In the spirit of always questioning the world around us...
In class, we have been talking about the benefits and downsides of different methods of learning. The main argument seems to be that the most effective way of learning is to discover things for yourself and not to rely on others to hand-feed you every little fact.
The challenge of this method is that it is quite time-consuming. It also cannot really be tested in the standardized tests (which are currently so vital to success in school) because the outcome of such personal discovery cannot always be predicted or controlled. Personally, I quite enjoy learning by discovering the knowledge for myself, and I tend to remember things better that way.
In school, the main way we learn is through received knowledge, simply for time's sake. During American Studies, however, we try to discover things for ourselves as much as we can. We tend to do this via class discussion, and I believe that this poses a few problems.
First of all, when there is a certain piece of information or a certain conclusion that our teachers want us to arrive at by the end of the discussion, they tailor the conversation to meet their wishes. Sometimes it seems as if the class is having a discussion that has taken on a life of its own and that is yielding new discoveries, but then, the invisible hand of one of our teachers will come down and ask a question or make a comment that directs the conversation towards the exact place that they want it to go.
As the discussion draws to a close, the point that they are driving at becomes clearer and clearer, until finally, it is revealed.
The point that I am trying to make is that even though the entire class is contributing and participating during discussions, Mr. Bolos and Mr. O'Connor are always there in the background (and sometimes in the foreground) guiding the learning. So, even though we are "discovering" the knowledge for ourselves, they are determining what exactly we are going to discover.
There are, of course, some exceptions to this, and I do not think that it is an incorrect teaching method. In fact, I think that it makes for very interesting classes. I just think that we all have to bear in mind the fact that even discovered knowledge can be helped along by a teacher, and therefore, does not depend solely on the student's own discovery. The problem this poses is that
sometimes, received knowledge can feel like discovered knowledge.
Just something to be mindful of.
Any thoughts?
I don't think that there's anything wrong with received knowledge feeling like discovered knowledge. As a student, making these discoveries for yourself can be rewarding. It guides you to gain confidence in your own thinking process. But at the same time, I think that the "invisible hand" as you called it is essential to the learning process. With guidance, we are able to discover more than we would be able to without it. Also, any given class has a particular purpose, and direction is usually necessary to keep the focus of the class in that particular direction. In a learning environment, I think that this is really important. However, in later education, I feel that this invisible hand will have less of an influence, eventually allowing us to make broader discoveries on our own.
ReplyDelete