In Daniel Pink's A Whole New Mind, he discusses the roles of L-Directed, or left brain, and R-Directed, or right brain, thinking. He explains that our left brains are responsible for linear, sequential, and logical thinking. The left brain analyzes, computes, and categorizes. Our right brains, on the other hand, are holistic and imaginative. Our right brains synthesize and create. Though we all have and use both sides of our brains, Individuals tend to be either L-Directed or R-Directed in their thinking. Our skills, ideas, and styles tend toward logical and linear or creative and holistic. However, as a society, we require balance, a whole mind, for efficiency.
In the United States, our need for L and R-Directed thinking is shifting. We no longer have the need for strictly L-Directed thinkers. The logical, analytical skills of our left brains are either being replaced by computers, which can do what we can do, but faster and better or by other humans in Asia, mainly India, who can do what we do, but cheaper. Additionally, in our society of abundance, we require innovation and creativity to satisfy our addiction to having more and new and better. L-Directed thinking, alone, is no longer a viable skill.
In our schools, we rely on standardized testing as a tool for measuring achievement and knowledge. We focus on linear thinking and computation in our instruction. Our students are praised for L-directed thinking, and taught that art, music, and other R-Directed skills are extras, if we have time, maybe on Fridays.
Pink points out that we are now in the "Conceptual Age," where creators and empathizers will strive. He gives a set of three evaluative questions to consider regarding your profession: 1. Can someone overseas do it cheaper? 2. Can a computer do it faster? 3. Is what I'm offering in demand in an age of abundance?
In order to be valuable in the economy of the Conceptual Age, you must offer something else. In order to prepare our students for the evolving needs of our society, we have to be mindful of it's needs. We must teach our children to be holistic thinkers, to be problem solvers and creators. An education system that values only IQ promotes individuals with L-Directed skills and devalues the R-Directed thinkers. We need both. We need to encourage both types of thinking, praise students for what they contribute to our community, and celebrate the fact that thinking and knowledge are displayed in all different ways. We need to foster R-Directed thinking, too. Our education system plays a critical role in shaping these minds, so we ought to focus on making them whole ones.
I like how you mention the fact that schools value R-Directed thinking as "if we have extra time". This is so true and very sad.
ReplyDeleteCallie, yes, I agree that many educators fail to see the importance of R-directed thinking and do not realize that R-directed thinking can be encouraged even in those subjects that lean towards L-directed thinking (math, science)-- Finding the interrelatedness between subjects, how theories/discoveries affect our lives in the here and now, thinking about the "what if's," and dreaming about what could be.
ReplyDeleteSchools these days are taking too light handed an approach to R-directed thinking and we are definitely paying for it. As Pink pointed out in chapter 2, the overabundance of very cheap L-directed thinkers in Asia is dooming our own L-directed thinkers who cannot distinguish themselves from the herd.
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