I mean some people asked what "cat" is, then I remembered there was a time when I had no idea how to use mIRC, so whatever. In my defense though, I was REALLY young.
No need to apologize, needing an excuse to lack knowledge is how we end up with people afraid to ask.
I try to make it visible when I’m among juniors and there’s something I don’t know. I think showing the process of “I realize I miss some knowledge => here’s how I bridge the gap” might help against the current trend of going through the motions in the dark.
It used to be that learning was almost a hazing ritual of being belittled and told to RTFM. That doesn’t really work when people have a big bold shortcut on their phones at any given time.
We might need to make the old way more attractive if we don’t want to end up alone.
> needing an excuse to lack knowledge is how we end up with people afraid to ask.
While we should encourage people to ask questions without fear, this doesn't mean we should lower standards or simplify everything for the lowest common denominator (which seems to be trending a lot!).
That said, there is the real issue of "this must stay complex because that's how it really is" as well, undeniably so.
> It used to be that learning was almost a hazing ritual of being belittled and told to RTFM.
Been there! I think it did more good than bad to me though. Survivorship bias? In any case, I don't try to make the case here that it is optimal pedagogy. I wouldn't know. Thoughts?
> No need to apologize, needing an excuse to lack knowledge is how we end up with people afraid to ask.
Yes!
There is no shame in ignorance. We are all, without exception, ignorant of more things than we're knowledgeable about. Shame should be reserved for remaining ignorant of things when it becomes clear that we would benefit from learning about them.
