Automaticity: The Hands And Feet Of Genius By Benjamin Bloom
Critical Analysis of Professional Literature
The article I chose was Automaticity: The Hands and Feet of Genius by Benjamin S. Bloom (1986). I chose the article because I respect the work of Benjamin Bloom and I was not yet familiar with this particular topic. In this article Benjamin Bloom explains the concept of automaticity and how it is achieved. The author also provides specific examples, and theories of automaticity development. The article concludes with specific examples of skills that can be automated and suggestions for how schools can help children in the development of automaticity.
I chose the following four standards from Paul and Elder’s (2009) universal intellectual standards: 1) Depth, 2) Breadth, 3) Logic, and 4) Significance. The article itself is very well written and gives great example however, I felt the topic could have been explored further in the area of child development. In addition, I kept wondering about other aspects of the participant’s lives, which may have contributed to the development of automaticity in their talent field. Though I felt the article was logical, it felt out of order and I found myself questioning its significance.
If I could ask Mr. Bloom some questions regarding this article, I would ask: 1) did this study collect information on the participant’s early development? …show more content…
Why is it so important to start young - for those wishing to master a skill? What is the difference in level of mastery if we begin the learning process later in life? The author does not go into great detail explaining why automaticity is better achieved at a younger age…though he does suggest it. Of course we all know that repetition of any skill will lead to learning, but when in the process does learning move to mastery? I felt that if this question had been answered, the article would have had more
The article I chose was Automaticity: The Hands and Feet of Genius by Benjamin S. Bloom (1986). I chose the article because I respect the work of Benjamin Bloom and I was not yet familiar with this particular topic. In this article Benjamin Bloom explains the concept of automaticity and how it is achieved. The author also provides specific examples, and theories of automaticity development. The article concludes with specific examples of skills that can be automated and suggestions for how schools can help children in the development of automaticity.
I chose the following four standards from Paul and Elder’s (2009) universal intellectual standards: 1) Depth, 2) Breadth, 3) Logic, and 4) Significance. The article itself is very well written and gives great example however, I felt the topic could have been explored further in the area of child development. In addition, I kept wondering about other aspects of the participant’s lives, which may have contributed to the development of automaticity in their talent field. Though I felt the article was logical, it felt out of order and I found myself questioning its significance.
If I could ask Mr. Bloom some questions regarding this article, I would ask: 1) did this study collect information on the participant’s early development? …show more content…
Why is it so important to start young - for those wishing to master a skill? What is the difference in level of mastery if we begin the learning process later in life? The author does not go into great detail explaining why automaticity is better achieved at a younger age…though he does suggest it. Of course we all know that repetition of any skill will lead to learning, but when in the process does learning move to mastery? I felt that if this question had been answered, the article would have had more