As I imagine and live out my days, I’m often astounded by the intersections of ideas — how learning assessment and leadership development and teaching and playing and creativity and fear and risk and failure and vulnerability and bravery are all necessary parts of the university experience — for both learners and teachers (who are also and always learners as well).
Today I’m inspired (as I often am) by Gretchen Rubin’s thoughts on the intersections between work and play.
“.. conditions matter tremendously. Work that might be enjoyable in some circumstances becomes hideous drudgery in other circumstances” — Gretchen Rubin.
What if we focused more on the “play” aspects of learning — the exciting process of discovering new ideas, the creativity of imagining worlds where the impossible is possible, and the invigorating power of exploration — and discovering the mysteries that lay just around the bend?
What if, as this NPR Ted Radio Hour suggests, we played more “Rock Band” and had fewer committee meetings? Would we unleash our potential for innovation in some new and fresh way? Would we still be taken seriously in the world of academia? Would it matter?