Teachers want to have students understand but how can they tell when their students do understand? One way is to ask the student to explain what they have learned. What criticisms did Andrew Jackson's political opponents say about his tendencies and abilities? If the student has memorized the words of the teacher or the text, he is usually considered to have a lower sort of knowledge, a more limited and fragile kind than if he can explain what Jackson's critics said in his own words. The phrase "in his own words" covers various difficulties. Today, there are several different pieces of software that try to help the teacher verify that the student's explanation, if written, is his own choice of words and not memorized from another source.
In cooking, mathematical calculation, some aspects of science and other subjects, what is learned is a procedure that can be carried out. So, instead of an explanation, a demonstration is a different indication that learning has taken place and mastery has been achieved.
In some instances, the student accepts that the teacher is just doing her job when she uses one method or another to check for understanding. In other instances, the student may lack confidence in his own learning and fear failure when trying to show that he has learned. The teacher often has a pretty good idea before the checking whether or not the student understands. She may have confidence herself in the honesty and self-knowledge of the student, and depending also on her estimate of his maturity level, she may just ask him if he understands.
Depending on the attitudes of both teacher and student about learning and its uses in life, she may ask if the student is interested in further learning about this topic. Sometimes it is evident that the student is hungry for more knowledge on this subject and sometimes it is apparent that he is eager to stop working with it. When I was a college student, I thought much of the US history I was being taught was about the best example of totally useless, inapplicable knowledge that existed. At the same time, I could explain just how much fun and insight I gained about human life and social and political power from my other history teacher's lessons on the history of France and the French king. Now, I feel differently about US history (in reasonably small doses).
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Bill
Main blog: Fear, Fun and Filoz
Main web site: Kirbyvariety
