Art Robinson

In addition to mental models, facts, and the capacity to meld them in thought, the mind also needs a frame of reference – an anchor – a location for itself in the universe. It needs to know the answers to questions that are beyond the capacity of the human mind. That anchor and those answers are best supplied by Christian faith. Faith is combined with facts and models in the mind by means of the human spirit. All three – facts, models, and faith – are entirely self-consistent, but this consistency cannot be proved by science or other constructs of human reason. //

Education programs are often advertised as means for teaching the student to “think,” but one rarely sees a definition of “thinking” in this context. A reasonable definition of such a program may be as follows:

First, it imparts to the student an extensive set of excellent mental models – models of mathematics, science, history, economics, personal affairs, ethics, morality, and other essential subjects.

Second, it provides the student with a sufficient body of facts with which to test these models and to conduct his own initial verification of them.

Third, and most importantly, it teaches the student to derive new conclusions from old models, to create new models, and to continually and intuitively move back and forth between mental models and facts in order to check the accuracy of both.

How are these skills taught? They are best taught in the way that most students learn – by example. The student will emulate the study environment, study habits, and mental methodology of his teacher. In addition, the student will follow the example of the person he knows best – himself.

If the student is required to solve problems – beginning with easy problems when he is five or six years old and increasing in difficulty as he becomes older -by himself and with no specific help from his teacher, the student will gradually teach his mind to flow productively between mental models and their underlying facts and to subconsciously compare all new and old facts to his current collection of mental models. //

Since the fundamental thought processes required for modeling in mathematics and science are the same as for any other mental modeling process, math and science provide excellent material for teaching this ability, regardless of the student’s ultimate goals. //

When Zachary and Noah were in their home school, each day (six days per week) began with a fixed number of math problems. Until they had worked those correctly without help, the rest of their day could not begin. After they finished calculus, physics and chemistry problems were solved. The younger four Robinsons are successfully using the same method. //

If the models – mathematical, physical, personal, moral, and ethical- are well-chosen and the mind is skilled in the use and checking of its models, that person’s mind is well equipped to deal with both the opportunities and the vicissitudes of life.