In a recent article for The New Yorker, James Somers reflects on the ways A.I. tools are reshaping the work of software engineers.
It’s a fascinating read, with insights that could just as easily be applied to other fields. But what struck me about the article wasn’t its exploration of AI. Instead, it was an obscure Latin phrase — ‘pons asinorum’.
Recalling his early attempts to learn coding from Ivor Horton’s Beginning Visual C++, Somers writes:
‘Like many tutorials, it was easy at first and then, suddenly, it wasn’t. Medieval students called the moment at which casual learners fail the pons asinorum, or “bridge of asses.” The term was inspired by Proposition 5 of Euclid’s Elements I, the first truly difficult idea in the book. Those who crossed the bridge would go on to master geometry; those who didn’t would remain dabblers. Section 4.3 of “Beginning Visual C++,” on “Dynamic Memory Allocation,” was my bridge of asses. I did not cross.’
As a dabbler in many trades and a master of relatively few, this term resonated with me. It also got me thinking about the way we approach threshold concepts in L&D, and how we determine which bridges learners need to cross.
Recently, I’ve been working with a client to design an onboarding program. Through our needs analysis, we’ve determined that new starters in the organization need to be able to conceptualize and discuss risk with their colleagues. A smaller subset of this group needs to perform calculations to assess specific risks and quantify their impact.
In this example, the pons asinorum is the distance between the ability to identify potential risks and the ability to rate those risks on a scale.
As the majority of our audience doesn’t need to be able to perform these kinds of calculations, there is no reason to force them across this particular bridge. Instead, we can simply tailor our intervention to the requirements of both groups — the core group explores basic concepts around risk, while the second cohort receives additional support on risk assessment.
Ideally, the members of this smaller cohort will have been recruited for their risk-management expertise, and will have crossed the pons asinorum long before taking on their new roles. They may need specific instruction on organizational processes, but they’re unlikely to be starting from scratch.
But suppose, for argument’s sake, that this isn’t the case. Suppose that the smaller cohort has no more experience with risk than the group as a whole. Under these conditions, how would we help learners make the journey from dabblery to mastery?
Before answering that question, let’s return to the case of James Somers.
As we already know, “Dynamic Memory Allocation” was the writer’s pons asinorum. He didn’t cross the bridge, but he didn’t give up either:
‘I remember the moment things began to turn. I was on a long-haul flight, and I’d brought along a boxy black laptop and a CD-rom with the Borland C++ compiler. […] I have a distinct memory of lying on my stomach in the airplane aisle, and then hitting Enter one last time. I sat up. The computer, for once, had done what I’d told it to do.’
To me, this paragraph illustrates one of the inherent limitations of instructional materials that attempt to build competency at scale, whether that be a book on coding or a course on risk management: people learn at different paces, and require different levels of support to master complex ideas.
While Somers stumbled at “Dynamic Memory Allocation”, another programmer might have crossed this bridge without any difficulty. By the same token, someone else might have run into difficulty long before Somers did.
So, what could we do to address this limitation in our onboarding program?
As a starting point, we could test learners upfront to assess their current capabilities, then populate the intervention with content that’s tailored to their level. We could also use a ‘flipped classroom’ approach, where learners explore key concepts independently at their own pace, then collaborate with peers and/or an instructor to complete assignments and work through sticking points.
Looking ahead, one of the most exciting possibilities about AI (did I trick you into thinking this article wasn’t about AI? 😉) is the potential for every learner to have a personal tutor, who can guide them across the pons asinorum at their own pace. If Somers had access to GPT-4 when he was studying C++, he might just have crossed the bridge a little sooner.
Need help guiding learners across the ‘pons asinorum’? To discuss your custom learning requirements, just email custom@mindtools.com or reply to this newsletter from your inbox.
🎧 On the podcast
Ever launch a workshop that no one attended or an e-learning module that nobody accessed? It’s surprisingly common — and one reason is that we’re not always great at marketing our L&D initiatives.
In this week’s episode of the podcast, Owen and I seek to reverse this outcome with the help of Ashley Sinclair from MAAS Marketing – the world’s only (we think) marketing agency focusing specifically on L&D.
Check out the episode below. 👇
You can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, Spotify or the podcast page of our website. Want to share your thoughts? Get in touch @RossDickieMT, @RossGarnerMT or #MindToolsPodcast
📖 Deep dive
Over the last year, one of my go-to resources for keeping track of developments in AI has been Ethan Mollick’s newsletter, One Useful Thing.
In a recent edition, Mollick explains how his team at Wharton has used AI to rebuild their internal processes and drive efficiency.
While Mollick argues there is no ‘central authority’ that can tell you the best ways to use AI in your organization, he believes there are three general principles leaders and managers should bear in mind when implementing the technology:
Let teams develop their own methods - Instead of treating AIs as external IT solutions, view them as additional team members and set clear guidelines that allow employees to experiment.
Build for the oncoming future - Given the pace of development, establish policies and processes that can adapt to future iterations of today’s models.
You don’t have time - Prioritize short-term experiments over top-down solutions that take months or years to implement. If you don’t, you risk being left behind.
Mollick, E. (2023). ‘Reshaping the tree: Rebuilding organizations for AI’. One Useful Thing.
👹 Missing links
🤯 Learn ‘critical ignoring’ to beat information overload
According to the authors of this article, critical thinking is insufficient in the age of information overload. To cope in this age, they argue, we also need to develop ‘critical ignoring’ — the ability to choose what to ignore and where to invest our attention. One strategy for developing this ability is to change the ‘choice architecture’ within our digital environments, either by muting notifications or setting specific times when messages can be received.
🧖♂️ Why Finland is the happiest country in the world
Over the last few years, I’ve discovered a passion for swimming. I enjoy being in water, and the low-impact nature of the sport gives my knees a welcome break from running. But, if I’m honest, the main reason I go to the pool is for the post-swim sauna. In this delightful article, Miranda Bryant explores the contribution of the sauna to Finnish culture, and the various roles it plays in daily life.
After my warm-and-fuzzy, perhaps overly sweet, Thanksgiving edition of the Dispatch, this takedown of learning styles by Mirjam Neelen and Paul A. Kirschner was just the palate-cleanser I needed. Despite the fact that the concept of learning styles has been widely critiqued and effectively debunked as a theory, the idea appears stubbornly persistent - in fact, I saw it referenced in an academic paper when researching this week’s issue. (Shoutout to Joan Keevill for bringing this to my attention.)
👋 And finally…
If, like me, you ever find yourself wondering ‘Is the dollar-to-pound exchange rate ‘correct’?’, then look no further than The Economist’s ‘Big Mac Index’. Before you tell me this isn’t a reliable gauge of currency alignment, I should say that I’m not looking for an argument. I don’t want any beef.
👍 Thanks!
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