Hello again;
I know, I know. I couldn’t agree more myself: My headings are rubbish.
I am aware that I «should» get some clever, compelling, exciting words together to entice readers to come check my blog.
But if you have read me for any more than two weeks you know already I don’t care about attracting crowds with trendy titles. I also find compelling headlines misleading. They often fill the front pages with promises of fascinating stories… and half an hour later you are left wishing you could get your 30 minutes back.
Anyhow.
When I wrote my last post I was deep into researching and writing an essay for my course. I thought I’d write next something related to the artists I studied and to the topic I wrote about.
Well, I was wrong.
I had a brief conversation with a driver lately. Someone who drives one of those minibuses, picking up people with mobility problems and dropping them off at their various appointments).
The driver and I had some small talk whilst I was on a trip with someone else. He mentioned they had a new navigating system in their vehicles. He commented also that it was nearly impossible to learn the routes any more because his concentration was more on following the guidance than on looking out for signposts and landmarks.
It makes sense, doesn’t it? if you have to do a journey relying on your orientation system and some map sooner or later you’ll find your way around. You may not even need the map after a while. However, if you get directions as you need them your brain doesn’t get to work out the system.
This seemed connected with the particular teaching system they follow in my Arts class.
It makes sense that they don’t give us a path with breadcrumbs to follow, or boxes to tick as we move along the term.
It makes sense that there are no step by step instructions on many of the more abstract tasks. We do have some specific guidance on some techniques, obviously (you don’t want to learn that acid can burn clothes or fingers after the fact). But on the whole we are left to fend for ourselves.
Sometimes it is frustrating not to know exactly what is expected of us. But it’s working. I find that I put my foot wrong quite regularly, I misunderstand the questions being asked and I procrastinate at times. But do you know what? I’m learning the way.
Like the minibus driver before technology got in the way.
The method doesn’t produce instant results but it makes me think. It helps me realize when I’m going in the wrong direction, when I’m getting off track on what I set off to do.
I now should end this post with a succinct note summarising the moral of the story.
Or …I could leave it unsaid.
(I’ve included some of my sketches for your sightseeing pleasure)
Thanks for reading this.