Learning in Theory and in Practice

I really want to update this blog on a regular basis. However, sometimes, life is boring. As I was racking my brain thinking of things to write about, it hit me that I may post the articles I wrote in class which earned me respectable grades. Here's one...

Learning in Theory and in Practice

Digital technologies provide the fastest means to access and disseminate data that eventually become information and knowledge, depending on an individual’s level of interest and expertise. The geographical location where data resides is no longer an issue because members of social groups and occupational worlds can conveniently share resources anytime anywhere. This does not guarantee, however, that individual members of a group working collectively are easily dispensable as they know how to effectively turn information to knowledge in a particular organizational setup.

Brown & Duguid describe information as independent, thus, more or less self-sufficient. However, unless information, in the form of data, is transformed into knowledge, through the “appropriate application of the appropriate technology for the appropriate situation,” it is completely useless. Thus, knowledge management is possible through the use of “flexible electricity-based technologies that converge all previous media forms into a common form” (McLuhan).

In spite of this, it is still the culture within organizations which mold people into ideal knowers of knowledge. Brown & Duguid mentioned that “in areas where knowledge really counts, people count more than ever” as they know how to work within the culture. In an organizational setup, new workers can be trained on how to work within a system but it takes time to orient and train individuals on how to access the information they need. It takes time to develop good camaraderie among individuals with different personalities that need to collaborate to efficiently exchange knowledge and information. Information technology provides the means for members to communicate indirectly but “changes propagate easily and allows for highly productive and creative work to develop collaboratively, where reciprocity is strong.” This is because knowledge “entails a knower’s understanding and a certain degree of commitment.” In any given situation, a concerned knower who has spent years within an organization can easily recall related events which happened in the past that has bearing on the present situation. This knowledge; can serve as guidelines on formulating effective measures to reach future directions.

For this reason, “blind downsizing by business process reengineering cause organizations to lose ‘collective memory’.” While it is also true that “people learn on their own through picking up information from numerous sources about numerous topics without even becoming a member” as people share little or no common practices in these communities, only a handful of relevant information are accessed. This results in little knowledge, hence, people take little action. In these situations, they can hardly make “a difference that makes a difference” (Bateson).

Positive differences can be easily achieved because geographical location of data is no longer an issue. Digital technologies provide the means to conveniently share resources anytime anywhere. The crucial element that will determine an organization’s failure or success are seasoned individual knowers in a group who work collectively to transform information to knowledge.