Thinking 4

[Clifford Black]

Thinking Truth
4


There have been a number of questions about how to begin. First we must ask ourselves a most important question: Can I read? Before letting the ego answer, please, follow up with this question: Do I know what reading actually is? Maybe there are some who are reading this who will answer these two questions for us. If you are a participant in the Super-Learning program do not enter into the discussion at this time.Are you aware that reading is a basic learning method and strategy.

Most people, in the United States of America, take it for granted that they know how to perform this very simple task, when in fact all they are realIy doing is the calling of words. It is also taken for granted that all students know the alphabet and what the letters mean. When asked what the letters mean the average doctor or lawyer usually answers with: A means apple and B means ball. Sometimes the answer is: A means Alpha. Has any of this nonsense ever been your answer? Have you ever been asked this question? If so or if not. do it now and see what you have for an answer.

This process is an aspect of what is called the Socratic method of learning. Learning methods are, in fact, a science that has been evolving over a long period of time. It may also be important to understand that certain methods and strategies for higher learning have never been included in curriculums that are designed for the general public. Let’s try to address these few basic questions before we go forward.

[Clifford Black]

For the new students, this is important. Please comment and ask questions.

B.

[Adisa]

Can I read?  If going on what I was taught reading to be I would say yes as would most people.  After coming into an understanding of what reading is, now I can say I am still learning to read.  I relate it to people that actually admit they can not read as taught in school and the way they got by was by recalling words.  In order to find out what reading is I started at looking up the word.  If I stop at the definition I find that reading is defined as to utter aloud something written.  This is where I was taught to stop.  If I can utter the words I see, correctly I know how to read.  A deeper look into the word read, took me to the words reason and ratio ,meaning to calculate or think.    The question that came up next was what is the importance of this process and/or is it even important to know how to read?  I was never asked if I knew what the letters meant, didn't even know each letter had a meaning.  I assumed the shiny red apple and the bouncing ball next to the letters were shown to assist me to know some words that begin with the letters.  The question what is the importance of knowing letters have meanings came up again as I have been learing this process.  Admittingly having been exposed to this thought process, that question will resurface from time to time during my research.  Re search hmmm another interesting combination of words.

[Lumumba Ali]

Ok Baba..I'm reading on this method too....to be continued

[Clifford Black]

This may be a good time to relook at this thread(B).

[B. Crittenden Freeman]

Still reading more on the Socratic Method of Learning

[Clifford Black]

I have reviewed the comments that have been made regarding the blog post and forum discussions and I have a few basic questions. First of all, I need to know how someone can read about something and then they all of a sudden know about the thing. That is virtually impossible. If this is something that can be done, please help me to understand how it is accomplished. The second question is this: How does a person learn about the etymological process in less than a few years with no real guide. Please if you can be of some help to me with this, it (the help), would be appriciated. By the way let me say this ---the etymology process that most are taught in school will not reveal the truth about words and about the loom of language. I think Bro.X tried to warn us about this as he was in the process of teaching himself how to perform a process that the school systems of that time never introduced him into..Has no one thought it to be strange that I have choosen not to post anything about the process as it is being learned by those who would take what we are doing in a serious manner. Are there those of you who believe that wickapedia can give you the information that you are going to need so that you might begin to understand what you are doing. The work that we are involved with is not for the superficial thinker and if you pass on what you come to believe about any of this then you are acting out the actions of diablos. It is strange how some will come into knowledge without knowing. If everyone checks, they may find that opinions do not really mean anything and that behavior is not really what this is supposed to be about. Everyone of us evacuated our opinions as waste when we spent time in the restroom. Question number three: How does one reply to thinking four when there has been no discussion about 1, 2 or 3. How can a learner answer a question if the question is never addressed. There is reason behind the methods but if the strategies are not followed then there will be great error in comprehension. If you provide a list of definitions that are not pertinent to my existence and this is, then, used to discuss my being then in FACT those involved in the discussion have choosen not TO BE. Please do the work and then if you are not seeing where this is of benefit----leave this alone. Also let me say that patience is a major factor in the equation.

[B. Crittenden Freeman]

i understand

[Aaron (Al) Lewis]

Barry, you're most welcome. Dig this, say you are walking in a foreign forest at a brisk rate. Say you know a little bit about forests also in particular the forest close to your home. Now say you are applying what you think you know about your forest to this particular forest. What you are not seeing, because of your pre-dispositional thinking, is the different species of trees and pants and insect and animal life that have just a small enough variance unnoticed by your eye as to make them altogether different than what you think you see as you walk briskly by. At the end of your walk you don't appreciate the real beauty or prevalent danger of the forest because you never really saw it.

Now take that walk again, but this time slower. You began to see plants you didn't even know existed and someone may have to show you methods to unlocking their secrets. You may not seeing hanging from the tree the venomous snake to which you have no anti-venom if you were bitten, in fact it may so resemble the snake in the forest you are used to you don't even know it's poisonous. Nor do you see the insect flying whose bite will render your immune system useless, but has the potential to make medicine that cures disease. Upon slowing down you realize that there are many things in this forest you don't understand, but assumed you did, because it's only a forest right? Well language is a lot like forests and even though we have trekked our way through the forests of the English language most of our lives their are guides who know tracking methods far superior to what we have learned if only we listen.

Now return with a guide, who knows the secrets of this forest. The guide will not only point out the differences to you but will show you techniques, strategies, and the vital contextual nuances that makes this forest come alive as you never imagined it would. It all starts with just slowing down and looking. However slowing down is just the beginning and good one at that.

[B. Crittenden Freeman]

Al,thank you.

[B. Crittenden Freeman]

http://www.socraticmethod.net/

I'm slowly reading at this point at the above URL:

"The ultimate goal of the Socratic Method is to increase understanding through inquiry. Obtaining an enhanced freedom to think through discarding preexisting bad ideas is the penultimate goal of the classic style of the Socratic Method. The only person who cannot think is the one who thinks she already knows. Through the deconstruction of existing ideas, the classic style of the Socratic Method frees people to think about basic principles and ideas with an enhanced sense of necessity and clarity."

So, in slowing myself down, I'm starting a process of deconstruction?