--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You know what I was thinking? [Ruthie]…" description: "\"“You know what I was thinking? [Ruthie] got so excited when she was spouting this ahistorical countertextual nonsense, and I caught myself thinking, 'W..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/795/orson-scott-card-134_teacher_you-know-what-i-was-thinking-ruthie-got_373758.png" --- # You know what I was thinking? \[Ruthie\] got so excited when… ![“You know what I was thinking? [Ruthie] got so excited when she was spouting this ahistorical countertextual nonsense, and I caught myself thinking, 'What an idiot her teacher must be,' and thinking about her teacher made me realize - the kind of excitement she was showing as she mindlessly spouted…” quote by Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/795/orson-scott-card-134_teacher_you-know-what-i-was-thinking-ruthie-got_373758.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/795/orson-scott-card-134_teacher_you-know-what-i-was-thinking-ruthie-got_373758.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/795/orson-scott-card-134_teacher_you-know-what-i-was-thinking-ruthie-got_373758.png) > ““You know what I was thinking? \[Ruthie\] got so excited when she was spouting this ahistorical countertextual nonsense, and I caught myself thinking, 'What an idiot her teacher must be,' and thinking about her teacher made me realize - the kind of excitement she was showing as she mindlessly spouted back the nonsense she learned in college, that's just like the excitement some of my own students show. And it occurred to me that what we professors think of as a 'brilliant student' is nothing but a student who is enthusiastically converted to whatever idiotic ideas we've been teaching them." "Self-knowledge is a painful thing," said Esther. "To learn that your best students are parrots after all.”” [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker reflects that so-called brilliant students are merely parrots of the teacher's flawed ideas, highlighting the danger of uncritical enthusiasm. **In simple terms:** Students often repeat teachers' errors without thinking. Key Takeaway Encourage critical thinking, not blind enthusiasm. Themes education critical thinking pedagogy student-teacher dynamics Mood reflective concerned Type advice observational. When to use this quote - college lectures - teacher training - student assessments - curriculum design Key Concepts parroting intellectual humility self-awareness Questions to Reflect On - How can educators foster genuine understanding? - What signs show a student is thinking critically? 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[Ruthie] got so excited when she was spouting this ahistorical countertextual nonsense, and I caught myself thinking, 'What an idiot her teacher must be,' and thinking about her teacher made me realize - the kind of excitement she was showing as she mindlessly spouted back the nonsense she learned in college, that's just like the excitement some of my own students show. And it occurred to me that what we professors think of as a 'brilliant student' is nothing but a student who is enthusiastically converted to whatever idiotic ideas we've been teaching them.\" \"Self-knowledge is a painful thing,\" said Esther. \"To learn that your best students are parrots after all.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Orson Scott Card" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/you-know-what-i-was-thinking-ruthie-got-so-excited-when-she-was/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Teacher" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/you-know-what-i-was-thinking-ruthie-got-so-excited-when-she-was/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/795/orson-scott-card-134_teacher_you-know-what-i-was-thinking-ruthie-got_373758.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/795/orson-scott-card-134_teacher_you-know-what-i-was-thinking-ruthie-got_373758.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/795/orson-scott-card-134_teacher_you-know-what-i-was-thinking-ruthie-got_373758.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You know what I was thinking? 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