Good morning and Aloha! Thank you for inviting us to join you at this great university. It is a pleasure to be here where learning is seen as an eternal pursuit and where we have more tools than the secular world. Let me quote from your learning model:
• Motivated by faith
• Active in the learning process
• Self-directed
• Engaged in meaningful reflection
• Open to changing
• Constantly improving
If we learn how to implement that model, we will be amazed at what and how fast we learn, not only in our academic development but our eternal progression as well. My topic is Preparing to Learn. Let me start by reminding us that learning is the purpose of our existence. I am using the word existence on purpose. In our lexicon, we often use the word pre-existence to describe life with our Father in Heaven before we began our mortal journey. I would like to reframe the connotation. Pre-existence might indicate to others that we did not exist before mortality. We know that is not the intent. We existed before our mortal journey. We lived with a loving Heavenly Father who organized our experiences so we could learn as much as possible. We had personalities, characteristics, and associations. At a certain point, it became important for us to go to the next stage. It was explained we could gain a mortal body and learn from our experiences the principles, practices, and characteristics necessary to continue our progression. We understood the challenges and accepted the opportunity to be guided by the Spirit and learn by study and by faith. I hope you have already read Elder Bednar’s book and articles on “Learning by Faith.”
Brothers and sisters, we chose to come here. We understood the purpose was to continue our learning. Every experience, every interaction, every piece of knowledge can help us progress. It is our choice to see this mortal existence as created to help us learn or to simply worry about how comfortably we can make it through. In the final accounting, what we accomplish is not as important as what we become. What we become will be determined by what we learn, which is greatly determined by how well we prepare to learn.
How We Learn
Within your learning model, let me suggest four ways of learning, each with advantages and disadvantages. First is transferring knowledge already known. Someone has already written it or knows it and can simply tell and explain to us. Much can be learned by simply paying attention. As the New York Yankees baseball manager Yogi Berra once said, “You can observe a lot by watching.” Simply showing up and paying attention is very helpful, but as we will see, you can improve your preparation.
Second is discovery. Often, nobody really knows the answer, or they will not tell us, so we will need to search, test, and discover. Some things can be learned by structuring proper experiments and then discovering what happens. Other times, we try to do the best we can, keep what is good and what works, and discard the rest. This leads to the third approach: reflecting.
We are here to learn from our experiences. You start, you try, see what happens, and build on the results. In the real world, with fallible people and imperfect knowledge, we learn by trial and error and trying again. We build on the foundation of what we already have learned.
Finally, the fourth and often most powerful way to learn is to teach. We can only go so far in our eternal progression by worrying about our progression. At a certain point, we have to start worrying about the progression of others. What do they need to know, where are they in their progression, and how can we help? By teaching and helping others, we are forced to be clear in what we know and how to make it useable by others.
Transfer, discover, reflect, and teach are all powerful tools for learning, if we are prepared.
Learning Before
Now let us consider how to prepare for each. Disseminating knowledge already known is unfortunately the most common way many students, teachers, professors, managers, and even parents approach their responsibilities to teach and learn. I suggest it is unfortunate because you should be able to gain much knowledge before you ever come to the classroom, the presentation, or the discussion. Gathering knowledge before engaging others, however, comes with a caution. Just because you can find it does not make it true. For example, if you search the Internet on any topic, you have no idea why something is listed or if it is valid. Information technology is so pervasive that you will have to be very cautious where you look and for what. Those who have done it before and know what you are looking for can give you guidance. Let me provide an example of learning before.
I teach in a business school. We commonly use cases to help students learn how to analyze, apply knowledge, and understand the way organizations work. Working with colleagues, I asked a question: Might there be a way of enhancing the case method, so students could come even more prepared? Rather than giving the students the case to prepare for the discussion, we gave them the case and told them it represented a historical perspective. A written case describes the past. Depending on when it is published, it may be 5-10 years in the past. We were using a case about eBay, the online auction and marketing firm. We asked the students to do an analysis using the tools and concepts we were discussing to understand the challenges the firm was facing, to describe the strategy eBay was using, and to delineate the leadership capabilities they needed to implement their strategy. This allowed them to learn how to use and apply concepts and tools already known.
