Thursday, November 12, 2009

Learning

I have taken many different classes in my lifetime, from here at the University of Illinois, in high school, even all of the way back to middle and grade school when I was homeschooled. I would also say, for the most part, I have learned a lot from these classes. I have also had many experiences in my life, again, most of which I would say I have learned something from. The topic of this blog pertains to the questions of “how do I know I have learned something” and “how can I convince others I have learned something”.

Probably the simplest way of showing that you learned something is to perform some demonstration to prove that you are capable of doing what you said you learned. In the case of school, this is brought forth in the ubiquitous “final exam”, wherein students are required to prove to the professor that they have learned something by providing the correct answers to the questions on the test. However, I personally think that talking about school learning is somewhat dry, so I will try to focus on type of learning with more non-tangible results.

When I say that I guess I am thinking more along the lines of skills such as patience, love, humility, really all of the Fruit of the Spirit, as put forth in Galatians 5:22-23 or other works of righteousness in Colossians 3:12. How do we know when we have learned these skills, and how do we show that to others? Whereas in school we were given written tests, these skills are “tested” by our daily action. I can say that a certain experience, say getting caught in a traffic jam, taught me patience, but how do I prove it? The manifestation of my having learn patience is my ability to be patient with those around me. Thus, we are constantly being tested on what we have learned.

I am struggling with what to write next, because questions such as “how do you ever truly learn patience?” or “how can I be perfectly humble?” and “if so, have I ever really learned these things?” or “if not, then what am I learning?” are running through my mind. However, even as I am thinking this, I am realizing that the exact same questions could be applied to school. “Can I ever really learn fluid mechanics” or “can I truly master thermodynamics?”

I guess I am concluding that any sentence which starts off “I learned …” should probably be reworded “I increased my knowledge…” (or something equivalent, but less dorky) because “learned” is past tense, and indicates that there is nothing else to be learned. I supposed it would be okay to say “I have learned my multiplication tables”, because (hopefully) all of us have perfectly mastered that concept. That being said, however, most of us use the phrase “I learned…” to indicate that there experience helped them to add to their knowledge of a particular topic.

I have muddled around in a lot of topics, so will try to bring some focus to this reflection as I conclude. (I admit that for whatever reason, I really struggled to write this reflection, and realize that even now what I have isn’t that good. However, in his other blog, Prof. Arvan bemoans the fact that students are such perfectionists, so I suppose I will just alleviate his concerns!) Basically, in my mind the answer to the question is somewhat trivial: we demonstrate our having learned something by putting it in action. I can say that I have learned something and may internally believe that I have, but, whether I like it or not, my learning is manifested by the external display of my actions/abilities.

8 comments:

  1. I wish you had spent a tad more time with the school part to frame it slightly differently, because I think it would have helped you with the second part of the essay. On the school part, the question I'd want to know is the night before the exam after you've made your preparations, do you feel ready? How do you know you are ready? And then is feeling ready tantamount to saying to yourself that you've learned the stuff. If so, there may be a contrast with your last paragraph, unless you've had to put something else in action aside from the exam itself to assure yourself that you are indeed ready.

    Had you worked through that, you might then have asked an analogous question, are you ready to be patient the next time a stressful situation arises, where staying patient may be a challenge? How do you know you are ready? I believe to answer this you have to know things about yourself that are beyond what it means to be patient. You have to know how to keep your anxiety from taking over your behavior. (If you learn that fully you could give me a lesson on it. I definitely haven't mastered that.)

    Finally, there is the issue of what you "put into action" whether that is visible only to you, so you'd know you've learned or not but nobody else will, or if it is visible to others. The night before the exam you might know how you'll do. Nobody else knows at that time.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Prof. Arvan,
    Your comments helped me see more of the intent of the prompt. If I had had the thought of "the night before the exam", I am sure my essay would have been different.

    ReplyDelete
  3. There is still time to modify/amplify your previous post or write an extended comment that does similar things.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Argggh. You caught my "out" and are pressuring me to do what I "don't want to do". That is how we learn, I guess!

    I will try to discuss this topic further in light of the test I just took a few minutes ago. Going into the test I felt very confident that the test would be, for lack of a better word, easy. My reasons for thinking this were that I had paid attention in class, and have always felt that I understood the content very well. (Although it really has no bearing on this comment, the class is “signal processing”.) Basically, the actual number of topics covered was relatively small, but the topics were discussed in great detail. I felt that I had a very good concept of how everything fit together, evidenced by the fact that I had done very well on the previous few homework assignments. Simply put, I felt I had learned the material.

