Aloha, I’m Dr. Gene,
I would like to tell you about my background and why I think we can help each other. Everyone is different, so don’t judge me based on your standards and perceptions. I am not bragging or exalting my life; I am just sharing the facts. By sharing what I had to deal with growing up, I hope someone somewhere can find commonalities in their life and be comforted.
I mentioned in my letter that I grew up in a house full of intelligent people. My dad started school in the second half of first grade when he was only five. He graduated from high school with good grades when he was 16. My mom had to drop out of school when she was in the seventh grade to take care of her mom, but she could hold her own with the rest of the family.
My older sister was a straight-A student, and my younger sister and brother were both good in school.
I struggled with learning all my life. I usually got Cs, Ds, and Fs, with the occasional B and seldom A. I was very immature and naive. This made me a moron compared to the rest of my family. God called me to teach when I was 13, but I ignored it because I had so much trouble learning. After high school, I went to Bible college and flunked grade-wise, so the school board voted to let me graduate with a non-degree standard diploma.
After college, God called me again to teach. I questioned God, “How can I teach if I cannot learn myself?” God told me He would send the Holy Spirit to teach me how to learn. Those of you who believe in the Bible know that what is written in it is true, so Luke 11:11-13 will be true. If we ask, God will send the Holy Spirit with the right answer.
Since I first asked, the Holy Spirit has been teaching me how I learn. My struggles with learning were not due to my ignorance or that I was mentally challenged. It was because I learned so much differently than everyone else. Once I learned how I learn, I wanted to teach others how they can learn too. God wanted me to get the credentials necessary to help the general public to learn. I enrolled in an online university and graduated with a Bachelor's degree in elementary education with the highest honors. Then, I enrolled in another online university and graduated with a Master's degree in elementary education and with Hawaiian teaching credentials, also with the highest honors. After this, God said I was not finished with my education because I needed a doctorate degree.
I learned that a Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) was different than a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), even if the Ph.D. was in education. An Ed.D. is an expert in the knowledge of the field of study, in this case, Education. A Ph.D. is an expert in seeking out and applying new knowledge in the field of study. God wanted me to pursue the study of psychology, especially pertaining to how we learn. I applied to Grand Canyon University for the Doctor of Philosophy in General Psychology with an emphasis on cognition and instruction. The short way to say it is a Ph.D in Psychology, emphasizing how our minds work.
When I became a Ph.D. doctor in December 2019, God wanted me to take a short break and then work on three big projects.
The first project was to write curriculum and establish a formal online education institute. Victorious Christian Life Academy came about to help people from all levels of education have the opportunity to get an education at their own level and their own pace. The instructor guides the students as they discover how they learn in their own unique way. Learning how you learn will enable you to learn with more retention and much faster than before.
Everyone passes at Victorious Christian Life Academy (VCLA), not by changing a low grade to a higher grade, but by working with the student until they earn a passing grade. This is the accurate and proper way to fulfill the phrase “No student left behind.” I did a study on the phrase when I was working on my Master’s degree. The politicians messed up this phrase so severely that few people know the true intent: it was supposedly about the students, not federal money.
The second project was to write books. The first book is now finished, titled Wonderfully and Uniquely Made: A Layman's Guide to God’s Greatest Creation. It is about how to exist in a world that wants you to be the same, but you are uniquely made. One way does not work for everyone. We all learn differently, so why do we have to learn the way the rest of the class learns? We all think and perceive things differently, so why do we argue when it’s the same thing, just described and said differently? I put up a sign in the shop that I supervised, “There is more than one right way to do things safely.” We need to get along with each other and learn best practices from each other. Who knows, they may have a better way of doing things, or you may do things better.
The third project is “Glean From Dr. Gene.” I didn’t know where this project was going. I only knew that God wanted me to share all the things that God taught me with as many people as possible. “Glean From Dr. Gene” has now evolved into this website. This project also includes sharing this website on social media.
A little personal note is that because of my background of being different than most people, I tend to say the same thing in different ways over and over again. Some are closely related and have a lot of commonalities. This often causes some people to think I’m saying the same thing over and over again because they understand what I’m saying in different ways. Their mind perceives it as being the same. Repeating the information in many different ways causes some people to think I ramble on a lot. When I get to know someone, I usually automatically steer what I am saying for them personally. When two or three people I know are together, I usually say things two or three times.
I believe God gave me the gift of teaching. Not in a classroom, no offense, but almost anyone can be trained to do that. The gift of teaching is, first, the God-given talent to understand things in many different ways, and second, the ability to guide the student to the answer. Presenting information in just one way and demanding that this is the only meaning is not teaching. We all understand and perceive things differently, and we also all understand and perceive things differently from one time to another. The environment around us constantly changes, so our understandings and perceptions change. Our mood constantly changes, so our understandings and perceptions change. We are absorbing new information, so our understandings and perceptions change. Sorry, you are not the same person you were five minutes ago.
Actual teaching is not giving students information. The teacher guides the students to understanding. If the teacher only gives information, then the students who can memorize very well will be the only ones who so-called “learn.” Memorizing is not learning. Learning takes place when the student can repeat the information in their own unique way and use the information in their own unique way. A gifted teacher will be able to confirm whether the student’s uniqueness is correct or not.
I presented a lot of information in the hope that you would have a few questions. We all understand and perceive things differently, so if you want confirmation that the way you understood and perceived this information is correct, ask! That is why my motto is “Remember! If you don’t understand, ASK!