This last week I had to write a "personal model of student development," explaining what I believed was a model of development for students in college. After agonizing for close on a month about what exactly I thought about development, I started thinking back on my own college experience and what 'forced' my development the most. One thing I have learned that I believe is true in so many cases is the value in stepping outside comfort zones.
I pride myself on being someone who looks for challenges. I do not like being comfortable (in some ways). I don't know if this is because I think I am a better person because life isn't easy, or if it's because I simply want a challenge in life. Regardless, I have learned that it's much better not to fight when God pushes you in a new direction.
For example, I am currently getting my Master's in Higher Education. In Upland. Indiana. A town smaller than the size of the university it hosts. A small part of me thinks this was the easier route, because I am far away from everything familiar, and don't have to battle for my family, or balance friends, or visit home. But then I really stop to think about where I am and what I'm doing. Not everyone would call making the step out here easy. I'm not by any means trying to toot my own horn here. What I find fascinating is what different people call easy. Sometimes I think that it would be harder for me to stay home. Because staying home would be a sacrifice. Staying home would mean putting my plans on hold. Staying home would mean I don't get to have a grand adventure. And that is really really hard. It's easier to be selfish, and serve myself.
My personal model of student development states that students grow best when they are faced with new knowledge, with something, anything, outside their comfort zone, and they integrate that into their lives. But I wonder if the reverse would be true. If a part of growth is learning how to be content inside a comfort zone. How to live life without a new challenge every day. Hmm. We'll see.
Interesting thoughts. For what reasons do you think that breaking comfort zones improves learning? Is it the shifting of mentalities and constantly providing new angles to approach the same issues?
ReplyDeleteI, too, have thoughts on comfort zones:
http://paulnurkkala.wordpress.com/2012/12/02/repost-pjamevangelism/
Yes. :) And more. A part of growth/development is altering your view/perspective to allow critical thinking type skills, and to be able to critically view the things around you. I don't think that happens effectively when you are consistently within your own perspective (i.e. comfort zone).
ReplyDeleteI'll look. :)
After reading your post, I do have a thought. I think our idea of comfort zone is a little different. You could say that in my experience my 'comfort zone' was being an RA and loving people. That said, if I had stayed in the same dorm, I would not have grown in the way I did by moving outside my comfort zone. My comfort zone now would arguably be (according to your def) working in Higher Ed. That said, I was incredibly comfortable in WA getting my MA in Lit. Too comfortable. And I wasn't growing. So perhaps I was moving into my comfort zone in moving to Indiana, but it was very out of comfort zoney to me, because it was different and challenging and not altogether comfortable. I think our God given talents and comfort zones are two closely related but different things...but I do like your thoughts.
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