ABSTRACT

The fact that the words ‘learn’ and ‘understand’ are sometimes treated as interchangeable indicates just how central the latter is to teaching. True, there is an element of rote learning of facts, words, names or formulae in most fields, and skill learning consists in the building up and mastery of techniques and routines. It may also be difficult to articulate just what kind of learning is going on in some of the creative or performing arts, which seem to involve more tacit forms of knowledge. But most subjects and topics require the learners to follow, grasp or make sense of content in a way that then allows them to work with, re-construct or apply it in some fashion. And this understanding enables them to internalize it, to make it their own, to embed it in their cognitive worlds. Interaction is the key to this process.