Department of Science and Technology Education

What it means to be a life-long learner

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Ms. Jodi-Leigh Broadhurst, Junior Lecturer in the Department of Science and Technology Education, specialising in Life Science Education

The achievement-driven society that we find ourselves living in, prioritises academic success over informal, everyday learning. Children follow the natural course of academic training from grade-R all the way to Matric with the aim of being accepted into a tertiary education institution. This seems to be a natural process for many South Africans and is certainly fundamental to our country’s development. I recall, merely a decade ago, holding my matric certificate alongside my dear friends, deeming myself educated. This was, and still is, true, but attending high school and graduating cannot solely contribute to education.

Attending a tertiary education institution is a galvanising experience that hones the intellectual abilities of those who attend. What’s more, is that these institutions instil a sense of duty into budding academics to contribute to our existing body of knowledge. Once again, graduating with a tertiary degree is a phenomenal achievement and worthy of the praise and ceremony it gets. This too, for many people, myself included, adds to our label of educated.

However, one does not only learn within the four walls of a classroom or a lecture hall. One learns from the successes and failures of life, from travelling the world, from cutting wood in the garage with their father, from making macaroni and cheese with their mother, from struggling financial hardship and from reading a novel. Humanity is learning everyday, on a plethora of different levels. Simply existing in our environments mandates constant learning adaptation. It is important that we do not dismiss the opportunities for knowledge attainment in our day-to-day lives.

Being in the professional position for many years to help others learn, taught me much more than I ever anticipated. Sure, the content knowledge I had was to be imparted to those eager minds before me, but in their presence, I learned compassion, language, empathy, dance, tradition and, most importantly, humanity.

The world is our classroom and we need only acknowledge the skills and lessons on offer to us as we live out our time on Earth. Remarkably, our species is capable of learning something new our whole lives. In fact, learning something new every day helps preserve our capacity for learning. Being a lifelong learner is fundamental to preserving our cognitive faculties as we age. This proves that learning is not restricted to formal education and is not constrained to a specific period in one’s life but is a constant lifelong experience.

Presently, I stand at the foothill of my career in academia, pursuing, everyday, my dream to become a Professor and contribute to Educational practices in South Africa. However, as I continue to learn daily, new recipes, new technology skills, how to create and innovate- a big dream I have, is that I never lose sight of the opportunity to learn above and beyond what can be found in academic literature. I can too only hope that those that happen to learn from me, find ways to composite their own set of knowledge in a similar way.

#Moleboheng Ramulumo

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Publish date: 2021/11/19

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