{"id":3068,"date":"2017-01-16T06:58:07","date_gmt":"2017-01-16T11:58:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/antipaucity.com\/?p=3068"},"modified":"2017-01-16T06:58:07","modified_gmt":"2017-01-16T11:58:07","slug":"kvp-is-a-lousy-way-to-teach","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/merikebi.warrenmyers.com\/?p=3068","title":{"rendered":"kvp is a lousy way to teach\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

Recently on one of the podcasts<\/a> I listen to, I heard an offhanded comment made about how history is taught not in patterns but as facts. For example<\/a>, “On the 18th of April in ’75, hardly a man is now alive, who remembers that famous day and year”.<\/p>\n

Rarely are the “whys” explained – understandably so at early ages, but not understandably as maturation happens.<\/p>\n

“Teaching” in so many subjects has become memorization of what really amount to key-value pairs<\/a>. Like, Columbus: 1492. Norman invasion: 1066. Etc.<\/p>\n

Certainly, facts are important. And some things truly are best learned in a rote memorization form – for example, the multiplication table through 12, 15, or 25. But what about states and their capitals? Sure, they’re “pairs” – but are they more?<\/p>\n

This is awesome if you’re a trivia<\/a> nut<\/a>. But if you’re not, or you truly want to learn<\/a><\/em> the material – not merely pass a test or regurgitate facts – then you need to understand more than just<\/em> the “facts”.<\/p>\n

Outside history classes, it’s especially prevalent in math – very little (if any) time is taken to explain\u00a0why<\/em> the quadratic formula <\/a>works (or even what it is), instead algebra students are expected to just learn and use it.<\/p>\n

My late aunt<\/a>, who did a lot of tutoring in her life, summed-up the problem with algebra (and other math subjects past elementary school) thusly: before algebra, we give a problem like “3 plus box is 9; what goes in the box?” but in algebra, we swap the box for a t or x or g, and we freak out”. She would teach the facts, but [almost] never without the whys.<\/p>\n

The whys are illustrated and analyzed very well in some books – like {{Why Nations Fail}} (review<\/a>). But, sadly, they’re not given in more places.<\/p>\n

We definitely need more good teachers<\/a> who want their students to understand not merely enough to pass the class (or the test), but to cultivate the curiosity we’re all born with to become lifelong learners<\/a>.<\/p>\n

First step: stop “teaching” as key-value pairs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Recently on one of the podcasts I listen to, I heard an offhanded comment made about how history is taught not in patterns but as facts. For example, “On the 18th of April in ’75, hardly a man is now alive, who remembers that famous day and year”. Rarely are the “whys” explained – understandably …
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