“To begin with, newcomers’ legitimate peripherality provides them with more than an “observational” lookout post: It crucially involves participation as a way of learning- of both absorbing and being absorbed in- the “culture of practice.” (pg. 95)
The authors go on to say that apprenticeship “offers exemplars (which are grounds and motivation for learning activity), including masters, finished products, and more advanced apprentices in the process of becoming exemplars.”
To think about learning outside of the context of school really helped me to get some understanding of what apprenticeship is and to gain some insight into their definition of learning, though my understanding is far from complete. As an education student embarking on her middle field experience, I can truly relate to the authors definition of apprenticeship. Apprenticeship requires that the participant engage in their learning in a way that the classroom setting truly does not, at least on the surface. When you are thrust into what is essentially an unfamiliar, new, and scary environment you are motivated in a real and serious way to learn. Figuring out the school culture, teaching style of your mentor, lay of the land, student behavior, and so forth are key to success as a student teacher and the quicker you learn these things the better. This is true, I would assume, of most apprenticeship experiences.
As I said before, this is kind of a different experience than the kind of learning that goes on in the classroom. I say “kind of” because this article made me think more about school culture and the kind of learning that does take place. Just as an apprentice in the field learns what he/she needs to know to be successful, so to does the student in the school. This raises some questions regarding what students need to know in the classroom to be successful? It seems to me that buying into what these authors are saying about learning and apprenticeship would require us to drastically rethink the assessments that we generate to evaluate learning in the classroom.
The statement that you made that struck me the most was about bein thrust into a new environment. I think that you make a good point about this. When you are put into an environment where you do not know anything, people are more motivated to learn. I tend to think of this in relation to being thrown into a country that speaks a different language. People tend to learn the language quicker when put in the situation where they have to learn it. When someone is put in this situation, they are seriously motivated, as you say, to learn the language in order to make their lives easier. This is similar to being thrown into just about any unknown situation, I think.