Hey friends, I’m Long.
Long time no see. It has been three months since the last update, hasn’t it?
This is a very long letter for one question: What is knowledge? I want to share my joy with you because I finally got my magic answer!
I am a Fulbright student, a teacher who teach a course about knowledge, a poet to understand knowledge of my inner life, and an artist who turns science into illustrations to share knowledge for all. In my current life, I don’t enjoy going out. The two places where I happily spend time are in the kitchen, helping my husband with his dream, and at my own table, working in front of the computer to follow my dream. My dream is simply to pursue knowledge. That why, —all combined to become “a thinker”. And a thinker duty is define knowledge.
Over the past three months, I have spent countless hours conducting my own research to seek knowledge. But this time is different. I conducted research on myself, collecting data through reflection, analyzing it through poetry, and presenting my findings through this writing. In conclusion, I wrote for myself, developing my own learning theory, where I provided myself with a method of understanding. This method goes beyond scientific thinking, bringing openness to learning from all perspectives. I can finally and proudly give myself a distinct standpoint to speak in my own voice while still respecting, listening to, and empathizing with others. More importantly, it gives me the confidence to claim that I can become a teacher to others. However, with the utmost respect, I will challenge my students with questions so they can understand the context, their needs, and, with my support, find ,and write their own answers.
And because no one can tell another person what the most effective learning method is, since learning is a personal and internal mental process, scientific explanations like cognitive psychology are useful but also useless if students do not understand how to apply them or do not create their own definitions to transform knowledge. The issue of student learning is multifaceted, so the only way to address it is to teach students how to reflect and ask questions, and to boldly ask others to learn from their perspectives.
Therefore, my own learning theory has also helped me develop a new approach for the course and align it with my current educational perspective. This personal research has provided me with a foundational understanding, allowing me to continue teaching my own online course about knowledge next month at MỞ.
This is also the explanation letter that I send to my dear friend, Phương, who has always supported me on this journey, about why I have been stuck on our next course, without clearly explaining what happened. Well, because it is extremely complex.
Here is why:
I can’t explain strange statements like “Knowledge and information are not true, and science is no longer correct” and “Explaining knowledge from others is not understanding” without context. Think about that for a second. This is the ONLY foundation that I build the course on,the only explanation for all the note-taking techniques. Well, I not true for me, any more.
I also cannot explain that the reason I do not want to teach and prepare lessons is not because I don't believe I can create and teach lessons effectively if I try, but because the effectiveness of my method contradicts my own ethics - to teach people truthfully. For example, I can guide people on how to gather external knowledge and store all of it, considering that as a way to manage knowledge – and the learner would be happy. But at the same time, it introduces only one way of understanding and managing knowledge, while my understanding is very different. Knowledge management needs to be based on the individual's own context, and there are many ways and sources to gather and manage knowledge.
The ultimate goal that I see as important in learning is for the learner to no longer need all the books and resources and be able to write their own definition of the world and themselves. The first sentence in this paragraph also reveals, "this is my view of myself and my context - because... I know too much - but on the other hand - a 9th grader, whom I am currently tutoring, also experiences a lot of life, knowledge, and personal memories. But I think, he has never actually sat down to write about his experiences - so my argument only fits one type of knowledge - knowledge about personal life - life knowledge for life review,not subject-specific knowledge or specialized knowledge—for example, psychology—because psychological knowledge requires experience and specialized knowledge to review and synthesize.
This understanding might be very important for the child's development because it helps them understand themselves, their values, and shape their identity better. Through this, they can proactively ask their family and community for support in areas where they feel they lack and need help.
Because that is the only way to create knowledge that is useful in an individual's unique context and, more importantly, "fits" with each person's personal values and understanding. In my view, the purpose of learning is no longer to possess all the materials in the world or to manage knowledge efficiently – something that ChatGPT can easily handle and manage in the near future. Knowledge plays a role in transforming people, changing their perspectives, and altering their way of life.
Well, here is how far I have come in the question of knowledge, and it also explains why it is so hard to set up the first live class. I can't explain it because I do not yet have a full answer, at least until this morning, 28/07/2024. If I don't find the answer by today, I still don't think I can teach your class. I have achieved some kind of paradigm shift in knowledge management, and I also cannot communicate with you over the next few months because I need time alone to make this leap. As a thinker, I work best in isolation.
The insulation of the scientific community from society is beneficial because it allows scientists the freedom to solve problems they find significant. Problem-solving, which is what most people engage in daily to increase efficiency, such as managing tasks or retrieving information, is fundamental to scientific progress. For instance, in our class, students aim to manage and retrieve information effectively, and as a teacher, my role is to assist them in this process - it true - in last class, but no-long true for me right now.
The scientific progress lies in problem-solving – the more problems that are solved, the more science advances. However, while progress and efficiency are important, they are not as crucial as paradigm shifts. A paradigm shift introduces a new way of thinking or doing things, often leading to more truthful understandings.