During my sophomore year of high school, I had a teacher who could be described as a "talker". I say this because he always seemed to talk more than he taught. Although I learned some basic history knowledge from the course, I was able to take with me a lesson which would stick with me for years to come. The lesson is that sometimes we just need to be able to say "I don't know." As human-beings, we hate to admit that we do not know the answer to a problem. Especially in the classroom, I often found myself trying to concoct some kind of solution to a problem when really I had no idea what the answer was. To be able to admit to ones' own lack of knowledge takes a lot of inner-strength, which not everyone has. Just last week, my math professor brought up this lesson during class which caused me to choose it as the subject for project #1. Clearly, this universal theory has a lesson in which we can all learn from and improve upon.
Good insight, Sam. Saying "I don't know" sets the foundation for thinking analytically, critically and/or scientifically, which are all good “habits of mind” for writing and learning in general. In your paper, perhaps start with the math lesson and retrace your academic experiences that have influenced your opinion about "knowing."
ReplyDeleteI like your opinion on how we need to learn how to say "I do not know" sometimes. I am like you in the sense that I always seem to be trying to connect an idea and am a little scared to not have an answer. I think that you have an interesting point.
ReplyDeleteI believe that admitting are faults is one of the hardest things to do. However, it is the only way in which we are going to get better. So the more questions we ask and the more we recognize our faults, the more we will grow as individuals. Great point!
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