spider? or that I know Lindsey Lohan had court today?

Learning is simply processing information at an individual level and making the decision; is the information I just received useful enough to be retained. Using the bonfire as an example again, we take away a life long lesson that grabbing an amber filled log will burn us as useful information. We could later build upon that same information by using tools to move the same log instead of our hands. This concept is no different learning in an educational institution. We learn at a young age about biology. We learn that when we get cut the wound needs to be taken care of, it is not until later in life we learn the importance of wound care, yet we know how to care for the wound before we know why. In biological sciences we learn in elementary years of distinguishing between living and non-living organisms, to middle school learning about the cells within living organisms, then in high school the interaction of cells and the processes occurring within cells. At the college level of learning cell biology there are many avenues to apply the base information and then funneling the scope of information to a specific area such as medicine, microbiology, or even zoology. The important point of learning is the decision made by an individual; what information is useful to retain? and how to retain the information presented.