Employability & Personal Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Employability & Personal Development - Essay Example They rightfully play more and in the process, become submerged in new ideas. I’ve always known in my heart that play is a key to learning, and I, for one, am a lifelong learner. Here in Europe, lifelong learning has become a way of life, as reflected from societal values (European Commission, 2002). From educational discourses of the 1960’s and 1970’s, it has been debated that the primary purpose of learning and education is not solely for acquiring and extending theoretical knowledge but â€Å"to develop one’s own character, a character, that becomes reality as a result of growing experience† (Lengrand, 1972, p. 59). The maximalistic view of lifelong learning stresses the importance of learning outside the classic educational context and premises. That would include learning technologies, printed material and visits to museums, art galleries, field centres and heritage sites. This means that even after a student graduates from formal school, he may still engage in learning in the bigger classroom called life, and this would extend all throughout his life span. While the classical field of learning was formed by closed institutions, that were to be attended in the first quarter or third of the lifespan, lifelong learning declares any place and any time as suitable for learning. Tuschling & Engemann (2006) add that learning never stops even when individuals become adults that it becomes adopted as a lifestyle (Tuschling & Engemann, 2006, p. 456). Simply put, lifelong learning extends outside the four walls of the classroom. It takes place anywhere and stays within the learner in the form of knowledge and skills. The same is true in the working world. One needs to keep pursuing learning in whatever they do whether it is job-related or not, because it is part of continual personal development. Recently, I have had the good fortune of indulging in a wonderful learning experience that involved a lot of play. I chaperoned some kinde rgarteners to an interactive museum that encouraged them to revel in their imagination and creativity. Little did I know that the experience offered me an abundance of opportunities to learn and develop skills that can benefit me in my future career. It was a lesson I took with five-year olds, but of course, I was on an entirely advanced level. Discover Children’s Story Centre (2013) is a newly-opened interactive children’s museum in Stratford, East London that caters to young preschool children aged 2-7 years. As a chaperone, I was assigned to watch over 5 gregarious children. The museum guide said it was alright and that the children touch and interact with the exhibits because they literally learn more â€Å"hands-on†. Adults were encouraged to let our hair down and be children ourselves, and further drive the children’s imagination to soar with interesting questions of various possibilities which can only be accepted in the world of play. I found myse lf rummaging for silly ideas that may just work such as tickling the giant’s feet so that he can peep down at us and we can see his face. That prompted my kids to also think up of more creative ideas we can try. Allen suggested we roll on the noisy polka dotted floor in different directions to see if we can make beautiful music together. Nancy mused that we can eat the invisible fruits of the tree so we can have magic powers to use on the giant. Theodore asked if the pirate ship had underground headquarters for superheroes. The