I have been writing for some time about the way some people (me included) learn backwards rather than forwards. And it seems to have hit a nerve. I have had several people tell me that it makes sense to them , that they understand why they have been finding it difficult to learn the way everybody else does, that they no longer feel alone or left out!
So I have decided to start a new movement – a movement of Backward Learners!
No longer will it be seen as odd to read the end of a book before the beginning!
No longer will you feel afraid of knowing the answer without knowing how you got there!
No longer will you accept that everything has to start at the beginning and work towards the end!
Soon everyone will understand that some of us are Backward Learners and that it is O.K. Yes, we will still have to put up with a world designed for Forward Learners, we will still have to answer questions about why we do things the way we do, we will still struggle to help others understand us.
But, I now believe that there are enough of us to make a difference! We are not alone! We can stand up and proudly accept who we are!
We work, and learn, Backwards. This is no better or no worse than those who learn Forwards, who like ordered lists, who start at #1 and go through to #10, who don’t know what the ending of anything will be, who don’t have our vision of the future, who find it difficult to take leaps of faith …..
I could go on but I am sure – that if you are a Backward Learner – you understand. If you are a Forward Learner, don’t despair, we are not dangerous, we will not shake the foundations of the educational system – well not yet anyway – you are safe in your straightforward approach to learning. We don’t seek to oust you from your position of prominence in schools and other learning institutions.
But we do need to be accepted for who we are, we do need to be allowed to learn the way we learn best, we do need to be acknowledged and rewarded for all our hard work.
Our time has come!
If you have ever struggled to do well in school, if you have ever wondered why some people found it easier to learn than you did, if you ever knew that you were bright even when your grades, and other people, said otherwise, then you too are probably a Backward Learner!
I urge you to stand up and be counted! I implore you to take your rightful place in society! We have been ignored and misunderstood for too long.
We can bend the world to our needs. The world needs our vision and our persistence and adaptability, skills that we have developed as a way of handling the Forward Learning world we live in.
Are you a Backward Learner?
Accept it, work with it, use it to help you – and your child – reach your dreams.
Our time is NOW!
Please add your comments below and let us start a movement!
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