Learning Cycle; Dancers learning process
I suddenly realised I use Mr Kolb`s learning Cycle everyday of my dancer life!
I was teaching a class a few days ago, I was explaining to the dancers that, I give dancers corrections and advices, but there is a possibility that I teach them completely differently next day, only because I am also still learning and things I learn through my experience most likely to up garde and re-discovered by another experience. So, this is the way of understanding, the process of improvement is to
1, Contrive: Practice based on the theory we structured, and reflect on the experience.
2, Build: Experience how things work on the stage applying what we contrived.
3, Reflect and review: Criticise the performance, recall the experience.
4, Re- structured: Analyse what worked on the performance, what went wrong, how and why. If, the way we practice and the theory did not work, scratch them and start from the begging applying the experience we had previously.
then, it suddenly clicked! It is very much based on Mr Kolb`s Learning Cycle! I actually heard what I said and I could not believe it!
Mr Kolb`s Learning Cycle
Picture of Mr Kolb`s lerning cycle http://www.ldu.leeds.ac.uk/ldu/sddu_multimedia/kolb/static_version.php
Daisuke`s Dance Cycle
Mr Kolb`s Learning Cycle is a tool which dancers can apply to their professional life. My self, I use this tool to find my self, and re-learn what I already thought I know or I already grasped. In dancers life, there is no end. Dancers always have some thing new to learn. Some times it feels like you have learned all. However, soon you realise that is just a beginning. What dancers trying to archive is still so far. Learn, try, fail, try again, some time goes well, but it was not actually correct, so even though it looked right and felt like it was right, again, few steps back and check why it was not correct. But, every time re-try things, the quality gets better. It is always like one step back to two step forward, there is no short cut. As you can see from the learning cycle, we always come back to where we started!
My self, I do Zen.
In Japan, we have a famous wisdom ` 守 破 離`, it pronouns as `Shu Ha Li`.
It is in a way very similar to Mr Kolb`s learning cycle. I use to do martial arts and music lesson, and especially in calligraphy lessons, they are very important.
They mean
守; Learn from your mentor selflessly, good and bad, every thing. Do never question your mentor and be as one as mentor mentally.
破; It will take awfully long time, but when the time comes, when students learn all, break through all the theory and technique you have learned and forget every thing.
離; Graduate and leave, from the mentor and it self. In this final stage, students shall forget every thing they have learned and break through all. So, what left in them are so pure, so natural, the technique really is deep in their mind and body, like they had since they were born. Also mentor`s thought will be living with them and passing on to next generation.
http://senseis.xmp.net/?ShuHaRi
I see Mr Kolb`s learning cycle also in my favourite book call `Zen in art of archery` by Eugen Herrigl.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/5992779/eugen-herrigel-zen-in-the-art-of-archery
The main person`s learning process of archery beautifully demonstrates Mr Kolb`s learning cycle.
