Commonplacing

  ‘Where there is much desire to learn, there of necessity will be much arguing, much writing, many opinions; for opinion in good persons is but knowledge in the making.’  John Milton

“The fact is that given the challenges we face, education doesn't need to be reformed -- it needs to be transformed. The key to this transformation is not to standardize education, but to personalize it, to build achievement on discovering the individual talents of each child, to put students in an environment where they want to learn and where they can naturally discover their true passions.”
― Ken Robinson, The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything

 Commonplacing (a way to compile knowledge, usually by writing information into books) and the creation of Commonplace Books (manuscripts in which an individual collects material which have a common theme) can be a useful tool for organizing knowledge to support Combinatorial Creativity in today’s digital age of information overload.

 “Combinatory play seems to be the essential feature in productive thought.” (Einstein) 

Cognitive scientists’ research shows that creative thinking can come from connecting disparate ideas that wouldn’t otherwise cross paths - but we no longer teach students to use tools that would facilitate this cross pollination of ideas.

"Commonplace" is a translation of the Latin term locus communis (from Greek tópos koinós, see literary topos) which means "a general or common topic", such as a statement of proverbial wisdom. In this original sense, commonplace books were collections of such sayings, such as John Milton's example. Scholars now understand them to include manuscripts in which an individual collects material which have a common theme, such as ethics, or exploring several themes in one volume. Commonplace books are private collections of information, but they are not diaries or travelogues.

The purpose of commonplacing, for education and the development of critical/creative thinking, can be traced from as early as 65 AD when Seneca taught that gathering information was not enough – it must be transformed into something new. Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations, his private notes to himself and his ideas on Stoic philosophy were one of the first Commonplace Books when it was published in 180 AD. Commonplace Books were the information-organizers of Early Modern Europe and were an important element of Renaissance education. They were used to improve memory, connect thoughts for new knowledge and could be consulted for speeches and written composition. Erasmus advised in De Copia (1512) “an abundant stock of quotations and mizims from classical texts be entered under various Lock (places) to assist in free-flowing oratory”

Traditional

Digital

AI enhanced 

Reflections are mixed with suggestions based on what you did throughout the day. It is based on Apple’s “Moments” feature to access your data — like where you were, the photos and videos you clicked, your FaceTime calls, etc. Apple lets you choose the data you want to share with the app, so if you don’t want it to have access to something, it won’t. These include Activity, Media, Contacts, Photos, and Significant Locations.

 “We consume the equivalent of 174 full newspapers’ worth of content each and every day, five times higher than in 1986. . .  When it comes to our personal knowledge, there is no such assigned spot. We are organizing for actionability, and “what’s actionable” is always changing. Sometimes we can receive one text message or email and the entire landscape of our day changes. Because”
― Tiago ForteAt its core, this method revolves around four key principles: Capture, Organize, Distill, and Express, or CODE for short. By following these principles, you can create a second brain that not only stores your knowledge but also facilitates creativity and innovation.

Quotes: https://fortelabs.com/blog/tiagos-favorite-second-brain-quotes/