Then we asked them to go on the Internet, find the appropriate blogs, read current financial analyst reports, and do whatever other digging could be done to find out eBay’s current situation. What was their current strategy? How successfully were they implementing it? What leadership capabilities did they need now to be successful? The students had the opportunity to apply the concepts and tools in a new context and think much deeper. Then we asked them to project three years into the future and propose an expansion plan targeting a specific geographic area. They had a chance to apply the tools and concepts a third time in a different context. They not only had prepared by learning and understanding the tools and concepts, they had a very deep understanding because of applying them three times.
I am not suggesting this is the approach everyone should take. I am suggesting we can do much to prepare to learn by gathering and applying knowledge already known before we come to together. Of course, class is valuable for conveying knowledge already known, but it can be much richer if we prepare by using all the means available to learn what we can before we come to together. That way the class can be used to enhance, explore, apply deeper, and gain insight from discussions with others. The same suggestions apply to our preparation for Church activities. Image what Sacrament meeting, Sunday School, or Priesthood and Relief Society would be like if everyone came prepared to learn by already gathering what the scriptures, conference talks, lesson manuals, etc. make available.
The Church to which we belong and the inspired leaders who direct us are much ahead of what happens in most other academic and organizational situations. If you want to see how preparing to learn before can really work, log onto the Church website and go to the curriculum guide for the Youth Sunday School program. “Come Follow Me” is designed to help students prepare by reading, applying, and developing lesson plans before they come to class. Our challenge is to be actively engaged in “Learning Before.” Remember, if you are guided by the Spirit and learn by faith as well as study, you will not only learn faster but be focused on what is important.
Learning by Discovery
Second, learning by discovery is a principle of action. You do the best you can and move to action. The only way to learn how to ride a bike is attempting to ride the bike. You can read all you want about how a bike functions and the principles of physics that make it work, but until you get on the bike, you cannot learn how to ride a bike. Certain things just have to be experienced. A good example is Alma’s explanation of the Atonement in Alma 7:
"And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.
And he will take upon him death that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities.
Now the Spirit knoweth all things; nevertheless the Son of God suffereth according to the flesh that he might take upon him the sins of his people, that he might blot out their transgressions according to the power of his deliverance; and now behold this is the testimony which is in me." (Alma 7:11-13)
In order to succor us properly, the Savior had to experience the challenges of mortality. Certain things simply must be learned by experience. Christ had to learn from his experience. Why should we be any different? The Spirit knoweth all things, so why doesn’t the Lord simply chose to have them revealed? The Book of Mormon is filled with situations where the Lord does not remove burdens but lets people learn from their experience. For example, Alma and his people, surrounded by Lamanites:
"And now it came to pass that the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea the Lord did strengthen them that they could bear up their burdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with patience to all the will of the Lord." (Mosiah 24:15)
Now why would the Lord do that, ease their burdens rather than just setting them free as He did later? Certain things simply cannot be learned by study; we have to have the experience over time. In fact, the purpose of our mortality is to learn from our experiences. I am sure Alma and his people were much stronger and better from having waited on the Lord’s time. So how do you prepare to learn from experiences? The best advice is to go into the experience with a clear idea of what you want to learn. Frame a question, and then pay attention to what happens.
