Language in the Oxford Dictionary is described as ‘Words and their use; system of this used by a nation or group.’ I feel language is just as important as any other way of knowing in learning because as a ‘nation’ of people we must have language in order to communicate with each other, imagine if we could not speak there would be no way of teaching each other. Take musicians for example. They themselves have their own language, which is conveyed in musical notes. In order for a musician to perform they must be able to understand this form of communication and by doing so to a high level, they become skilled in their field. I do feel that certain musicians, that are extremely talented possess a natural ability, which cannot be taught through language, perception, emotion or reason. I think certain people are born with the ability to understand and relate to music better than others. Take the music composer Mozart as an example, he could write notes before he could write words. When he was only five years of age he wrote a piano solo called a minuet. This is a gift that obviously Mozart was born with and was not taught, even thought his father was a musician he never actually trained Mozart how to play an instrument, it was something that Mozart taught himself. Mozart is considered one of the greatest musicians of all time; it is obvious that he possesses a natural ability that no one else does. Therefore this is something that cannot be taught by language and neither can it by any of the ways of knowing, this does not mean there is a more important way of knowing than language, its just becomes apparent that no way of knowing can teach or describe how Mozart became a superior musician.
In my mind I feel that each of the four ways of knowing are equally important when it comes to being taught something. I have already found the meaning of language in the Oxford Dictionary to be ‘words and their use; system of this used by a nation or group.’ I have also looked up the others. Emotion is described as ‘intense mental feeling,’ perception ‘ability to perceive’ and reason ‘ability to think and draw conclusions.’ I also found out the meaning of the word ‘perceive’ to help me get a better understanding of perception ‘become aware of,
see or notice.’ From interpreting what each of the ways of knowing actually mean it becomes it easier for me to come to a conclusion as to whether they are needed when being taught something. In my opinion I feel language is essential, as it is how we as human beings communicate, therefore if you are being educated by another person, some form of langue will need to be used in order for you each to get your points across. Emotion is also just as important as you must have the passion to learn something and without emotion this would not be possible. When gaining knowledge of a certain kind you must be aware of what you are learning and all the factors that contribute towards what you are being taught. Without this it would be difficult to be taught anything, therefore perception is valuable in our learning. And finally the last way of knowing, which is essential for a human to gain knowledge and be taught is reason. Reason is needed in order for a person to conclude how they carry out certain actions. Without reason you would not know why you are doing what you are doing, it would make no sense. Therefore it is necessary that you have reason when being taught.
Overall I feel that if anything language is definitely the most essential way of knowing when learning how to do something and no other way is more important. However I do feel that the three other ways play an equally significant role when being taught and being able to know how you do something. Without any of the four ways of knowing it would be a lot harder to gain the amount of knowledge we acquire.
Bibliography
Word meanings – Oxford Dictionary
Mozart Information -
Word Count – 1,102 words