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which means memorization I wonder, why do people have problem with this. The trend seems to be a desire to learn without puttint any effort into that. I doubt

which means memorization I wonder, why do people have problem with this. The trend seems to be a desire to learn without puttint any effort into that. I doubt that's possible at all.

ams6110 15y ago
I agree. Memorization of basic facts creates the foundation upon which more abstract concepts can be understood and developed.
- joshAg 15y ago
  This is entirely true, but i've found that schools also focus on rote memorization of useless or nonfoundational facts. For example, in third grade my class had to memorize the multiplication table up to 12x12, but we didn't have to memorize that multiplication is really just a shorthand for repeated addition, so by eighth grade there were kids in my class that didn't understand why I wrote 6x5 instead of 5+5+5+5+5+5 in certain cases; they were also amazed that I managed to get the right answer even though i didn't do the problem the right way. We also had to memorize the squares of every number up to 20, but we didn't have to memorize the fact that squaring is a shorthand for multiplication of some number by itself, so some kids in my class could tell you that 15 squared was 225, but had to use paper and pencil to tell you what 15*15 was. And don't even get me started on kids who knew that 9x7=63, but had to use pencil, paper, and long division to tell you that 63%9=7.
alttab 15y ago
Memorization comes from understanding, not the other way around. If you memorize the alphabet - congrats you can sing a song. If you understand the alphabet - you can write a book, singing the song is a side effect.
- tryp 15y ago
  I think your example here undermines your point. There's not much understanding to be had of the (roman/english) alphabet. You memorize 26 characters as a foundation from which to build words. It's essentially an arbitrary set without underlying logic. A better example to express your point would be multiplication tables. Why memorize a list of multiplicands and their products rather than learn what multiplication means so that you can generate them on the fly and only memorize as a by-product of common use?
  - silverbax88 15y ago
    Memorization to pass a test is just data that you will discard once the need for retention has passed. In order to learn something usefully, and be able to retain that knowledge for years to come, you must have a fundamental understanding of the underlying principles.
alttab 15y ago
Memorization comes from understanding, not the other way around. If you memorize the alphabet - congrats you can sing a song. If you understand the alphabet - you can write a book, singing the song is a side effect.

which means memorization I wonder, why do people have problem with this. The trend seems to be a desire to learn without puttint any effort into that. I doubt that's possible at all.

ams6110 15y ago

I agree. Memorization of basic facts creates the foundation upon which more abstract concepts can be understood and developed.

joshAg 15y ago
This is entirely true, but i've found that schools also focus on rote memorization of useless or nonfoundational facts. For example, in third grade my class had to memorize the multiplication table up to 12x12, but we didn't have to memorize that multiplication is really just a shorthand for repeated addition, so by eighth grade there were kids in my class that didn't understand why I wrote 6x5 instead of 5+5+5+5+5+5 in certain cases; they were also amazed that I managed to get the right answer even though i didn't do the problem the right way. We also had to memorize the squares of every number up to 20, but we didn't have to memorize the fact that squaring is a shorthand for multiplication of some number by itself, so some kids in my class could tell you that 15 squared was 225, but had to use paper and pencil to tell you what 15*15 was. And don't even get me started on kids who knew that 9x7=63, but had to use pencil, paper, and long division to tell you that 63%9=7.

alttab 15y ago

Memorization comes from understanding, not the other way around. If you memorize the alphabet - congrats you can sing a song. If you understand the alphabet - you can write a book, singing the song is a side effect.

tryp 15y ago
I think your example here undermines your point. There's not much understanding to be had of the (roman/english) alphabet. You memorize 26 characters as a foundation from which to build words. It's essentially an arbitrary set without underlying logic. A better example to express your point would be multiplication tables. Why memorize a list of multiplicands and their products rather than learn what multiplication means so that you can generate them on the fly and only memorize as a by-product of common use?
- silverbax88 15y ago
  Memorization to pass a test is just data that you will discard once the need for retention has passed. In order to learn something usefully, and be able to retain that knowledge for years to come, you must have a fundamental understanding of the underlying principles.

alttab 15y ago