Learning Communities Enrich our Personal Learning

Most people learn best when they have people to talk with about what they are learning. Youth and adults especially benefit from and get excited about having peers to discuss learning. It is easy to stay motivated to keep reading a difficult book when you know that your friends are also reading it and eager to discuss it with you.

Learning communities can be informal, show and tell style groups that meet and talk about what each individual is studying. This can help participants gain ideas about what to study next or what might interest them. 

Another style of learning community is the salon. This is a group that meets with the intention of discussing a particular topic or idea. Everyone comes prepared to discuss the day's topic, but each person may have used different study resources.

Some learning communities use structured classes to study and learn together. Co-ops, commonwealth schools, and individual mom school classes all fall under this type of learning community. The structure provided by these types of communities can be long or short term, offering focus on specific topics. 

Online communities can partially fill this need for people, but in person groups allow for a greater sense of community. I have found online communities to be a great support to my learning, but I benefit much more from my in person learning communities. 

One of my favorite types of learning community is book discussion groups. Everyone reads the same book and comes together to discuss their thoughts and ideas. Not only do I enjoy this type of learning, but I have seen the youth that I mentor thrive when participating. There is a benefit for those that actively discuss and those that do a lot more listening. It always seems that after a good discussion everyone goes home with a much greater understanding of ideas in addition to greater motivation for future learning. 

As you mentor others, pay attention to what learning communities they are participating in. Help those you mentor think about what other groups they might benefit from and how they can benefit more from the groups where they already participate.