Hidden Assumptions

10-26-12

1. How did you react to your results? Were you surprised? Angry or hurt? Pleased? Discuss what you felt and why you think you felt what you did.

After the first test, the skin tone test, I was a little bit surprised with my results. I did not expect them at all, and I am slightly disappointed with them. My results were that I have a slight preference for people with lighter skin than I have to people with darker skin. I disagree with these results and was surprised because I believe that I treat everyone equally.

After the second test, the age test, I was not at all surprised with my results. First of all, when I first decided to take the test, I knew what my results would be before I even started. This is due to the fact that I work with and teach kids on a regular basis, and I do not spend an excessive amount of time with senior citizens. However, I do not have anything against the older generation, I just prefer to work with children.

1. Do you believe that your test results say something about you that you should pay attention to? Why or why not?

After taking the first test, I think that there is something that I should pay attention to. The fact that the results of a test stated that I subconsciously tend to prefer lighter skinned people to darker skinned people is very surprising to me. In the future, I am going to try harder to treat every one the Sam, no matter what color their skin is.    

The second test also opened my eyes to something that I should away attention to. Although I am more associated with younger children, and I prefer to spend my time with them, I also do not want to be disrespectful to the older generation. In the future, I am going to try harder to spend more time with older individuals.

1. Do you think that these tests are valid? When you first saw your results, did you question or accept the tests' validity?

I personally am not sure that these tests were extremely valid. First of all, they were very confusing, and when they were switched up, I couldn't really think straight. In addition, these tests would also be very difficult for someone who was dyslexic, and therefore, they would not be valid at all. However, on the other hand, the tests were also designed to be difficult so that your subconscious could take over and answer truthfully without being filtered through your personal thoughts and opinions. Therefore, one could argue that these tests were quite valid because they caused you to stop thinking about everything and to answer truthfully.

1. Give examples of the cultural messages that may support attitudes linking a dominant group in your nation or culture with "good" or "superior" attributes and a subordinate group with "bad" or "inferior" ones. Are these attitudes generalizations that can be called stereotypes? How can generalizations be distinguished from stereotypes?

An example of a cultural message that links a dominant group in society to a superior attribute would be how celebrities and the rest of the general public put a huge value on appearances, and how people are not accepted into society unless they have a "good" appearance. An example of a cultural message that links a subordinate group to inferior attributes would be how other groups of people from other countries who live in the US think that all Americans are obese slobs. These attitudes are definitely generalizations that could be considered stereotypes. It is very difficult to distinguish the two from one another, and I personally do not think that there is a way to tell the two apart.

1. If some of our consciously held beliefs, attitudes, and values are undermined by what Gladwell, another writer we'll be reading soon...calls 'rapid cognition' (others call this 'intuitive thinking' or even 'gut feelings'), what do you suggest we can do to combat jumping to (false) conclusions?

One way in which we can prevent ourselves from jumping to false conclusions would be to stop and think things all the way through before developing an opinion about them. Instead of relying on our gut instincts for everything, we should take the time to examine the matter more closely and more thoroughly so that we can see all the different possible conclusions, before quickly selecting a false one. 

What is TOK? Why TOK?

What is TOK?
TOK stands for Theory of Knowledge. It is the the in depth exploration of how the mind works, how we know what we know, why we know what we know, and how we learn.

Why TOK?
We study TOK in order to become better learners and in order to become better, well-rounded, IB students, and finally to become life-long learners. TOK helps us become better individuals who are curious about the world and who continue to learn throughout life. We also study TOK to accept other people's thoughts and opinions while still holding onto to our own and still being open to new ideas.