Memorization Does Not Equal Understanding

We are in the beginning of a new testing cycle, which means new material for our students. Sometimes students confuse memorization of their forms and other material with understanding their forms. Let's be very clear here. Memorization is not understanding. I have been training in Taekwondo for about 14 years, and I am constantly learning something new about the forms that I learned 14 years ago and am still performing today.

Last Month Chief Master M.K. Lee visited our school and taught a group of instructors, both from our school and other schools. It was very interesting that some of the concepts he taught I had never heard before. I found it hard to believe that I could be a 4th degree and have not heard some of these concepts. How could that be? You see, most of the time we hear what we want to hear or what we have the capacity for at the time we are learning.

We teach the material to students using a techninque called layering. In other words we only give the student as much information as they can handle at the time. Once they have digested that, we then layer on more information. There is always more information to layer on. Each new layer provides a better understanding of the material learned. However, if the student believes they have learned it all, and stops trying to attain new information by believing they "already know it," they have closed the door on learning, so to speak.

So, just because you have memorized the moves, don't start believing that you "know it." There is still much more to learn and to perfect. Do yourself a favor, memorize the form, then perfect the form.

Stan Shields
4th Degree Black Belt
http://www.kicks4all.com/