Issue153 希望大家指导一下

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153 Students should bring certain skepticism to whatever they study. They should question what they are taught instead of accepting it passively.

Should students questioning everything they are taught? While such attitude is in danger of turning to cynical, however a spirit of skepticism is requisite for students whether for their learning knowledge or their pursuing career.

It's true that most of the knowledge gained from the book is proved to be right, and spending too much time on questioning would be a waste of time. Formal education, after all, focus on the basis skills, knowledge, and methodology, which form the foundation on which students would learn further knowledge and carry out experiments for unknown world. For example, the traditional method of China is to reciting the canon during childhood when it's impossible for the boys at 5 or 6 to understand the elusive content, let alone to ask questions. This method, though be blamed to restraining the thoughts of Chinese, however, proved to have its value for the later success of the first generation that enjoy both the ideas of west and east. Actually the main idea of the educational method is "Repeating hundreds of times and the true meaning would be revealed". The time saved by accepting without questioning, ensure the sufficiency of the basis knowledge, whose elusive meaning would remain to be solved by later time.

However, no one would guarantee the credit of the content of textbook, and even the adults assert that the knowledge is right, things could be opposite and questioning attitude should be hold for later discovery. As for the people of medieval, most of them were told that the earth is flat. However, this conclusion is believed to be truth and few question the credit of the belief. Even though now we no longer believe, it's unfair to assume that the knowledge on the textbook is doubtless. It's necessarily for the educators to permit skepticism in case that they could be wrong, and have told them false information.

In addition, by questioning and skeptic, teachers and students would both develop a more profound comprehension of the knowledge. It's quite often that students seems to have understood a point of view, however, they just take the conclusion for granted and fail to think it over. This would be resolved if they are used to asking why and then retrospecting, which calls for an attitude of skepticism. Children mostly take it for granted that 1+1=2, some could ask why, and despite part of the questioners would give up, the rest might find it a matter of definition, and the develop a profound understanding of the system and substance of mathematics. So the questioning could help learning for its role in propelling profound thinking.

What's more, skepticism is an indispensable philosophical state for exploring and creating, which need cultivation from the days of being student, which calls for developing by encouraging the students to question what they are taught. Though the content on the books are usually correct, the materials of the students would confront could be incredible, whether it's from experts or even authority. It's proved that most significant discoveries were found by those who possessed the spirit to question the "common sense", such as Darwin, Galileo, and Einstein. The courage or even inclination to challenge the textbook, or the words of the authority, would help the students to think outside the box and achieve further improvement.

In conclusion, I hold the view that student should ask questions about what they have learn, even though too much labor is not necessary.