How Do You Know When You Know?

“I know” and “I already know this” are two phrases that seem to be everywhere.  Try telling something to a teenager.  If you get six words out before they snarl back with, “I know,” you’re lucky.  No matter what you were about to tell them, it seems they were one step ahead of you.  Like Kreskin, they know. 

But it isn’t just teenagers.  We adults “know” too - albeit, usually in a different way.

When we seek out new information we often come away feeling discouraged because we believe that, well, we already knew everything we just encountered.  (Sound a bit familiar?) It seems there’s so little truly “new” information that it’s easy to shoot down teachers, writers and others who fail to “wow” us with information we’ve never encountered before.  And yes, I’ve been guilty of this myself.  But I wonder if we’re really being honest.  Think about it. 

How do you know when you know something?  That sounds like a trick question, but it isn’t.  At some point in the learning process we all come to a point where we’re certain we “know” what we’ve been trying to learn.  My question is, where is that point?  Is it when you understand something?  Is it when you can pass a test on the subject?  Is it when you can teach the subject yourself?

I think for most people the answer lies somewhere within those options.  At some point things just “make sense” to us and we’re certain we now “know” it.  This seems so obvious it’s hardly worth mentioning.  But, in fact, it is critical to mention because there is an enormous difference between actually knowing something and just thinking that you do.
Here’s a better way to tell:

You actually know something when you start living like you know it.  In other words, your behavior changes in such a way that an observer would say, “Now there goes someone who knows.”

Until that point, you’re just kidding yourself.  You may understand.  You may be able to pass a test.  And you may be able to teach.  But unless your behavior reflects your knowledge, you don’t have any knowledge.  At best, you’re on the way to knowing (which is essential).  But at worst, you simply go around proclaiming you do.  It may feel good to think you know, but it doesn’t make it true.

So how do you know when you know something?  It’s a question worth asking yourself.  Even better, ask those around you if you’re living as if you know.  The answer might surprise you.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

January 18 2006, Ottawa: The Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action (FAFIA), a strategic alliance of women’s and human rights groups, is pleased to announce that all five major federal parties have pledged their support to uphold women’s human rights in Canada in the next Parliament. 

FAFIA gave party leaders until 12 p.m. E.S.T. today to respond to their invitation to sign a statement regarding their plans to uphold Canada’s equality commitments to women. 

Gilles Duceppe of the Bloc Québecois, Jack Layton of the New Democratic Party,  Jim Harris of the Green Party, Paul Martin of the Liberal Party, and Stephen Harper of the Conservative Party all pledged their commitment.  These leaders have said that once elected, they will take immediate and concrete measures to ensure that Canada fully upholds its equality commitments to women. To view the letters from the leaders, visit http://www.fafia-afai.org/abo/news/leaders_pledge.php.

Campaign pledges represent the first phase of FAFIA’s year-long campaign to promote Canada’s full implementation of its commitments to women under international human rights treaties.

In addition to seeking public support from federal party leaders, women in communities across Canada have been urging local candidates to do the same, to date obtaining more than 70 pledges.  A list tracking candidates who sign the pledge is available at: http://www.fafia-afai.org/abo/news/list_candidates.php.

This year marks the 25^th anniversary of Canada’s ratification of the most comprehensive treaty on women’s human rights: The U.N. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).  Canada was among the first countries to sign the treaty in 1980.

According to reviews conducted by the United Nations, Canada’s performance on its equality commitments is lagging. Women in Canada who work full-time still earn, on average, 71% of what men earn.  Poverty rates for single mothers and women of colour remain very high. Aboriginal women continue to confront many human rights abuses.  Women also suffer from a lack of access to employment insurance, civil legal aid, and front-line anti-violence services.

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 For more information, contact Shelagh Day, FAFIA’s Co-chair at 604-872-0750 or Nancy Peckford at 613-292-7941. 

Fisher-Price is recalling its Laugh & Learn Musical Learning Chair. The company says there's a risk a child could get stuck between the seatback and side table, possibly leading to strangulation. The model number is H4609 for English and H7168 for French.

Consumers who bought the chair should stop using it immediately and contact Fisher-Price toll-free at 1-866-552-3914. Or, log onto the website, Fisher-Price will send a free repair kit with instructions. The company says there have been no reports of serious injury.