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Cognitive Models Work Every Time
Cogito, ergo sum…. I think, therefore I am
—René Descartes (Discourse on Method, 1637)
Everyone has a model of school in their heads. It usually places a teacher up front; neat rows of students who are attentively looking forward towards the teacher. When asked to do so, most people can place themselves in their most “liked” or most “hated” classroom, and recall with exquisite detail the room, the subject, the teacher, and classmates. In the idyllic classroom, a backdrop consists of a chalkboard and a map. Typically, a child is enthusiastically waving a hand high to assure the teacher that she has the answer to a question.
Models like this are culturally constructed because each of us has been in classrooms ...
