Schism

Split. Rift. Division. Fracture. Fissure.

Sometimes it's time to break up.

I've realized that my Magic blogging has taken on a life of its own, and thus it needs a place of its own.

I've created a new home for it on my new blog A Judge's Journey, where I will still be chronicling my path through the Magic: the Gathering judge program.

This allows my judge friends to read about the game we love and spares them the details of my personal life. It also removes the over technical judge-speak from my personal blog.  My hope is that this move creates a better experience for my readers of both types.

I welcome your thoughts and comments, and as always  Thanks for reading!

DDR and ZPD

You know that feeling when you make that jump? When you actually feel yourself get better at something? When something clicks in your head?

I did that tonight!

In our house we have an In the Groove arcade machine. It belongs to my brother-in-law who is overseas in the military. We play it sporadically, and lately we have been playing a lot. We have fun friends who come over and play with us and sometimes just my husband and I play for a workout. Tonight me, my husband, and a guest played for about 2.5 hours.

During that time, we each achieved new milestones.  The songs in the game have difficulty ratings ranging from 1 (easiest) to about 15(most difficult). For me, I passed my first 6. Our friend passed So Deep (a 9) with dramatically improved technique. My husband passed Determinator (a 12). I have been playing in the 3/4 range for years, and because my play was interrupted by pregnancies I never really advanced. Over the past few weeks I've been reaching for more. I've tried a few harder songs, but have just been unable to read them. Then tonight, it happened, I could just see it. My brain could make sense of things that yesterday it couldn't.

I'm not sure what changed exactly, but it did. Like riding a bike. Once you 'get it,' you never go back.  You may have days that are better than others, but you will never again go back to pre-getting it days.

The zone of proximal development, often abbreviated as ZPD, is the difference between what a learner can do without help and what he or she can do with help. It is a concept introduced, yet not fully developed, by Soviet psychologist Lev Vygotsky (1896–1934) during the last ten years of his life.

In my education courses in college, this effect was studied as Zone of Proximal Development or ZPD. When someone is in their ZPD they are at the point where they can learn the next step. If they are below their ZPD then they may be refining their technique or perfecting a talent, but they are not actively acquiring a new skill. If they are above their ZPD, they may learn bits and pieces, but they lack the scaffolding to truly understand and internalize the concept. This is not to say that there is not value in all three stages. However when you are trying to advance in a area of your life, you need to actively seek ZPD experiences.

In parenting, my ZPD is with my three-year-old.  My four-year-old and I think very much alike, so I feel like I understand her well and often play to her maturity and intellect to help her handle the stresses in her life. My baby's easy, happy disposition makes him a pure joy and he currently poses little challenge for me. My middle child's energetic personality and complete disregard for order and how things are 'supposed' to be confuses me. I don't understand how she thinks, but I am eager to understand her worldview. Luckily for me, she enjoys expounding on pretty much everything and has enough energy to put me in my place repeatedly. I feel like when I have success connecting with her, I am in my ZPD.

In my cooking, vegetables are my ZPD. I can grill just about any type of meat and I can produce a wide variety of pre-cooked side dishes. Breads and baking - well, I don't go there. But creating good tasting vegetables comprises my current endeavor . I enjoy purchasing a random vegetable (usually selected by my children) and then figuring out how to make it both nutritious and tasty.

In my Magic judging, my ZPD is currently floor judging at larger events.  Head Judging puts me in a little over my head, and floor judging a small event has become mundane. If I desire to advance, I will need to keep working with my mentors to find appropriate opportunities to develop my skills.

I could list examples all night because in every area of my life, I have a ZPD. And so do you! However some people actively seek out opportunities to improve, and others don't. Sometimes staying below that ZPD is safe and comfortable. Sometimes we get too ambitious and try to work about our ZPD which can lead to frustration and failure. Sometime we don't care about advancing a specific area or task, so the ZPD becomes irrelevant.

But tonight, I fought in my ZPD and won. I selected songs that challenged me, but that I could almost do.  After about 3 songs, I considered giving up.  I felt kinda tired, and my body suggested calling it a night. I almost did it, but I pushed through it. Sometimes that stubbornness manifests itself as determination and takes on a positive connotation.  I forced my legs to move when they wanted to rest and after about 2 hours they were doing things I never even imagined.

I'm so excited to have taken a giant leap tonight!  That feeling of success is what keeps a person coming back time after time (golfers, I'm talking to you!). So I'll leave you with the reminder that when frustration strikes, look for that 'next step' or ZPD and it will move you in the right direction even if you can't yet achieve your final goal!