GRE-Issue153

TOPIC: ISSUE153 - "Students should bring a certain skepticism to whatever they study. They should question what they are taught instead of accepting it passively."
WORDS: 444          TIME: 00:45:00          DATE: 2011-3-19 13:44:08

"Students should bring a certain skepticism to whatever they study.They should question what they are taught instread of accepting it passively."I agree with this idea almost totally,but in some occasions knowledge shouldn't be challenged by students.I will state my opinion in the following paragraphs.
What we learn now as truth may be justified as paradox in a not far future."Earth center theory" was once accepted by the whole world during a quite long period when religious power is great and science is relatively uninfluential.But this theory was proved wrong after many years and people began to accept that the sun is the center of universe.How about our mind now?Does anybody think that the sun is the center of universe?Perhaps few do so.Because as our horizon is broadened,we know that a probably infinite space is out of the solar system where the sun is the center.So we can not really be sure what is the center of universe.
The spirit of skepticism is not only a way to prove other people's wrong theory,but also a way for well comprehension of other's theory.If we don't question about what we are learning,we can only follow others passively.Knowledge is not what is left for you to collect,but what you need to strugle for.A skepcticism spirit is a tool for us when learning something you've never experienced.The more you consider about the knowledge,the more questions you will have.Question is a reflection of the collision of your idea and the authors.So the collision will never settled until one of the two side is defeated.When the learner wins,the author is proved wrong.Otherwise the author is right and knowledge really becomes yours after the whole question process.
Spirit of skepticism is critical during our learning process,however,in some special occasions we can not judge the knowledge.For example,before we start to learn geometry,some principles are just there for you."Two points determine a line.","A line is shorted between two points when straight.".These axioms are not to be challenged because they're just "right" or nothing could be done to prove them.With these basic stuff,mathmaticists build a complicated and huge geometric theory which is not changed in hundred of years.In fact,any theory is not built on the air and they all have some basic things to depend on.More often,these basic things are not proved and of course you can not suspend the rightness of them.Or the whole theory is nothing out of it.
In sum,bringing a certain skepticism to the study is essential for learners.With questions in mind,the theory could be well justified and the learners can get the essence of the theory.But suspension should be ignored in some occasions such as what the theory depend on.