Theory Of Knowledge - A Happy Thought

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I thought I'd share something with you all that puts Asperger's in a positive light and certainly made me chuckle.

My daughter (17) is studying for the International Baccalaureate (IB). For those of you who aren't familiar with it, the IB is internationally recognised as one of the toughest courses to pass at this level of schooling. It's a course for only the smartest kids.

At the core of the IB is a subject they call theory of knowledge. The students have to study this subject for 2 years and have to pass it or they fail the whole of the IB. This theory of knowledge is what sets the IB above the others.

My daughter, who has Asperger's, was getting all upset over theory of knowledge (TOK). She couldn't work out what it was all about. She talked to her class mates who said they were also finding it difficult. She said that TOK is thinking about something in lots of different ways and to pass you had to be able to do this. Oh no, I thought. Someone with Asperger's is never going to be able to do this. She can't even get her head around what she is supposed to be doing, let alone do it.

So a meeting was arranged with the school, the TOK teacher, the special needs teacher, the autism occupational therapist from the hospital and me so that we could look at exactly what was expected and find ways to try and help her get through it.

The TOK teacher explained in detail what TOK was. It's not about thinking in different ways. It's about thinking in a specific way, what the IB refer to as 'higher level thinking'. The different ways my daughter was refering to was the steps they try to get the students closer to this higher level thinking. They are not expected to get there. That's the ideal aim, but in all likelyhood they will only move up a few steps.

He then explained what 'higher level thinking' was. I looked at the autism expert, she looked at me and then we both burst out laughing and laughed till we cried. Theory of knowledge, the core of the IB learning ethos is all about teaching students to think like Aspies.

I want to make sure I'm understanding this correctly... They have a sequential process to teach out of the box thinking? It doesn't sound like they get it. A true out of the the box thinker would have serious issues getting in the box they have created to artificially teach something they were born with. *boggle*