Let’s say we have a rule: Be kind! It is not immediately obvious how we follow this rule as, likely, it would mean different things if we were with a stranger or with a spouse or with a granddaughter. Having a rule to apply the rule runs into the same issue.
A rule is a proposition, an example of propositional knowing.
So, to apply the rule effectively we need to apply judgement, which is a skill and an example of procedural knowing.
Read MoreCuriosity is rightly considered to be a valuable characteristic to have and seems to be intrinsic to humans, especially noticeable in children (not so much as we grow up, though). I would like you to consider wonder and awe which are different from curiosity but also attract and hold our attention, and equally intrinsic to being human.
Read MoreLast week I talked about ‘perspectival knowing’, developed as we exercise autonomy, in its guise of situational awareness.
The basis for most psychotherapy involves helping people to separate the meaning they make of events from the events themselves. This is another expression of perspectival knowing and, if well developed in young people, could well avoid the later need for therapy (either formally or as self-medication with alcohol or drugs).
Read MoreI have mentioned John Vervaeke and his outstanding 50-hour series (Awakening From The Meaning Crisis)* in an earlier post. John talks about four types of knowing. The first two are:
Propositional Knowing – knowing facts and figures, etc. – “knowledge”
Procedural Knowing – fluently able to perform a task – “skills”
Which correspond to the traditional focus of schools via curriculum and pedagogy.
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