The theory behind encyclopedic knowledge

[AshleyIcy]

I think this video is relevant!
Just a simple comprehensive EK video cater to young children. =)
They have other videos available on their channel.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/06RfE7LZer0&rel=1" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/06RfE7LZer0&rel=1</a>

[Dr Miles R Jones]

I think the exposure to multiple bits of learning definitely makes a difference.  Yes, they should be easier to relearn or recall later on.  Even more important, exposure to a subject area even via bits of information make it more familiar and less threatening when approached later.  I think DadDude is right that kids who are brainiacs are not necessarily so just because they did EK  flashcards when they were infants.  Probably the more relevant causal factor is having parents that are focused on your education in an intelligent fashion.

This dialog parallels the historical development and recording of knowledge.  Once you get to a certain level the most important factor becomes how it is organized and categorized so that you can locate it and use it effectively.  Imagine a huge library with no cataloging system, just lots of books on lots of shelves with no order to it.  Not very effective.

The organization of the presentation of information is critical here.  Does anyone doubt that dumping massive bits of relatively unrelated knowledge on a child is not nearly as effective as an organized, well thought out approach?  What that organization of information should be is what I think we should discuss.  Any ideas?     

[DadDude]

Dr. Jones--I think you ask an excellent question. It does seem fruitful to think of the main advantage of the various early learning programs we are using is that they organize knowledge in a way that is both conducive to knowledge and intellectual skill, while still being attractive to small children. If that's true, then we really ought to take a step back and ask what the best way to organization knowledge is.

I don't have any grand theories off hand, but I did want to say that the question seemed like the right one to me.

[Dr Miles R Jones]

Thanks DadDude,

Unless I am wrong - I believe we have a consensus that encyclopedic knowledge is possible.  Moving on to what order of information we should teach and how seems appropriate.
I have made the case for reading and math skills being the top two blocks on the organizational pyramid.  Many of the others will tend to follow basic curriculum prescriptions.
Not that we shouldn't enumerate them but they will differ depending...  Then it becomes a question of how to do it all effectively, something we are all neck deep in anyway.

However, I have skipped the top block on the pyramid.  If we were teaching a class this top rung, sine qua non, subject to be taught would be called "classroom management".
At home this top block on the pyramid I suppose should be tagged spiritual and/or behavioral values.  I have learned, the hard way, that unless children begin to learn self discipline
from their parents, or teachers, little in the way of education is going to happen.  Teaching self discipline translates into the ability to concentrate.  Concentration, the ability to
focus on a task until completion, is the major factor in accomplishing anything in learning, or life for that matter.  Learning to concentrate is more important than any other individual skill.
Anyway, this may all seem quite obvious to you and I don't know where I am going with this thread of thought but it has always been the first consideration to me over the years. 

I personally neglected it at first because my daughter made it seem so easy.  She was an intelligent cooperative child and because I had wide ranging interests and provided her lots of opportunities to share them with me she naturally picked up on them.  I would suspect many of you are in the same situation so you may never have paused to think about it either.

So let's assume you have an intelligent cooperative child, rather than a spoiled uncooperative child, what should we be doing in this first rung along the way to EK?  Again, since this seems to have developed naturally with activities that I engaged in with my daughter so that I have never paused to develop specific concentration games.  An important aspect of concentration is motivation.  Motivation is not necessarily enough to create concentration but without it there won't be any.  It is a skill (rather than a data base) but every skill has an informational content. 
How to do it, for example. 

Have you done anything specific to practice or develop skill at concentration?  This would differ widely depending upon age but any thoughts would be appreciated.

[Dr Miles R Jones]

I mentioned a couple of days ago I am doing a free online seminar "Formula for Guaranteed Success in Any Subject".  It will be Friday March 23 from 1-2 pm CST.
All participants will receive a free eBook "Formula for Guaranteed Success in Any Subject".  (I had put the wrong date down in a previous post, my apologies)
It does focus on motivation as one of the primary elements of guaranteed success so it relates very strongly to our subject of encyclopedic knowledge.
In any case, to register for the free online seminar:  email [email protected].   

We will send the free eBook to anyone who requests it (email [email protected]) but we are not releasing it before the online seminar next Friday.
The next online seminar "Natural Memory Versus Trained Memory" will take place on the following Friday, March 30 from 1-2 pm CST.  This is also a part of
our exploration of encyclopedic knowledge that I feel strongly is a must, training the memory.  Anyway, there are limited places so you do need to register,
just drop a line to Chris and he will send you the link.  I am working on a free eBook to go with that one as well.  These are listed on the Brillkids announcements.

Via my non-profit institute I am trying to give away as much as I can of the valuable insights and materials I have developed over the years.  Short seminars,
short eBooklets to accompany them that people can grasp quickly and implement right away to good advantage.
 Please help me give stuff away by referring anyone who is interested to participate. 

[PokerDad]

I will register for the seminars, looks good.

Going back to the question of how EK or knowledge in general ought to be organized, could it be that the optimal would vary from individual to individual?

I'm just thinking of those Tony Buzan books I read way back when - the associations are almost purely based on an individual's perception, but then that perception is shaped by how information is introduced or equated to schema; schema can pre-exist new content being introduced, or have been introduced systematically by the same content that is being introduced (ie, chapter 1 coming before chapter 2). Yes? No?

Good discussion. I'll ponder myself for a while.

[Dr Miles R Jones]

PokerDad,

Surely that is true, different parents will have different values.  I taught my daughter languages.  Amy Chua taught her daughters piano and violin.
Many black parents in the inner city will focus their children on sports, a significant avenue of success for many inner city kids.

Granted the basics are behavior, reading, math.  How high do we set the bar on these and where do we go afterward. 
The selection, order, and pacing of skills either serve to enhance learning or restrict and retard them. 
From my perspective as a specialist in accelerated learning I feel strongly we should, from the start, teach speed reading, memory training,
and rapid mental calculation skills.  These are not normally taught but they result in a vast improvement in learning & processing ability.

You may have read the post on Peter Wozniak who invented SuperMemo and has carried on Ebbinghaus work on natural memory:

http://www.wired.com/medtech/health/magazine/16-05/ff_wozniak?currentPage=all

It is a bit depressing because the work on natural memory via recall and review of material on a regular basis concludes that we forget
most of what we learn (80%) and there does not seem to be much we can do about it.  So what does that say about our quest for
encyclopedic knowledge?

One need not be limited to natural memory.  We know how to train memory.   

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