Learning Stages

08/30/21

Novice

Advanced beginners work on things on their own relying on their recent experiences and without being given step-by-step instructions.
When problems arise, they have difficulty troubleshooting.
They want information fast—without the lengthy theory or without being spoon-fed the basics.
They start formulating some principles.
They have no holistic understanding and aren’t that eager about it yet.

Competents develop conceptual models of how things work (or should work).
They can troubleshoot most problems on their own—including those they haven’t faced before.
They seek out expert advice and are able to use it effectively.
They are often described as “having initiative” and being “resourceful”.
They can take on leadership roles or mentor the novices.

Proficient practitioners want to see the big picture.
They are frustrated by oversimplified information.
They can correct previous poor task performance, reflect and revise their approach to perform better next time.
They learn from the experience of others.
They know when to not follow the plan, and can identify what needs to be done instead.
They understand and apply maxims, which are proverbial, fundamental truths that have to be applied within a certain context.

Experts are the primary sources of knowledge and information.
They continually look for better ways of doing things.
They can be amazingly intuitive but may also be completely inarticulate as to how they arrived at a conclusion.
They know which details to focus on and which details can be safely ignored.
Know when to deviate from rules

From the book Pragmatic Thinking and Learning: Refactor Your “Wetware”, a summary of Dreyfus model of skill acuisition.