The Weekend Learners — Rise of an Educational Phenomenon
I agree that education is a never ending process, but I’d like to reinforce the fact with another statement, giving it a new meaning. That is, education is an inevitable process. We are constantly educating ourselves at different scales and at different rates. From learning how to use a feature on an app to learning a new art, education can be anything new that you adopt. Learning something new is what excites me the most. However small it maybe, I value it greatly. Simply because it makes me feel good. I once attended a design workshop where I learnt the art and psychology of design. I cannot describe the excitement it gave me. But I was also equally excited when my friend taught me the best way to hold a book. Irrespective of age, situation and culture, we are constantly educating ourselves at any given point of time.
I often go out of my way to learn things that are perceived as difficult, that requires time and effort. The latest of my endeavors was taking up a two weekend workshop on Charcoal sketching. Now this was a matter of eight hours a day, for two weekends and it cost me all my savings. With a strong doubt of being able to sketch after the workshop and a stronger determination to earn myself a hobby, I stepped in for the first class on a bright Saturday morning.
By the end of the workshop, I not only learnt the basics of sketching but also made my first portrait in the last class. It wasn’t just me, but the entire class of 13 people made their first portrait. Though it was just enough to start us off with our sketching journey, considering the amount of time we spent on it, the learning was quite quick.
It was at the end of this two weekend workshop, I realized that there is a new educational phenomenon that was arising in the 21st century educational revolution, especially in metropolitan cities — the rise of the weekend learners. I had a conversation with the organizer of the workshop and later that evening I did my share of secondary research on the internet to know that weekend workshops are gaining exponential demand. Here are the reasons that the demand is continuing to sky rocket.
1. Weekend learners live a mundane life with their full time job or running their business or just going to school/college.
2. The world demands quick adaptation, for we live in a time where the latest technology becomes outdated in four months. Some take it up out of interest alone.
3. Networking is the most valuable take-away for those enrolling for these workshops. Socializing with new people who share the same interests as yours is a boon.
4. They have the money. Yes, it caters for those who are financially sound, with a strong determination to learn.
Is money a hurdle?
Well, not really. Weekend learners who are not financially sound (not considering the ones below poverty line) aren’t left out either. I find myself falling in both the categories, since my financial status keeps fluctuating. The internet comes to rescue and delivers the best. Online courses are getting cheaper due to competition in the market and that has empowered the weekend learners. For those weekend learners who still can’t afford the online courses, they turn to the best educational platforms there is — YouTube and Google!
There are people offering to teach online for free, sharing tips and ideas to enhance existing skills. This is positively disrupting the education system in many ways. Homework doesn’t take long now, weekend learning kids would rather spend the time learning what their teacher/professor doesn’t know. It is empowering the weekend learners to procure knowledge online during their free time. Weekend learners go out of their way and take that extra step to acquire the knowledge they want. Age is not a hurdle for them, their child-like curiosity nurtures with age. They are wise decision makers and are amazing to hang out with, for they have a lot of interesting experience to share. They act with an intention to make a difference and most importantly, they know how to mind their own business.
To know that the population of weekend learners are rising, makes me hopeful. I see a tomorrow with curious, positive, empathetic and super fun people in a progressive society that believes in the fact that, ‘the only way to grow is to grow together.’
