Chapter 1 - Welcome

I admit to approaching this book with a little trepidation as to its merits because I found so little about it online, but based on my colleague's suggestion, it sounded like it integrated well with some of my philosophies on education - and the introduction gives me hope that it will do that.

So what the heck does "emptying the cup" (EtC per the author) mean anyway? It refers to providing an avenue for discussion and learning. It means giving full attention to the subject at hand without bringing in baggage to the interaction. One example Mendes provides actually reminded me of Horton - when he presumed his learner's needs rather than working with them to determine what they needed - that kind of baggage - assumption of expertise is doubly harmful. On one hand, the learners might not get meaningful learning as an academic might be prone to assuming they own the knowledge, and on the facilitator's side, that assumption can lead to a resistance of learning. Emptying the cup is really about bringing a freshness to social encounters to prevent issues like these.

We are social creatures and and learning as Mendes, says is a social experience. Even in self-directed learning, the learner is getting their information from something another person created, so communication, verbal or written is still key. So what this book proposes to do is to provide tips and exercises focuses on building relationships between facilitator and learner. 

Beyond social connections, emotions can and do support or impede learning processes. When I think about Bloom's Taxonomy, even that lowest level - simple retention of facts is affected if in a unhealthy emotional state. Mendes refers to Maslow's hierarchy of needs - that people need to feel safe before progressing up the hierarchy - and in learning, the space the facilitator creates in harmonizing the relationship is critical.