24 Dec 2017

Pathways back to Ralph intent

Someone asked in the Pathways discussion forum. "Really? There is no control if you indeed completed a project, other then answering to all the questions of Autoassessment before, then after? There is none. 

Pat Johnson and the 100 learning masters decided that Pathways as Ralph Smedley also intended will not be a pass/fail system. We will learn for ourselves and not be noted or judged or controlled.
Those who try to add to it, explaining that the VPE can use Easyspeak or another similar system to control what each of us does, deform the intent already.

Each Toastmaster going through a Path, levels and projects, is responsible for its own journey. The VP of Education is not there to control, but to help each of the club members grow, and create enjoyable meetings.

That was the Toastmasters spirit from the first day, and that will be again the Pathways way from now on. We do not come to toastmaster clubs to get initials after our names, initials that practically no one understands anyway. We do not come to become ACG or even DTM : we arrive to learn to speak better in public, to be with others in a good environment, and yes, on the way we do learn also leadership not only communication skills that are very much together. As Ralph always intended it.


Of course, the same thing can be viewed in different ways, as we can see these two house entrances - belonging to different London houses - similar or diverse. It depends only from the perspective we look at them, or in this case the way I took the photography. Not one way is the right one. Not one way of learning or going through our projects is the "one" and only way either. Yes, we can personalize them not only by choosing different Elective Projects, but also finding a common thread to a path, looking at it in a certain angle. 

We all grow in different ways. 

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