Failure as part of learning
In this section, we talk about the importance of failure for learning, and how to create opportunities for appropriate failure (as opposed to catastrophic failure).
Consider the many opportunities for learning you have every day. Sports offer opportunities to develop and practice–trying a new skill and making mistakes, ideally with appropriate support and feedback (e.g., from a coach or peer). Scientific research often involves experimentation, and hundreds of experiments may fail before a single success; each of those experiments is a learning moment .
Success comes through effort and failure
James Dyson discusses success through failure Official Dyson video
Watch this video from James Dyson about failure, consider the ways you can relate this famous failure to your own experiences with effort, failure and success.
Learning activity: welcoming opportunities for failure
Yes, indeed. We need to fail to learn. In fact, that failure doesn’t have to be the “bad thing” with the negative connotations that often come from it as discussed in the previous videos. In this activity, we’ll explore and plan for opportunities to fail, and consider the environment that surrounds those moments.
In your Workbook:
- Describe some moments when you have failed. How did you feel (confident, worried, etc.)? How did others around you react (support, discouragement, etc.)?
- Describe a situation where you saw someone fail. What was your reaction to the situation?
- Now, for each of the situations above, how might the environment have been more constructive? If it was positive/constructive, describe what made the situation feel that way.
- Please make a plan for future situation. What can you do to take a risk for your learning to challenge yourself? What can you do for someone else to support them in taking a risk or if they fail?
- We’d love to have you share all or some of your responses with others in Discord. Doing so will help us build connections and share experiences and ideas as a learning community.
There’s so much more we could discuss about learning, including the important effects of our emotions, culture, environment, and types of learning activities. You’ve already address some of it through our work on growth mindset and mindfulness. You can also work the through the module on Academic resilience to build more skills.