Replying to LO29185 --
Dear Organlearners,
[Host's Note: The original message, to which At de Lange is replying,
has been withdrawn by it's author. --Rick]
>I decided to join your Community because I believe in
>the value of exchanging knowledge, experiences and
>practices at an international level in the new applied
>research fields.
Greetings --
Thank you for your nice introduction. Knowing what a person does helps at
least me to understand that person better.
>I'm mainly interested in the following subjects: e-learning,
>KM, communities of practice, SMEs.
Your mentioning of "e-learning" made me realise with a shock what i should
have thought about earlier this morning. Before i switch my computer on, i
read some ten pages from Benjamin Franklin's (BF's) autobiography. His
biography has no chapters or any other headings. It is just a beautiful
story.
I am now there where he tells about his apprenticeship as a printer. He
also tells how strict the first Americans were on what should not be
printed and his own rebellious nature against it. They would easily close
down a printing business. He did not have the luxury of institutionalised
education. But like a Michael Faraday a century later, he already knew
that studying books, pamphlets and newspapers had a vast enrichment on
what he first learned by experience.
(Terje, this great man was already before his twentieth year aware of the
difference between emergent and digestive learning as well as knowledge
and information! It makes me shiver.)
He came to the insight that the future of the American people lies in what
they will be able to read. Thus he began to develop a sensitivity for the
freedom of expression. As you all know, the wisdom of BF had been one of
the main forces in the drawing up of the first American constitution.
It suddenly struck me that "e-learning" by surfing the internet
has opened the way for a new generation of wise Benjamin Franklin's to
emerge. Some of them are already schooling themselves, many still quitely,
but a few already trying their hand at articulating their thoughts. What
an exciting thought!
BF tells that, since he was so young and also an apprentice, he was not
allowed to write anything to the newspaper. So he wrote something
anonymous and pushed it late at night under the door. The next morning,
after the newspaper editors found the contribution, he listened quietly
how they praised this great piece of work. It made him feel good.
Later on he tells how much he struggled to get rid of vanity as one
of his vices after a Quaker draw his attention to it! Perhaps one day
we should have a LO-dialogue on the topic of
"Vices preventing a person to become wise".
Already Confucius and his followers had a lot to say about this topic
more than two millennia ago.
With care and best wishes
--At de Lange <amdelange@postino.up.ac.za> Snailmail: A M de Lange Gold Fields Computer Centre Faculty of Science - University of Pretoria Pretoria 0001 - Rep of South Africa
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