Philosophy on Learning and Sharing Knowledge

Inspired by the symbolic African Sankofa bird, which flies forward with a delicate egg in its mouth while looking back, I become more firmly convinced with each passing year that I am obligated to pass to others that which has been passed to me. I consider each opportunity to share what was shared with me an honor and a privilege.

Until my listening audience has heard the voices of recognized and respected subject matter experts on the topic under discussion, their own voices cannot emerge. Thus, my goal is to ensure they understand and embrace my emphasis on the importance of thorough and responsible individual research. My pedagogical roadmap for them in this area includes analyzing appropriate visual texts, utilizing all ethical mediums of technology, including websites, podcasts, Facebook, Twitter, and online scholarly journals and books; visiting libraries in person; and attending conferences, lectures, and other learning venues.

Employment of these methods has proven to be successful. As an example, when I was a practicing professor, after a trip to the Stax Museum of Music, one of my undergraduate students presented a well-crafted informative speech titled, “Two Deaths in Memphis: Martin Luther King, Jr. and Stax Records” wherein she convincingly argued that racism was the underlying cause of both demises.

As the Sankofa bird connects the old with the new, so must esteemed professors, preachers of the gospel, and even poets utilize a combination of old and new presentation methods. As such, I employ a diverse range of facilitation methods to accommodate the diverse range of learning intelligences of the members of my audience. For instance, examples about the world around us appeal to my nature-loving participants while group discussions tend to be more meaningful for those who possess strong interpersonal or verbal/linguistic intelligences.

My vocation/avocation as a preacher, teacher, poet, and woman of prayer honors all of my teachers - both past and present, both young and old from every walk of life - who have poured into me. Like the Sankofa bird, I have handled and will handle the knowledge that I have gained unselfishly but with great care. I wish to deposit that precious gift into the heads and hearts of all persons who Creator God assigns me. By so doing, I will equip them to effect positive change in the larger society.

I exist to share what I have learned, with the expectation that I will also continue to learn from others. My previous experiences in the corporate and religious arenas have taught me that I am correct to expect this. From faith-based instructional settings, I have learned that interlocular adults expect and deserve to be respected for what they already know. From the corporate training room, I have learned that the introverted silent have much to contribute. From the college classroom, I have learned that taking some extra time to ensure that my audience gains a thorough understanding of just one concept is time well spent, even if it means that the planned agenda has to be reworked or that I, the facilitator, must relinquish a little personal time to invest in the future knowledge of someone else. In these instances and many others, I again become the student. I aim to continue to learn the lesson and learn it well.

Learning Together