of life. Similarly, in the earliest times, men and women lived in
caves and simple shelters. They only had each other to learn from
about birth, death, sexual maturity, killing and curing animals, and
harvesting plants that would not poison them.
For many of us, who we learn with largely determines the way
we will be learning. And while we are social creatures, we also like
to be private.
In our survey, we asked: “In which three of the following ways
do you prefer to learn?” Responses were as follows:
%
Through doing practical things 45
Alone/self-study 45
With a group being given instruction 33
Exchanging information with others 32
Practicing alone 27
Watching demonstrations 24
Thinking for yourself 22
One-to-one study with a tutor 21
Facilitated group activities 20
Source: Campaign for Learning,Attitudes to Learning, MORI poll, 1998
Are you a social learner or do you prefer to learn alone? Do you like to be taught or to find
out for yourself? Do you enjoy group work or would you rather work at your own pace?
Getting your learning environment ready
Before you embark on any period of concentrated learning, it is
worth taking stock of your immediate environment.
If you were getting ready for a holiday, you would be think-
ing about the clothes to take and the equipment you needed, and
beginning to imagine yourself in the environment you had chosen
to visit. You need to exercise at least the same care over your own
learning, wherever it happens.
You should think carefully about the kind of environment
that makes you feel both emotionally secure and intellectually
stimulated.
Switching On Your Mind 69
