Peter Vaill, now associated with Antioch University, wrote "Learning as a Way of Being" while on the business faculty at George Washington University. This book is essentially an analysis of what exactly it means to be a "life-long learner" in the modern world.
Vaill begins by assessing the current life situation-what he calls a state of perpetual whitewater-a modern person (and institution) are constantly "putting out fires," scrambling to do greater things with fewer resources, tending to crises (personal and institutional), and praying for that time when things calm down and "we can finally get some work done around here." Unfortunately, those days will never come as there have always been and will always be a myriad of crises to attend to. So, how does one survive, thrive, and grow in this state of perpetual whitewater?
Vaill presents the traditional paradigm for learning and growing-the institutional model. Even though he is a college professor and taught courses in MBA programs, he argues that traditional classroom-style learning is not the answer. Vaill does not condemn teachers or school administrators, but does contend that both the assumptions behind and outcomes of traditional classroom education do not serve the "life-long learner" well at all. Instead, Vaill encourages the reader to develop a new paradigm to grown in the midst of perpetual whitewater.
Instead of classroom learning, Vaill advocates a seven-fold paradigm in which the learner essentially gives himself permission to explore, feel, experiment, express, and even fail. All this makes one more humble-yet-confident, willing, and prepared to respond quickly to life's unexpected curve-balls. After a detailed analysis of his vision for "learning as a way of being," Vaill offers how this new paradigm might play out as one seeks to learn about systems, leadership, cultures, and spirituality.
This reader found Vaill's analysis of life's "perpetual whitewater" especially helpful. Also helpful was his treatment of learning about leadership ("Leaderly Learning"), and his analysis of how one believes he becomes "good at something." Also appreciated was his fictional dialogue between explorer Sir Francis Chichester and a 21st century MBA student-it drove many of the book's points home. While the above mentioned aspects of the book were helpful, I put down the book wondering if I had actually learned anything new (ah, the irony). Most of what Vaill advocates in the book for life-long learning is stuff that people have been doing all their live. Is Vaill's purpose then to give proper credit to already-existing ways of learning? Is his purpose to encourage and inspire the reader-so that he gives himself credit where credit is due? Is his purpose to change certain aspects of the education system? His stated purpose on p. xiv does not clear this up for me.
In all, I neither recommend this book, nor do I encourage one NOT to read it. If you believe that you're growing and succeeding in life, even in our state of perpetual whitewater; if you like to learn for the sake of learning; if you know how to get things done and still build strong personal and professional relationships, this book probably isn't going to teach you anything new. If you are an educator, if you find yourself stressed because of all the chaos in your life, if you don't know where you're going, how to get there, or even why you are where you are, you would benefit from reading this book. It won't give you all the answers, but it'll get you started on a beneficial path.
