As a parent and teacher, I have always been interested in how people learn. I watched my children gaze in wonder at the mobile above their bed. I observed them learn to walk, talk, recognize themselves in a mirror, write, do complex math, and succeed and fail at many other endeavors. Watching them, I learned about myself. These observations only piqued my interest in exploring “how we learn.”
This interest led me to look at the various models to describe how people learn. Around 1980, Gordon Training International published the “conscious competence” model. The model offers a framework for how people gain and internalize knowledge. The model describes the individual as beginning as “unconsciously incompetent” (UI) – they did not know what they did not know. When the individual realizes they do not understand something, they become “consciously incompetent” (CI). At this point, the individual could learn the discipline and become “consciously competent” (CC). With time and application, the discipline becomes completely internalized, and the individual becomes “unconsciously competent” (UC) – doing the discipline without thinking.
This model transcends ego. For you to learn, you must first not know. I have pursued education for a long time. The greatest learning in my education and professional endeavors is how little I truly know. My Ph.D. added a very small piece of knowledge to the universal body of knowledge. Indeed, I am an expert in a genre, but it is only one of thousands and thousands of genres. I recognize I am “unconsciously incompetent” of many things – – are you?
We will explore this “conscious competence” model further later.
Until next time.
Dr. Dave