KNOWING & UNDERSTANDING VS DOING & TEACHING:

“Those that know do, those that understand teach.” – Aristotle

We can know something without understanding it. But what a difference it makes when we do understand; when the subject in hand isn’t something that we know a few facts about, but we have personal experience of what that feels like.

It’s an interesting debate and one that gets to the heart of what makes training great.

Experience has shown that learners place a great value on the ‘knowledge’ of the trainer, whilst trainers themselves value ‘credibility’ more.

It’s an interesting difference of opinion. Some would say it is a difference built on semantics; surely in this instance knowledge & credibility are the same thing?  Or is the difference between knowledge & credibility the same as the difference between listening & hearing or knowing & understanding?

Technical knowledge of the subject (the facts, the figures, the process, the models etc.) is of enormous benefit when building your credibility with learners. But knowledge on its own isn’t enough; it’s the understanding of what it feels like that brings it to life.

It’s all those things – it’s knowledge plus experience that brings that understanding and with that understanding comes credibility and learning. Or as Aristotle put it so beautifully: “Those that know do, those that understand teach”.

We would be teachers, not just for knowledge but for wisdom. Education is not only about the knowledge children learn in the classroom, it is also about the ways they learn to use that knowledge. Teaching is an investment in the lives of children.

"Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach," - George Bernard Shaw

Popular wisdom has it that "Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach," implying that people with real practical skills are out doing constructive things, while those who can't cut it in the "real world" find a less demanding refuge in teaching. This statement suggests that people who have failed or would be failures in the world outside of academia end up as teachers.

The origins of this quote and various permutations of it are unclear. An early quote of similar meaning comes from George Bernard Shaw.

In the Middle Ages, knowledge was viewed as God’s gift. Since it was God’s gift, it was seen as wrong to charge for it. As a result of this view, teachers at many institutions were not paid at all for their work. They had to rely on the gifts and charity of appreciative students.

The value of the work being done as well as the education level required to perform that work is reflected in the salary, yet teachers are still relatively low-paid compared to other jobs with similar educational requirements. Additionally, teaching is one of the few professions that require a higher education, yet people commonly suggest those who take that career path are deficient in some fashion.

Being a teacher requires more than a standard Bachelor’s Degree, but many people still view teaching as a profession for lazy or unskilled people. A favored chestnut among those who hold such views is the anecdotal story about the incompetence of teachers who teach topics related to professions in which they have never engaged.

Education is about equipping students with a broad base of knowledge they can draw on to become successful in the occupations they pursue.

It is up to the student to digest the information he receives and find an application for it in his life, not for the teacher teach him each individual step. Considering that each company and job demands a customized set of skills, this is certainly a more reasonable approach. Even similar jobs may require different approaches at different types of businesses.

If you feel teachers don’t know what they’re talking about when it comes to the real world, then you’re missing the point of education. The point is not to memorize a sequence of steps to be regurgitated as needed at a future job. Teachers are there to help you learn how to be smart enough to figure out those steps on your own.