My idea about knowledge is tied to my beliefs about spirituality, humanity, and the time-space continuum, so I have to start with that. I believe that we are all distinct parts of a whole. That we are all connected, are all reflections of each other, and all flow to and from the same Source (think of the many facets of a diamond). I also believe that knowledge, like the universe itself, is limited and bound only by our limited perceptions as humans. However, since we are walking around in these human suits, the body of knowledge available to us is finite, as reflected in the reality we have manifested around us (we live in houses with walls, cities with boundaries, states with lines, countries that end in oceans, etc.). Like Walt Whitman, I believe that our thoughts (and our selves) are constantly recycled.

And I believe the idea of linear time is simply another construct we’ve created to allow us to function within this boundary system.

So, that being said, though I instantly identified with the Constructivist school of thought, I also feel elements of Empiricism and Pragmatism are relevant to my belief system. Constructivism makes sense to me in that I feel the knowledge each of us earns is assembled from our unique experiences, and that it is our experiences that define each individual’s perception. I believe that these perceptions are influenced by whatever prior knowledge we are able to access, from this lifetime and both "previous" and "future" ones. As I believe that we are all parts of a whole, the Social Constructivist idea that learning is collaborative and distilled from our exposure to and distillation of others’ perspectives, is a given for me. We learn when we can relate a new idea to some part of our personal experience…when we access and awaken unconscious personal and collective memory.

The Empiricist idea that we learn through experience applies here (though this is where my concurrence with Empiricism stops as I do not believe that reality is "objective and singular" [2]). Our experience, both personally and collectively, has a direct impact on our knowing. That instant every teacher craves, when they "see" the light bulb go off over a student’s head, illustrates that moment when the student makes some connection between the new knowledge being offered and some personal or collective memory that was stimulated by the instruction. I believe that learning itself happens in many different ways and involves engagement of all the senses. Personally, I am a visual learner. Though hearing someone tell me something might be another layer of the process, I have to see it with my own eyes to stimulate that light bulb. This is why I feel it is so critical for an instructor to constantly vary her delivery, so that she is sure to reach as much of her audience as possible.

Additionally, I do ascribe to the Pragmatist theory that knowledge is temporary because I think everything is temporary. Through the experience we are having right now, and the ones, both "past" and "future" that we can access or imagine, the realities we manifest for ourselves change, and as our reality changes, so does our knowing. The quote from the text "truth for now" [2] is something I understand and accept completely.

I believe, in order to facilitate learning, instructors should act as both guides and models. An instructor needs to create a comfortable, nonthreatening environment in which a student feels free to express her ideas. Instructors need to create situations for students to work collaboratively, so that they are exposed to other perceptions and realities. Instructors need to remember there are a plethora of different learning styles, and they should strive to employ as many of these as possible during the course of instruction so that each student has the opportunity to excel and experience success. From my own high school teaching experience, I know it is critical to relate the subject matter to the students’ day to day understanding of life. (Introduce a unit on poetry using lyrics from a popular rap song, watch the movie "Princess Bride" to illustrate the concept of archetypes, etc.) I also strongly feel that as close to instant feedback as possible is critical to fostering continuing enthusiasm and understanding of new subject matter. And, finally, I feel the instructor should acknowledge, articulate, and demonstrate the fact that the role of teacher and student are often interchangeable. That the instructor, in the very process of teaching, is also engaged in the process of learning.

[1] Whitman, Walt. "Song of Myself," 17.1-4. Leaves of Grass. NY: Quality Paper Back Book Club, 1992.

[2] Smith, Patricia, and Ragan, Tillman. Instructional Design, 2^nd Edition. NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1999.