Nanjing Normal University Hao Jinghua
“Fragile knowledge syndrome”[1],proposed by David Perkins,is a metaphorical concept reflects that mastery of knowledge is inadequate.In this paper,various concrete instances are enumerated and the “etiologies” of this syndrome are discussed in aims to be put forward the treatment methods.
1.Manifestation of “fragile knowledge syndrome”[2]
Perkins (1992) noticed that there are three notable issues on knowledge learning.
(1) Inert knowledge
It allows students to remember information when tested,but does not give them the ability to apply it outside of classroom.
(2) Naive knowledge
It refers to knowledge that lets student rely on simple explanations or formulas to provide the answer,but doesn't require them to apply knowledge in flexible ways.
(3) Ritual knowledge
It is a substitution of routines that work well in a classroom for real knowledge;students go through the motions expected in school but see no applications to the world beyond the classroom.
The “fragile knowledge syndrome” proposed by Perkins is not only real in Chinese students' classroom,but statistical significance observed.There are some instances as follows.
(1) Take inert knowledge for an example.When I have lesson in the morning,I usually ask those students to hand up if they did not have breakfast.It is surprising that more than one third of the college students don't have breakfast.Even more shocking is that almost all of them could give the exact answers about the nutritional elements,including carbohydrates,protein,fat,vitamins,minerals,water and cellulose.
(2) Take naive knowledge for an example.There are two questions.
①Float and sink of a piece of apple—If we cut a piece from an apple and drop it into a cup of water,does it float on the surface? Many people think it depends on the size of the piece (it means that the bigger one such as a whole apple sinks while the small one floats).