Is There Anything We Never Have to Learn?

As I engaged in a conversation with a colleague and good friend of mine this afternoon, I asked him the question, IS THERE ANYTHING WE NEVER HAVE TO LEARN?---His response was, "Not to be bored." This has led me to a state of serious contemplation---"Where does boredom come from? What are the specific factors needed to classify anything B-O-R-I-N-G?"

I discovered through my personal reading quest that there are two major perspectives that may help us understand the causes of boredom: PSYCHOLOGICAL theories and SOCIAL CONTROL theories.

According to various studies carried out by experts in the area of psychology, boredom may stem from 3 sources: first, a lack of stimulating things to do during leisure time(Iso-Ahola & Weissinger, 1987); second, an absence of intrinsic motivation; self-determination, in particular to take steps in alleviating boredom (Iso-Ahola & Weissinger, 1987; Weissinger, Caldwell & Bandalos, 1992); and finally, the third source is, a mismatch between one's skill and the challenge at hand(Csikszentmihalyi,1990).

From the social control perspective, according to the studies that I have come across, boredom may be attributed to the fact that free time activities for adolescents are structured by the dominant adult culture which then produces boredom for adolescents because they interfere with the "normative developmental impetus toward autonomy (Shaw, Caldwell & Kleiber,1995)."

As an educator of students with special needs, I have observed that boredom, more often than not, may also be expressed through physical and verbal aggression. Knowing what I know now, I find myself reflecting on my practice and perceptions of my students' verbal and physical aggression. I may try to empower my students to alleviate boredom by letting them take part in planning out activities for our community-building time, which will serve as a culminating activity after a long day's work. Perhaps, the experience of being able to take an active part in mapping out a plan will stimulate my students' leadership and collaborative skills. Instead of going against each other, they would choose to work together harmoniously--Decide to take roles and be active learners.

Intrinsic motivation is a tough one. How can intrinsic motivation possibly blossom within one's self if it wasn't planted in you in the first place? Is it a matter of altering the environment to make things more interesting? Is it possible to acquire intrinsic motivation by one's own choice?Or is it the type of motivation that is instilled within you and grows within you as the years go by? Inquiry questions that lead to sub-questions. Sub-questions that turn into little windows of opportunity to be responsive, creative and sensitive. Such is the beauty of open-endedness. It never leads to boredom.

The third and most obvious source of boredom is the mismatch of one's skill and the challenge at hand. Though it may be the easiest statement to comprehend among the three sources, it is the most crucial factor that I should consider as a special needs teacher, that I must, at all times, strike the perfect match between my students' skill levels and the learning experiences that I have them engage in. I definitely must seriously consider their areas of interest as well.

At the heart of teaching and learning, the state of being bored should not exist.

Now that I know all these, what's next?

I am beginning to get bored.