Or, The Skill of Teaching an Art
In Monday's webinar, What are we really doing here? (Aug. 3, 2015) Andrew Pudewa discussed the differences between learning information, ideas, and skills. Since writing is a skill, it isn't something that can simply be memorized or discussed—it must be practiced. Read more in this article, originally published in our 2012 Arts of Language Magalog.
Mortimer Adler, in his Paideia Proposal calling for a return to a classical curriculum, points out one of the major problems of modern education: the confusion of Information, Ideas, and Skills. While Information (facts) is primarily learned through memorization and can be assessed on a percentage-success basis, Ideas are different—they are infinite and can’t be easily assessed with the same mechanical right-or-wrong method. “What percentage of the concept of inflation do you understand?” is a nonsensical question, since the concept of inflation could be studied for a lifetime. Discussion is essential for the development of understanding of ideas and concepts.
