{"id":82755,"date":"2022-11-05T17:40:00","date_gmt":"2022-11-05T21:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=82755"},"modified":"2022-11-07T21:34:27","modified_gmt":"2022-11-08T01:34:27","slug":"how-to-understand-anything-deeply","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-understand-anything-deeply\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Understand Anything Deeply: Grounding Your Thinking"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What’s the best way to understand something beyond the facts? How can you truly master a subject or a skill?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you know karate on a surface level, you pivot your feet in a certain way. When you understand karate deeply, you know why you pivot your feet that way. You’ve also mastered the basic skills before tackling advanced levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Continue reading to learn how to understand anything deeply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

How to Understand Anything Deeply<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In The 5 Elements of Effective Thinking<\/em>, Edward B. Burger and Michael Starbird discuss the element of earth<\/em>, which the authors say represents the foundation of ideas that will serve as the basis for your thinking. They argue that, to think effectively, you must base your thinking on a deep understanding of your topic or problem.<\/strong> We all have a lot of knowledge that we take for granted, but, by exploring this knowledge as thoroughly as possible, we open our minds to the greater possibilities it offers. This discussion explores how to understand anything deeply and maintain a firm foundation of learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: The authors tend to define \u201ceffective thinking\u201d through the processes detailed in their book rather than stating an explicit definition. But we can infer that \u201ceffective thinking\u201d is similar or equivalent to the more commonly understood term<\/a> \u201ccritical thinking,\u201d which is an active process of thinking that involves understanding and applying the various levels of cognition to enhance one\u2019s understanding.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The authors discuss two ways you can approach fundamentals that can help you create a firm foundation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Principle 1: Learn Beyond the Facts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Understanding deeply is not simply knowing or not knowing facts; it\u2019s about understanding the \u201cwhy\u201d of those facts. Therefore, the authors advise that you don\u2019t just learn what the facts <\/strong>are<\/em><\/strong> but instead learn <\/strong>about<\/em><\/strong> the facts<\/strong>. Understand their background, the connections between them, and their implications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, if you\u2019re learning karate, your instructor might tell you to pivot your feet in the direction of your punches. Knowing this fact is helpful, but not as beneficial as understanding the \u201cwhy\u201d of that fact: turning your foot in the direction of your punch allows you to put your whole body\u2019s strength into the strike instead of just the strength of your arm. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: It may be more difficult to apply the principles of effective thinking to physical activities since we associate those more with athletic ability than with thought, but we have to learn how to move our bodies just as we have to learn everything else. Thinking effectively about your movement\u2014understanding why you should move your body this <\/em>way instead of that <\/em>way\u2014could help you improve your form and avoid injury when performing physical tasks.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Asking \u201cWhy Is This True?\u201d<\/strong>

Other education experts also emphasize the necessity of learning beyond the facts<\/a>, suggesting that many of today\u2019s students can succeed in the classroom without actually understanding the concepts they\u2019re studying. This leads to uninformed citizens who, though they may have a lot of knowledge, are unable to apply that knowledge to the real world. Some of these experts\u2019 recommendations involve using questioning to deepen that understanding, just as the authors suggest later in this book.

Others have also pointed out that our definition of \u201cfact\u201d is not as universal or concrete as we might think<\/a>. While most would agree that a fact is something that can be proven, many \u201cfacts\u201d are also personal interpretations or beliefs. For example, it might be a fact that the sun rises in the east (provably true) but a person might also believe as a \u201cfact\u201d that certain political policies are better than others (personal belief). Exploring the \u201cwhy\u201d behind the facts we believe are true might provide insight into how accurate these facts are and whether we need to recategorize them as myths.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Principle 2: Go Back to the Basics<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The authors write that you shouldn\u2019t try to tackle complex issues until you\u2019ve thoroughly mastered the fundamentals<\/strong>. Understanding smaller, more basic aspects of a problem will allow you to understand more complex issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus, they advise that, when approaching a complex problem<\/a>, you revisit the basic skills and knowledge base needed to master it<\/strong>. Mastering basic skills can help you manage a situation when circumstances change. When you come upon a problem that proves more challenging than you anticipated, go back and find the fundamental knowledge or skills that will help you proceed in your new situation. For example, a chef trying to perfect an advanced dish might revisit a simple but beloved recipe to find insights<\/a> on what they could do better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: Revisiting the basics before you start on your complex problem can prompt your brain to process that information more quickly thanks to a phenomenon called priming<\/a><\/em>. This is when the brain shows increased responsiveness to certain stimuli<\/a> when given prior stimulation that relates to the same information or thought processes.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learning Framework<\/strong>

Burger and Starbird’s theories of learning align in many ways with other psychologists’ insights. For example, educational psychologist Benjamin Bloom devised a classification method, Bloom’s Taxonomy, outlining how our brains absorb knowledge, much of which corresponds to Burger and Starbird\u2019s theories. Bloom\u2019s Revised Taxonomy<\/a> describes four different levels of learning:
\u2022 Factual knowledge (understanding discrete facts about an idea)
\u2022 Conceptual knowledge<\/a> (understanding the connections between the facts that comprise the whole of the idea)
\u2022 Procedural knowledge (understanding how to apply factual and conceptual knowledge to perform a task related to the idea)
\u2022 Metacognitive knowledge (understanding and reflecting on the process of your learning) 

Burger and Starbird\u2019s earth classification corresponds strongly with Bloom\u2019s first three groups here: factual, conceptual, and procedural knowledge, as both classification systems emphasize the importance of knowing basic facts and the relationships between them.

Bloom\u2019s fourth category listed above correlates with much of the ideas that Burger and Starbird outline in their other categories, as they move from understanding the facts themselves to understanding the processes of learning behind them.  <\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What’s the best way to understand something beyond the facts? How can you truly master a subject or a skill? When you know karate on a surface level, you pivot your feet in a certain way. When you understand karate deeply, you know why you pivot your feet that way. You’ve also mastered the basic skills before tackling advanced levels. Continue reading to learn how to understand anything deeply.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":82758,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[15,43],"tags":[793],"class_list":["post-82755","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-education","category-self-improvement","tag-the-5-elements-of-effective-thinking","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nHow to Understand Anything Deeply: Grounding Your Thinking - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"To think effectively, base your thinking on a deep understanding. 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