The Courage to Learn: Honoring the Complexity of Learning for Educators and Students

by Catherine M. Wehlburg, Laura I. Rendón (Foreword), Estrus Tucker (Afterword)

It takes courage to engage in the kind of deep, transformational learning that so many people need in their lives, and this book is designed to help find and nurture that courage in learners, including those that are engaged in facilitating the courageous learning of others. Inspired by Parker Palmer’s classic book, The Courage to Teach, the authors have carefully examined the learning side of the teaching and learning relationship, and this book shares the resulting wealth of knowledge and experience with readers.This book is informed by Palmer’s observation that the conversations in teaching can be organized around four what, how, why and who. In this book, the authors center learning instead of teaching as they What is the content of learning? How do we learn? Why is it necessary, what motivates us? And, who is the self that learns?The authors have engaged in conversation with adult learners across the lifespan, representing different ages, social/economic levels, and approaches to learning. Drawing on these discussions, their own experiences, and the scholarly literature, they weave a tapestry with threads of learning and teaching, story, and analysis that serve as warp and weft. The authors pay tribute to the learner’s journey in the fullness of the process and name the distinct forms of courage that learning takes. In the concluding chapter, the authors explore the implications for educational practice, and offer guidance for any educator wishing to bring a Courage to Learn conversation to their community.

196 pages, Paperback

Published April 10, 2023

About the author

Dr. Catherine Wehlburg is currently the executive director of the Office for Assessment and Quality Enhancement at Texas Christian University. Prior to this, she worked as the director of the William H. Koehler Center for teaching Excellence, also at Texas Christian University.

She earned a Ph.D. in educational psychology from the University of Florida in 1992 and took a faculty position at Stephens College in 1991 where she taught in the psychology department and began to explore the interplay between faculty development and assessment at the university level.

Dr. Wehlburg has edited or coedited four volumes of To Improve the Academy (Anker, 2001-2004) and has published several articles and book chapters on assessment and faculty development. In 1998 she worked as a senior associate at the American Association for Higher Education in the Assessment Forum while on sabbatical. In addition, she has been a consultant-evaluator for the Higher learning Commission and for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.