I agree with others that the Big Idea here is less exciting than adamzerner appears to think it is.
It seems plausible that learning prerequisites solidly first is a good technique. But it isn’t obviously best and I don’t see any evidence here that it is actually best. Another possibility is that actually it’s best to be exposed informally to ideas before you have all the background to understand them completely, so that (a) they will be more familiar when you see them “properly” and (b) they will give a bit more context when learning the prerequisites.
I have some (weak) anecdotal evidence that sometimes this learning order is effective.
I wonder about the motivational impact of never being allowed to work on something new until you’ve demonstrably mastered whatever the creators of your study scheme think are the prerequisites. I would imagine that in some cases it would be very bad, but I’ve seen no evidence either way.
Another possibility is that actually it’s best to be exposed informally to ideas before you have all the background to understand them completely
IMO, having a road map ahead, even if it is blurry, helps to organize the immediate details. The map ahead will be blurry of necessity, as you don’t understand the details yet.
What probably would help for motivation is to see what people can do with the knowledge you’re trying to master—see what problems the knowledge will allow you to solve.
I agree with others that the Big Idea here is less exciting than adamzerner appears to think it is.
It seems plausible that learning prerequisites solidly first is a good technique. But it isn’t obviously best and I don’t see any evidence here that it is actually best. Another possibility is that actually it’s best to be exposed informally to ideas before you have all the background to understand them completely, so that (a) they will be more familiar when you see them “properly” and (b) they will give a bit more context when learning the prerequisites.
I have some (weak) anecdotal evidence that sometimes this learning order is effective.
I wonder about the motivational impact of never being allowed to work on something new until you’ve demonstrably mastered whatever the creators of your study scheme think are the prerequisites. I would imagine that in some cases it would be very bad, but I’ve seen no evidence either way.
IMO, having a road map ahead, even if it is blurry, helps to organize the immediate details. The map ahead will be blurry of necessity, as you don’t understand the details yet.
What probably would help for motivation is to see what people can do with the knowledge you’re trying to master—see what problems the knowledge will allow you to solve.