As early as the dawn of civilization, humans recognized the importance of learning in striking a balance between theoretical reflection and practical application. Success in life necessitates a commitment to the three phases of the cognitive life cycle, which comprise learning, unlearning, and relearning.
Why you might wonder. You could say, okay, learning is something that occurs virtually daily in our lives. Okay, so what is up with all this relearning stuff? What benefit does it offer? Why should someone have to unlearn something before they can learn it again if they can simply learn and then relearn it?
Because of the speed at which the world is evolving, the ability to unlearn and relearn is as crucial as the ability to learn. Compared to the ongoing learning process, it is significantly more effective.
“Learn continually. There’s always “one more thing” to learn.“ — Steve Jobs
The co-founder of Apple, Steve Jobs, made a valid point when he said that a person’s career and individual growth are significantly influenced by their continuous, unprompted, and self-motivated quest for knowledge.
What is the learn, unlearn, and relearn cycle, and how can it be employed effectively?
Contrary to popular belief, the acts of learning, unlearning, and relearning might stimulate more creative and analytical thought than just accumulating more and more information. Long-term, it will help students question, analyze, and evaluate what they learn in the classroom. This guarantees that the information and skills they acquire are kept up-to-date and relevant and, henceforth, can be used in the workplace.
Unlearning. It just doesn’t feel right. In the end, most individuals have been socialized to value ongoing, so-called “acquisitive” knowledge. Human beings have an insatiable need for learning about various things and rightfully value each bit of insight that comes their way. Why would you want to unlearn something after putting in the effort to learn it?
The solution is elementary. There is a limit to what the human brain can store. To put it crudely, to make room for the latest information, you must typically delete older, irrelevant data.
Put things in perspective, and you’ll see how useful unlearning can be. You do it all the time and probably don’t even know it. That’s how things work in a dynamic world. The process of unlearning can be compared to installing a revised version of a program. Why should only your gadgets require regular upgrades when your knowledge should as well?
Unlearning for L&D: Modifying values to reflect a changing world
The importance of the learn, unlearn, and relearn cycle has grown steadily throughout the years. What are the benefits of embracing the cycle of learning, unlearning, and relearning? To mention just a few examples, a recent survey found that 94% of L&D professionals were forced to alter their approach because of the pandemic. However, just 5% of these professionals anticipate that their strategy will return to what it was before the epidemic. Half of those surveyed also believe their firm is likely to implement some form of innovative training strategy. A similar proportion believes that the mix of training approaches already in use will shift.
Prerequisites for success in unlearning
45% of corporate employees believe that their team does not have the necessary skills to deliver what is required for their business, while 80% of CEOs are concerned that a “lack of key skills in their workforce is compromising the future success of their organization.” The learn-unlearn-relearn cycle is useful in both cases. Also, by the end of 2022, 54% of employees will need substantial reskilling or upskilling to make the workforce project ready. To complete this procedure, it will be necessary to unlearn certain previous skills and then learn some updated ones.
Offer solutions and aid to make relearning and unlearning easier
In addition to helping team members understand why it’s crucial to unlearn and relearn, it’s also imperative to equip them with the resources they’ll need to do so. This necessitates providing the team with up-to-date learning opportunities and fostering an environment that values learning as a lifelong pursuit. Nuvepro’s hands-on labs are one of those that can help support your team or a learner on an individual level to help them level up their skills and make them confident enough to take on anything challenging that comes their way.
They will be productive enough to be ready for any endeavor, paving the path for a potential workforce in the years to come. To adapt to real-world challenges, you can acquire brand-new skill sets, unlearn unnecessary data, and then relearn useful information.