As an e-learning consultant and a student of Zen, I’ve found myself at an intriguing intersection of modern educational technology and more traditional, reflective practices. Given this, I’d like to muse a bit on some of the insights gained from Zen and how I’ve used it to challenge some of our work in edtech and online learning.

The Efficiency Paradox in E-Learning

In the world of e-learning, we’re constantly striving for efficiency. Our goal is often to:

• Break down complex topics into digestible modules
• Create bite-sized microlearning experiences
• Streamline content for quick consumption

This approach has its merits, especially in our fast-paced, information-rich world. However, my Zen practice has revealed a crucial counterpoint: some forms of learning simply can’t—and shouldn’t—be condensed.

Lessons from Actual Koan Practice

A significant part of my Zen training involves working with koans in dokusan (private interviews with a teacher). For those unfamiliar, koans are brief stories, dialogues, or questions from the Zen tradition that point toward the nature of reality beyond conceptual thinking. My experience with koan study in a Western Zen center has illuminated several key principles that challenge conventional e-learning wisdom:

1. The Intimacy of One-on-One Learning

In traditional koan practice, students work privately with a teacher in dokusan. These are short, intense meetings where the student presents their understanding of a koan. This process is:

• Highly personalized: The teacher responds to exactly where each student is in their understanding
• Immediate and visceral: There’s no hiding behind written responses or multiple choice answers
• Relationship-based: Trust and familiarity between teacher and student deepens over months and years

The most transformative learning often happens in direct, personal encounters that can’t be scaled or automated. Some insights emerge only through the specific chemistry between particular teachers and students.

2. Learning Through Repeated Failure

Unlike typical educational models that aim for steady progress, koan study involves repeated encounters with the same material over weeks, months, or even years. Arguably, it is the study of one key concept that is broken out and refracted through many different iterations. In this way, students typically present their understanding multiple times and are turned away, return to the same koan with fresh perspectives after months of practice, and experience breakthrough moments that can’t be predicted or programmed. In short, some forms of mastery require a tolerance for sustained confusion and apparent “failure.” The learning happens in the repeated returning, not in a linear progression through content.

3. Embodied Understanding vs. Intellectual Knowledge

Contemporary koan practice emphasizes that intellectual analysis, while valuable, isn’t the goal. Students learn to:

• Express understanding through presence and spontaneous response rather than explanation
• Embody insights in their daily life and sitting practice
• Recognize the difference between knowing about something and actually realizing it

Not all learning is informational. Some knowledge is transformational and must be realized through direct experience rather than transmitted through content delivery.

4. Community Context and Shared Practice

While koan work happens in private dokusan, it’s supported by a broader community of practitioners. Individual learning thrives within a committed community of practice, even when the actual learning moments are private and non-transferable.

Balancing Efficiency and Depth in E-Learning Design

As professionals, we face the challenge of balancing the need for efficiency with the importance of deeper, more transformative learning experiences. Here are some strategies informed by koan practice:

• Create Space for Direct Encounter: Design opportunities for real-time, personalized feedback rather than relying solely on pre-programmed responses.
• Honor the Learning Process: Allow for repetition, revisiting, and apparent “failure” as natural parts of deep learning rather than obstacles to overcome.
• Distinguish Information from Transformation: Clearly identify which learning objectives require personal realization versus information transfer, and design accordingly.
• Build Sequenced Mystery: Create learning paths that provide structure while preserving genuine discovery and surprise.
• Support Individual Work with Community: Even in self-paced courses, find ways to connect learners who are engaged in similar challenges.

To Conclude

Koan practice has taught me that some of the most valuable learning (the kind that actually changes how we see and respond to the world) cannot be packaged into modules or delivered through content. It emerges through sustained engagement, personal relationship, and the willingness to not-know.

This doesn’t invalidate e-learning’s efficiency or accessibility. Rather, it suggests we need greater discernment about when to optimize for convenience and when to create space for the kind of learning that can only happen slowly, relationally, and through direct encounter.

Questions for fellow e-learning professionals:

• How might we create more opportunities for genuine not-knowing in our courses?
• What would it look like to design learning experiences that honor failure as part of the process?
• How can we better distinguish between learning objectives that benefit from efficiency versus those that require sustained engagement?

By grappling with these questions, we can evolve our practice to better serve learners in an increasingly complex and interconnected world.