Stupidity is an intelligent point

I saw this video on youtube today. It's an interesting commentary on Stupidity by John Cleese of Monty Python fame.

Cleese makes the point that in order to know we're bad at something, we must first understand it. He makes the comment that stupid people won't know their stupid, as they'd be too dumb to know they are.

Which is an interesting point to make to/about our kids. If a child comes up and says they're bad at something, it means we can tell them they must know how it works for them to think they're bad at something. In which case, they're actually good at it, because they know things about it.

In the same way that a child who thinks they're stupid, must be, to a certain degree, intelligent enough to know what this means, or what it means to not be stupid. In which case, they're not.

I love this, because it's very positive.

What's not explained is the difference between knowledge and application of said knowledge

Or ability vs knowing.

So, if you know you're "not good" at something, then you must have some knowledge to be able to apply to your current ability to get better at it.

In other words, if a child you teach doesn't know how to add, but knows what good adding looks like, then get them to explain what good addition is, and build from there. Use their own positive knowledge with them to scaffold it into further knowledge, and ability. In time, their definition of "stupid" will change as you positively reinforce the application of their knowledge into ability.

For example, when I first started doing yoga I knew what bakasana, or crow pose, was but didn't have the ability to do it. I applied the various things I was learning, including basic forearm stretches, balance poses and smaller things like looking straightforward while in the pose, to eventually get it, understand it, and use it. It took time, but I was successful. It was a patient process.

In other words, I originally thought I was "stupid", but because I knew it what good crow pose looked like and through guidance from my teachers was able to get that pose into place.

And it's no different in the classroom. We must not simply tell our kids they're not stupid, we have to make them see why they're not by using what they've already got.

I recognize that every child will not be experts at everything, but I have a hard time believing children are truly "stupid" at anything.

As a great PYP coordinator, Dean Johnson, once said to me, in paraphrased form:

Always look on the light side Andrew. the dark side isn't going to do a lot of good for them.