As soon as I began reading this article I knew it was going to hit home for me, because this is something I am very passionate about. Since learning about what the term "rote memorization" meant in my first FOED class, I have been determined to never pound facts into my childrens head and ask them to repeat it back to me and then move on. This article talks alot about get more than just the right answer. In short, it is not just about the answer, but how to came to that answer. The author wrote "Knowledge of the answer ahead of time is, on the whole, more valued then ways of figuring it out." When we read it like that we think, "that is ridiculous and should not be the case." Yet, we judge our student and our teachers by taking standardize tests which in know way show how the student came to that particular answer. There is no partial credit and it is all about right and wrong.
The article then went into a story/situation in which children were asked to make sense of their ideas and explore them further than just right and wrong. When looking at what children actually can do and the way their mind works and continually asks questions, it gives as a teachers better insight and what the can achieve. We have created an environment in which children are scared and intimidated to ask questions and share their opinions. The author put it best when she stated, "The virtues involved in not knowing are the ones that really count in the long run." When children learn through mistakes and asked questions, that is when the information sticks and becomes valid.
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