Notice the key. You have the experience and you pay attention to what happens. It does no good to have experiences and not capture what you learned from them. The key to building knowledge from experience is to ask the question, “What did I learn?” The movie Camelot has a great sequence where Merlin, who is youthening (By that, the writers mean he has lived in the future and is moving towards the present. Thus, he already knows what will be happening. ), decides the best way to help the man who is now King Arthur be clear about his purposes is to have him become a fish and swim with the other fish, learning from his experience. As he does, Merlin asks the question, “What are you learning as a fish?” Arthur’s responds, “Oh not very much. Big fish eat little fish, just like everywhere else; somehow that does not seem right does it?” Then Merlin has him become a hawk and fly high over the land. He asks, “Tell me what you see.” Arthur’s responds, “I see lakes, trees, forest,” and Merlin asks, “Can you see the next county?” Arthur responds that he can, but he cannot see the edges. Merlin asks, “Can you see the edges when you are down here?” Arthur’s responds, “Of course I can, the boundaries are clearly marked.” Again, Merlin asks, “So what do you know as a hawk you did not know as Arthur?” Thus was brought to his remembrance the two foundations of the knights of the roundtable and his purposes as King: Might for right, the strong helping the weak, and one England, not separated by boundaries into fiefdoms.
Let me emphasize, experiences are not the best teachers. However, experiences reflected on and learnings consolidated and woven into the actions of the future are the best teachers. Repeating the same thing over and over is not going to lead to progression if there is no contemplation, reflection, and learning.
An example of how not to do it is Limhi and the people of the Land of Nephi who were “surrounded on every side” by the Lamanites:
"And it came to pass that the people began to murmur with the king because of their afflictions; and they began to be desirous to go against them to battle. And they did afflict the king sorely with their complaints; therefore he granted unto them that they should do according to their desires.
And they gathered themselves together again, and put on their armor, and went forth against the Lamanites to drive them out of their land.
And it came to pass that the Lamanites did beat them, and drove them back, and slew many of them.
And now there was a great mourning and lamentation among the people of Limhi, the widow mourning for her husband, the son and the daughter mourning for their father, and the brothers for their brethren. …
And it came to pass that their continual cries did stir up the remainder of the people of Limhi to anger against the Lamanites; and they went again to battle, but they were driven back again, suffering much loss.
Yea, they went again even the third time, and suffered in the like manner; and those that were not slain returned again to the city of Nephi." (Mosiah 21:6-9, 11-12)
They dressed in their armor and went to battle three times against the same superior Lamanite forces. Each time, the consequences were more widows and children without fathers and fewer warriors. If it did not work the first time, why did they think it would work the second and third time? It was not until they humbled themselves that they began to learn slowly how to rely on the Lord and “Prosper by Degrees.” Albert Einstein has an interesting definition of insanity: “Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” Do not go forth and have experiences from which you do not learn.
Learning by Reflecting
Which leads to a third way of learning. We really do not know something until we have tried it, tested it, and applied it in the context of issues, challenges, and further learning we seek. Capture the learning we can from study and faith, and then use it as the foundation for the next level. That is the main message of Alma in his discourse on faith. It is not a one-time event.
"Now, we will compare the word unto a seed. Now, if ye give place, that a seed may be planted in your heart, behold, if it be a true seed, or a good seed, if ye do not cast it out by your unbelief, that ye will resist the Spirit of the Lord, behold, it will begin to swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will begin to say within yourselves—It must needs be that this is a good seed, or that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth to enlighten my understanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me.
Now behold, would not this increase your faith? I say unto you, Yea; nevertheless it hath not grown up to a perfect knowledge. …
But if ye will nourish the word, yea, nourish the tree as it beginneth to grow, by your faith with great diligence, and with patience, looking forward to the fruit thereof, it shall take root; and behold it shall be a tree springing up unto everlasting life." (Alma 32:28-29, 41)
Learning is a process that takes place over time. The key is reflecting on each step and preparing properly for the next. Scriptures refer to this as “the process of time” or “by degrees.” We learn, apply, figure what else needs to be learned, apply that, and continue the process. That is the way the Lord works with us and the way we should work. An example: I was working with a group of four other professors, each of us teaching a section of the same class. We did a marketing simulation where teams from each of our sections competed with each other over multiple time periods. The computer did the calculations after each run and provided feedback on how successful each team was compared to others. I am not a professor of marketing, but for the teams in my class, I told them to make sure and learn after each round. After each submission, the students took breaks. I told my teams, “After you turn in your submission, do not do what all the rest of the teams are doing. (i.e. take a break, check their smart phones, or get a drink.) Rather, immediately get back together and take 15 minutes to talk about how well you worked together and what you could do to improve, and then take your break.” Every semester, our section took most of the top slots in the rankings at the end of the simulation. It was so consistent that another professor wondered whether I was feeding my teams the answers. No, I was only asking them to learn and improve.
