By Lydia:
Here is something I've learned throughout the years. And yes, it pertains to the Parelli method of instruction as well as to any other method, and it also pertains no matter what the subject is based on.
It is a teacher's responsibility to present new knowledge and facts to the student in such a way that the student CAN (not necessarily does, as that depends on the student) understand it and put it to use. It is the teacher's responsibility to present it in such a way as to hold the learner's attention. I have had some teachers who present things in such a dry, factual, monotone way that no matter how interesting you otherwise found the material, this teacher would put you to sleep, hence your attention wanders and you cease listening.
Is is the learner's or student's responsibility to speak up to the teacher and admit they 'don't get it' so that the teacher CAN present it in a different way that the student CAN grasp it. It is also the student's or learner's responsibility to pay attention and strive to learn the lesson, sometimes using the material learned and rephrasing it into a situation where it makes sense.
What good would it do for me to teach you to tie your shoes correctly if you've never worn shoes and probably never will? I have just struggled to teach you a concept you have no basis or grounds to understand the mechanics and 'why' of. On the other hand, if I taught you the same knot as a way of making a harness so your goat could haul your produce to market, you would find it useful and it would make more sense to you.
So, it is always the teacher's responsibility to present material in such a way that the student can and will find it useful, consequently they then retain the information and use it, or at least file it away in their brains for future use and reference.
Many of us cannot do algebra equations, yet we DO use it nearly every day without realizing it. Algebra is having standard equations that various 'facts' can be plugged into them in a meaningful way, in order to derive a meaningful answer. For example, here's a standard equation:
X divided by Y equals Z.
If we plug the numbers into this one equation in a certain way, we will come up with a useful answer.
X = number of miles traveled since last fill up
Y = number of gallons pumped into the vehicle since the last fill up
Z = number of miles my vehicle is getting per gallon
What the Parellis are teaching us are the standard equations we can plug facts into to come up with a meaningful course of action to follow that is relevant to each of us, our particular horse and that horse's current behavior to get the desired results. In other words, our Parelli equation might read something like this:
X times Y = Z
X = the horsenality we are dealing with on that day
Y = the amount of time we need to spend playing the correct game to get the
Z = desired result of a 'soft' confident horse
As students it is our job to do a little research and figure out which game we are lacking in for that particular horsenality.
LOL, If you weren't confused before Maybe I just did it for you. :-) Otherwise I hope I've given you a new way to look at a problem and figure it out. :-D
Lydia