    The obvious question is, “now that I have taken the test do I feel the same way?” The answer is “yes”, but now my reasons are different. Before I confirmed my having learned the material by going over in my mind and feeling that I had a good grasp on it, but without actually being tested on it. Now, I have been asked questions about the material, and feel that the correct answers were in my “database of knowledge”. However, my reasons for feeling this way are still internal. I have not actually looked up any answers- I just feel that I “knew” all of the questions.

    The conclusion to the example remains to be seen. In a few days I will get the test back and will then have concrete facts as to whether I got the questions right or wrong. It is at that point that I will be able to affirm to other people that I did indeed know the material; right now the only thing I have to go on is my internal feelings. Therefore, my proof to others of having learned the material is a good grade on the test.

    The final thing that I would like to consider is “what if I feel that I did well on the test, but actually didn’t?” I suppose the answer is that I need to modify my definition of “learning” since what I thought I had learned I clearly hadn’t (this argument assumes no irregularities, such as having a bad day, or a poorly written test). I think that overtime we probably become better at this, in that, based on experiences from previous tests, we adapt our way of thinking to ensure that “me thinking I know the material” and “the test confirming I know the material” are one and the same. So, let’s that my feelings were correct, and that I have indeed learned about signal processing!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I would have preferred "encouraged" or "cajoled" to "pressured," though I suppose the consequence is the same.

    You've rolled it back one level by talking about the homeworks, rather than the exam. Many instructors believe that students learn the stuff by doing the homeworks, because that's where they first apply what they are being taught. But then I could ask the same question I asked in the previous comment redirecting it to focus on the homeworks. Are any of those problems hard but you get them after a fashion? How do you know you've gotten it?

    It's not having the bits of information that is learning. It's organizing the bits to be useful, to help you figure out other stuff. It would be good if you could explain further when that organizing of the information happens for you and how you know it has happened.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I somewhat touched on the topic of "consolidation of ideas" in my comment on R.'s post. (R want's to remain anonymous, right?)
    (I can't figure out how to add a hyperlink in a comment so here is the link: http://chp395reflections.wordpress.com/2009/11/11/72/#comment-21)

    Anyways, to restate, all of the random facts in the world don't make you a "smart" person. Learning comes when you understand how these facts relate to each other and how to correctly use and apply them. I don't exactly know how we know when this is accomplished, but I liked R.s thought about an "aha" moment. I would say that this is a time when you suddenly acheive a big picture understanding of the topic being taught, and simple "know" that you know about it.

    Sorry that I can't be more specific, but it is somewhat hard to describe (which I think is what you are getting at). I guess it is akin to viewing a stereogram. You can stare all you want at the shapes, but won't see the hidden 3-d object. However, when you do see the image, the result is so clear that you are absolutely positive that you are not mistaken.
    (Here's link to a stereogram if you don't know what I am talking about -http://www.eyetricks.com/3dstereo32.htm)

    Finally, I agree that "encouraged" is a better word choice then "pressured"!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Learning in Action!

    In reference to your measuring of learning of the fruits of the spirit, it think it really requires spiritual discipline to be able to grow in these areas and keep striving. Most of the time, only you can see the growth within yourself. It is on a spectrum towards a goal of patience.
    I recall one of my Christian sorority sisters being applaud by someone calling her "impatient". In her mind, she thought "well, if you would have known me three months ago I was worse." She had to learn that people may not see the overall progress and not be discouraged by it.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Greg,

    I usually read your posts, and I think this one is one of your most insightful yet. How do we know if we have learned patience? Thoughtfulness? Kindness? Maturity? Humbleness? It is from what others think of us.

    This goes back to what I believe at the core, as I am sure you have figured out by now - intentions don't mean much; actions speak so so so much louder than words. It doesn't make any sense if someone thinks their a saint when everyone else thinks their impatient and bossy.

    So, question for ya. How do you think the best way of going about figuring this out? It would be a little weird to ask our family, OK, what do you think I can improve upon. At the same time, I think it takes a little more than being more observant. Let me know what you think!

    Thanks for helping me keep mind for the people who really matter. Maybe I won't be snippy with them on the phone as much because they call me in the middle of me trying to struggle through my own reflection. :)

    See you Monday,
    Alessandra

    ReplyDelete