Getting attuned!

Without support, finding where we fit can be hard

Several weeks ago, I wrote about how we have an existential need to find where we fit in our world (see here) or, put another way, we have a need to be attuned with our world.

Research indicates that it takes about 18 months to get fully up to speed in a new job, and for adults who have experienced this, they can feel pretty inadequate and down during this time.

It is this experience that young people have when they make a shift in consciousness.  They are leaving one way of making sense of the world and moving into another to which they are not yet attuned.  They can become depressed, disengaged and anxious, learning outcomes will often suffer.

Historically, secondary schooling held young people within the ‘Conformist’ level of consciousness*, and the shift to ‘Expert’ took place sometime after schooling was over.  This shift is the most difficult that most people will ever face in their lives.

In my book I present evidence that young people are beginning to make this shift whilst still at school, in an environment that was built to support young people at the Conformist level, not during a transition.

A small number of teachers already form the types of relationship with students that provide the support that they need and help them attune, find where they fit, in this new world.

This issue will only become greater over time.

It makes sense to have adults in a school develop this capability as part of their professional practice.  These are learnable skills, which take persistent practice to develop over time.

The earlier we begin, the better.

* see my latest book Why We Teach (you can download a pdf version here) which explains these different levels, what they mean and provides evidence that young people are shifting earlier than in the past.

John Corrigan is an expert in helping individuals to bring their whole of mind to their daily life and increase their effectiveness and the effectiveness of those around them. This expertise scales from the individual to the team to the organisation. At the core of this work is the practice of encounter.  Earlier blogs can be found here.

• To purchase a copy of Red Brain Blue Brain, Student Feedback or Why We Teach go here