Dr. Theo Dawson - Something You Can Practice

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Theo Linda Dawson, Ph.D. (U.C. Berkeley, 1998) is the Executive Director of Lectica, Inc. Dr. Dawson—a recovering serial entrepreneur whose mid-life crisis led to an advanced degree in human development—has practiced midwifery, run several businesses, taught at Harvard and Hampshire College, published numerous peer-reviewed academic articles, and received several awards for her developmental research.  

During the last 25 years, Dawson and her colleagues—using novel developmental research methods—have created (1) a powerful approach to measuring learning & development, (2) several written response assessments that measure the complexity level of real-world skills, (3) a universal learning model (VCoL+7™), and (4) a fundamental learning practice (Micro-VCoLing™) that optimizes skill development. She and her team are dedicated to ensuring that humans of all ages have an opportunity to realize their full developmental potential by making these tools freely available to anyone who teaches the world’s children.

Quotes From This Episode

• "We define skills as 'something you can practice.'"
• "The dopamine/opioid cycle is a cycle in the brain (probably from a natural perspective, most used for learning and love). It is the fundamental process that supports learning... you get a certain amount of satisfaction from that periodic achievement."
• "The highest level thinkers are the people with an enormous amount of experience and expertise - plus more diverse expertise."
• "We should not be privileging that the academy is the way to learn at all. We should actually be prioritizing expertise... the ability to build skill over time to the point where you have expertise."

Resources Mentioned In This Episode

• VUCA Unpacked #1 - Introduction
• VUCA Unpacked #2 - Collaborative Capacity
• VUCA Unpacked #3 - Perspective Coordination
• VUCA Unpacked #4 - Contextual Thinking
• VUCA Unpacked #5 - Design Making Process

About The International Leadership Association (ILA)

• The ILA was created in 1999 to bring together professionals with a keen interest in the study, practice, and teaching of leadership. Plan now for ILA's 24th Global Conference online October 6 & 7, 2022, and/or onsite in Washington, D.C., October 13-16, 2022.

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