WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE SMART?
“AS FOR ME, ALL I KNOW IS THAT I KNOW NOTHING”
IF PEOPLE ARE NOT ABLE TO MEASURE HAPPINESS, THEN I
THINK MEASURING HOW SMART YOU ARE WILL ALSO PROVE
IMPOSSIBLE; IF YOU ARE NOT WILLING TO BE DECEIVED OR DECEIVE
YOURSELF. EVEN SO-CALLED "GENIUSES" ARE WORST WHEN IT
COMES TO DOING SOMETHING OUTSIDE THEIR COMFORT ZONES.
AS PRACTICE HAS SHOWN, IN EACH CLASS THERE IS A STUDENT
WHO IS MORE CAPABLE OF THIS OR THAT LESSON IN COMPARISON
WITH OTHERS. THAT IS, HE WILL SEEM, OR ACTUALLY APPEAR,
SMART, BECAUSE HE ALWAYS RAISES HIS HAND, PASSES ALL TESTS
FOR 100 POINTS, IN A WORD, A VERY ACTIVE AND MOBILE CHILD.
BUT DOES THAT MEAN THIS KID IS REALLY «SMART»?
THERE ARE, CONVERSELY, QUIET, NOT AMBITIOUS CHILDREN
WHO MOST OF THE TIME LIVE IN THEIR OWN WORLD, NOT KNOWING
THE ANSWERS TO ALL THE QUESTIONS OF THE SCHOOL
CURRICULUM. BUT DOES THIS MEAN THAT THE CHILD IS «STUPID»?
TEACHERS, HOPING TO MAKE LIFE EASIER FOR THEMSELVES,
DO NOT PAY MUCH ATTENTION TO THOSE WHO ARE LESS ACTIVE IN
THE CLASSROOM, CITING THE FACT THAT THE CHILD IS NOT SMART.
BUT IN FACT, NO ONE IS SMART, SOMEONE IS MORE
KNOWLEDGEABLE IN THIS OR THAT AREA. IF, FOR EXAMPLE, ONE
STUDENT IS VERY POORLY VERSED IN MATHEMATICS AND ALWAYS
PASSES TESTS FOR DEUCES, HE CAN BE AN EXCELLENT WRITER IN
LITERATURE LESSONS. THIS REVEALS THE PROBLEM AND
DISABILITY OF TEACHERS. THE TEACHER HAS NO RIGHT TO SPEAK
FRANKLY TO HIS DISCIPLES THAT HE IS STUPID. CHILDREN MAY NOT
BE STUPID, SOME JUST CAN'T OR DON'T WANT TO SEEM SMART, TO
SAY SO TO BRAG. I HAVE ONE EXAMPLE FROM LIFE: MY FRIEND,
VERY QUIET, NOT SOCIABLE PERSONALITY BY NATURE AND
TEMPERAMENT, DID NOT GET THE BEST GRADES IN SCHOOL,
BECAUSE SHE DID NOT LIKE TO STAND OUT. I, LIKE EVERYONE ELSE
AT THE TIME, THOUGHT SHE WASN'T VERY SMART. BUT LATER,
WHEN WE GOT TO KNOW EACH OTHER BETTER, AND WHEN I WAS AT
HER HOUSE VISITING, I SAW A HUGE LIBRARY OF BOOKS, RE-READ IT
FOR 14 YEARS OF HER LIFE. ONCE I STARTED TALKING ABOUT ONE
BOOK, IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE TO STOP HER. SHE WAS SO PASSIONATE,
SHE WAS ONE HUNDRED PERCENT SMART IN THIS AREA. AS ALMOST
EVERYONE ELSE SAYS, BEING SMART HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH
ASSESSMENTS OR OTHER EXTERNAL, QUANTITATIVE MEASURES
THAT OUR SOCIETY USES TO ASSESS HOW “SMART” A PERSON IS.
IN MY NOBLE OPINION, YOU CAN ONLY BE CLEVER IN THE
THINGS YOU LIKE BEST, AND IN THE THINGS THAT ARE EASY FOR
YOU TO DO. I MEAN, YOU CAN'T BE SMART ABOUT EVERYTHING.
AND THAT SHOULD BE CONSIDERED NORMAL. WE NEED TO STOP
LIVING BY STANDARDS. A SMART PERSON IS AWARE OF HIS
BEHAVIOR AND THE EXPECTED CONSEQUENCES - REGARDLESS OF
HIS EDUCATION OR SOCIAL STATUS.