Now a caution: Sometimes, we do not understand why the Lord is asking us to do what we are doing. The Lord’s ways are not our ways, so you really need to think, pray, and learn by faith. We need to be on the Lord’s errand and learn along the way. An example: The Lord came to a man and asked him to push against a big rock. Being obedient, he put on his clothes went out and started pushing. He pushed and pushed, but the rock was not moving. After many days, Satan came and suggested he stop. He had been working and sweating long enough, and the rock was not moving. The man agreed and sat down; that rock was simply too big to move. The Lord came by and asked him why he was sitting. The man explained that he tried as hard as he could, but the rock just would not move to which the Lord said, “I did not ask you to move the rock, I asked you to push against the rock. Look, you have lost some of that extra weight, your muscles are getting stronger, and you are out here in the fresh air and are healthier. Push against the rock, and when it is time to move the rock, I will come and help you.” He will help us with our big heavy rocks in His time, but you know what happens once that rock is moved? We have learned, we have progressed, and we get to push against an even bigger rock.
Learning by Teaching
Lastly, how do we learn by teaching? It is not until we can synthesize, explain, and help other people apply that we really know something. In our leadership class, we decided to implement the principle and have the students teach each other. We were discussing the purpose and power of leading from a clear vision. We assigned the students a chapter in a popular book on leading from vision and Martin Luther King’s “Letter from the Birmingham Jail.” (He explains in the letter his vision of the context and purpose of the Civil Rights Movement.) Rather than us presenting a lecture, we appointed a “content leader” in each group. In addition to the chapter on “Leading from Vision,” we gave them five pages of historical background on the “Letter.” Then, we asked one person in each group to develop a 15-20 minute lesson plan, to teach the other members of their group the key principles, provide examples, and give explanations of how they could be applied. Each of the students was assigned to prepare by also reading the material. The next week, we stood back as they taught their groups. The presentations were amazing. In fact, they were so good we asked if we could keep copies as the basis for future lectures, applications, and experiences. They learned much more by teaching than we could have ever explained. After presenting the concepts and having a discussion with the Dean, we gave an assignment: Now that you know the principles, pick one and apply it during the next week to help make Boston University a better learning environment. We made arrangements with the Dean for them to send reports directly to him, detailing what they did, what they learned, and what they could do going forward. He responded to their reports. It was so successful that each week we rotated to another “content leader” responsible for teaching. Learn the concept, apply it, discover how it works, reflect on the results, and figure out how to apply it again. Then take the learning and teach it to someone else.
Summary
Thank you for listening. I hope you understand the concepts, but they will have little impact unless you apply them, reflect on the results, and then build to the next level. In fact, if you really want to learn how to learn, summarize the concepts and tell your parents or colleagues back home how the approach to learning is far different here at BYU–Hawaii than at other academic institutions. Explain the learning model and the many ways to learn. Make sure you are always preparing before and reflecting after any event, class, or discussion. Seniors and juniors, become mentors and help the sophomores and freshmen learn better and faster. In summary, Mahatma Ghandi wrote an autobiography, which he entitled “The Story of My Experiments with Truth.” For him, everything was an opportunity to learn. The best summary of his approach is there is no such thing as failure, only failure to learn.
And do not forget to focus on and learn the most important lessons of life.
"Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls." (Matthew 11: 29)
My testimony is that we are not here by accident. You are not here at BYU–Hawaii to gain an education. You are here to lay a foundation on which you can continue learning, leading, and building into the future.