The novelist-philosopher Ayn Rand always counselled her readers to “check your premises,” that is, to actively examine the underlying assumptions and beliefs behind even the most minor thoughts, actions, or emotions. This is the fundamental concept behind the idea of critical thinking. Management theorist Chris Argyris argues that leaders and managers also need to check their premises.
Read MoreThe problem with the lecture-as-education model is that it fails to recognize differences in preferred learning style. The teacher focuses on the lecture, and learners with a strong capacity or preference for passive, auditory reception of knowledge benefit. Visual—and especially kinesthetic—learners usually don’t benefit as much.
Read MoreIf we taught the riding of a bicycle in the same manner as we teach most subjects in school and other traditional instructional settings, we would have students engage in activities disconnected from the goal of bike-riding (such as drawing and measuring bikes) and we would present lectures on the history of bicycles and the relation of bicycles to the ecosystem that produces rubber trees for the tires. The student, however, would never have the chance to actually ride a bike.
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