We know from psychological research that human beings tend to discount information, data, or viewpoints that conflict with their pre-existing positions on any issue. We all do that to some degree. What is jarring is seeing learning professionals, trainers and teachers deliberately avoiding interacting with those who have views different from their’s.

I’ve seen this among the leading proponents of social networking as it is used to promote learning, i.e., social learning people. For example, Elliott Mazie, an elearning guru refused public discussion on an article he posted that clearly mis-stated some research numbers. Others have done similar things on Twitter. In fact, when challenged on the basic tenets of social learning dogma, the majority shut down. Avoid & deny.

The stock response is to either ignore, or denigrate the person offering the critique. It’s become so clear that this leading group of proponents has no interest in self-examination, or most ironically, in learning and critically assessing their own beliefs and practices.

In the #lrnchat on twitter, on Aug13, 2009 there was a discussion of formal and informal learning, and social and non-social learning. Both of those terms, by the way, do not have clear meanings, although you’d be hardpressed for the #lrnchat members to be overly concerned.

The next day, @jeffhurt and I were chatting and he tweeted:

@rbacal Yeah, but so many people are LIVING, without ever learning, doomed to repeat their failure because they don’t learn from mistakes

My response was to suggest that in fact, one cannot STOP learning if one is alive, and I asked if he had considered the possibility that the people he was referring to were simply not learning what HE wanted them to, and I asked if he considered the implications. I might add this is a rather serious issue for a learning professional to grapple with.

His response: Well, I disagree, you can stop learning. So I’ll agree to disagree, but you’ll want to make that into a debate too I’m sure.

Note the brush off that is operating here, the refusal to interact and the backhanded swipe at the end. This is absolutely typical of the most prolific posters and twitterers promoting social learning.

What is worse is that it’s also clear that these learning professionals choose each other to talk with, thus finding others who will agree with them, and not push them.

The problem is that the field cannot grow, and it cannot grow up either. It’s like incestuous issues, where the children end up as victims of the loss of genetic diversity. In this case it’s those that will come later who will pay the price for the loss of intellectual diversity. The issue is not so much who is right or wrong, but ignoring the necessity of synthesizing opposing viewpoints so the field will develop.

Of course, this is an issue with most fields, so no mater what kind of work you do, seek out those you can learn from via their disagreements.

Do not cloister yourself amongst the choir members so you can preach to each other.

INVITE debate and disagreement since that is how you will learn

Ask for people to help you identify the weaknesses of your view, both on a broad scale and in the details.