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It is said of a lot of things in mathematics that you simply need to get used to them. This process does take months or years, and once you went through it you

It is said of a lot of things in mathematics that you simply need to get used to them. This process does take months or years, and once you went through it you probably no longer understand how it feels to not understand those things. The 5-10 minutes explanation is what you get in a lecture. You may even think that you understand afterwards. Years later, you're going to look back and realize that you really didn't understand much at all.

proverbialbunny 7y ago
That is one learning style but not the only learning style. That style is reserved for kids, because often explanations are too abstract, so instead of fully understanding what they're doing, they're given tons of examples, turning the process into muscle memory. If a topic is muscle memory, it becomes very hard to explain or teach to another. This is why it is important to learn topics beyond muscle memory. I had to go through this because I learned how to program before I was a teen. I found it difficult to explain what I was doing to others. Today when people get stuck early on learning to program I show them decomposition, as it is the most common hold up people get stuck on. Decomposition is the opposite of abstraction, so it leads into a beneficial second lesson later on. (I don't explain decomposition, I show them.) At the end of the day it comes down to personality and beliefs more than prerequisite experience when it comes to learning. If someone is afraid to stop and go out of their way to learn a prerequisite, because they're afraid to be seen as ignorant, they're going to struggle. Likewise, if someone is afraid to make a mistake / have a misunderstanding, it can cause too much anxiety to quickly pick up topics. This is why with interns my primary focus is neutralizing anxiety. I try to show ignorance and misunderstanding are okay and acceptable. I lead by example. Little ducks copy unsaid behaviors well. Once that criteria is met, then and only then do I slowly switch into dumping terminology and lessons on them, only once they're ready for it.

proverbialbunny 7y ago

That is one learning style but not the only learning style. That style is reserved for kids, because often explanations are too abstract, so instead of fully understanding what they're doing, they're given tons of examples, turning the process into muscle memory. If a topic is muscle memory, it becomes very hard to explain or teach to another. This is why it is important to learn topics beyond muscle memory. I had to go through this because I learned how to program before I was a teen. I found it difficult to explain what I was doing to others. Today when people get stuck early on learning to program I show them decomposition, as it is the most common hold up people get stuck on. Decomposition is the opposite of abstraction, so it leads into a beneficial second lesson later on. (I don't explain decomposition, I show them.) At the end of the day it comes down to personality and beliefs more than prerequisite experience when it comes to learning. If someone is afraid to stop and go out of their way to learn a prerequisite, because they're afraid to be seen as ignorant, they're going to struggle. Likewise, if someone is afraid to make a mistake / have a misunderstanding, it can cause too much anxiety to quickly pick up topics. This is why with interns my primary focus is neutralizing anxiety. I try to show ignorance and misunderstanding are okay and acceptable. I lead by example. Little ducks copy unsaid behaviors well. Once that criteria is met, then and only then do I slowly switch into dumping terminology and lessons on them, only once they're ready for it.