Holy wow. If this reading was a movie, it would be, possibly, the worst movie in history, only because a movie is MEANT to be entertaining, enjoyable, UNDERSTANDABLE, and sometimes even relatable. I am in no way trying to offend Peter Senge, Argyris or Schön, however I am unable to see the relevance to my learning with this reading as I was unable to understand the subject content.
(Yes, I am aware that it is a reading not a movie which is why the above statements should not be offensive in any way, shape or form)
I can sympathise with Peter Senge to an extent. I too have had many influential teachers throughout my time in the education system, however, I took a liking to them due to their teaching style, their belief in me, or purely their laid back humour and teaching methods….This is where my empathy with Senge stops. I spent almost 45 minutes reading, re-reading, re-re-reading Senge’s article, yet I was and still am unable to understand or connect to what he was trying to communicate and get through- ironic, as from what I understand, a lot of it had to do with the ways in which we communicate effectively.
By, I think the 6th or 7th reading, I came to recognise which model of learning I fell into. A bit of both. Is that allowed? Or even possible? It has to be because I have certain qualities and tendencies that stem from both models…
From what I understand, Argyris and Schön argue that there are two theories of action. Theories of action- what we do as practitioners and their properties are shared by all theories. The second is theories-in-use, being the behaviours and structures we follow and practitioners. The way we convey and communicate in terms of choice of words and messages to one another is called espoused theory.
Now to them loops. I will try keep my understanding of them short and sweet. I find metaphors help.
-Single loop learning is a stubborn person. They have chosen plans, values, rules and goals and when something goes wrong (an error is detected) their choices are “operationalised rather than questioned”, so they make minor fixes so the error is fixed quickly.
-Double loop learning is a more laid back person. They are more willing to question, modify and scrutinize their changes which are larger and require greater consideration than single loop learning.
Sadly for me, and for the person reading this, even after discussions about the reading, I am still not entirely sure if I have a proper grasp on the topic at hand-Oh the irony again! Nevertheless, I will revisit the reading at a later date and see if I can decipher the codes left by a very proud scholar.
On the other hand (the hand that does have a semi-firm grasp on life), if I was to write a thesis on teachers who have inspired me, it would be simple and to the point. Probably resembling something like this (Senge takes notes…just kidding)
‘I have had many great teachers who have had a major impact on my life. Mrs. Peacock in Grade 1, without whom I would not be social/have any friends, Mrs.Clarke in Year 9&12 who first enjoyed my writing, Madame.Staddon, vous etes incroyable, merci and Ms.Carol, you champ!
And to all those who thought I had no hope in even completing high school…you know where to put what.’