2008 Woodie Awards
Ignatian Corner: Study technique from Jesuit in China still applicable
Daniel Joyce, S.J.
Issue date: 2/28/07 Section: Features
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Cramming for a test this week? Do you feel that you need to catch up on a large amount of information in a brief period of time?
Then you may the help of one of Mateo Ricci, S.J. Ricci is an Italian Jesuit who was one of the first Europeans to enter the imperial city of Beijing in 1608.
He got there by being very good at training aspiring Chinese government officials in how to take the challenging civil service exams.
Ricci likely used three techniques in his approach to test preparation:
1.) Organize your work in a systematic way so that it is doable.
Do not become overwhelmed by the challenge. Fr. Ricci had the incredible challenge of teaching himself Mandarin Chinese when he first set foot on the shores of China.
With no easy referent to the European and Middle Eastern languages he already knew, he went about the work with careful, manageable methods of study. He did not want to overwhelm himself in the arduous task.
2.) Choose the hardest task first. Ricci understood the age-old advice of Saint Ignatius - adjure contra - go against your tendency to do the easiest first. Usually we want to work on the easy material first.
This forces us into the difficult situation of working on the hardest material at the eleventh hour. The last part of our study for a test ought to be a review of all of the material, not trying to work on the complexities of the hardest stuff.
3.) See if you can create a "memory palace". Ricci, was trained in Renaissance Italy for the mission to China.
He knew that he might be stranded in a foreign land for months or years at a time. This caused him to study the best mnemonic devices for learning large amounts of information and retaining it.
During his years of work at the Imperial court of China in the 16th and 17th century, Ricci was able to recall the writings of classical Greek philosophers, Roman rhetoricians, and medieval theologians.
Then you may the help of one of Mateo Ricci, S.J. Ricci is an Italian Jesuit who was one of the first Europeans to enter the imperial city of Beijing in 1608.
He got there by being very good at training aspiring Chinese government officials in how to take the challenging civil service exams.
Ricci likely used three techniques in his approach to test preparation:
1.) Organize your work in a systematic way so that it is doable.
Do not become overwhelmed by the challenge. Fr. Ricci had the incredible challenge of teaching himself Mandarin Chinese when he first set foot on the shores of China.
With no easy referent to the European and Middle Eastern languages he already knew, he went about the work with careful, manageable methods of study. He did not want to overwhelm himself in the arduous task.
2.) Choose the hardest task first. Ricci understood the age-old advice of Saint Ignatius - adjure contra - go against your tendency to do the easiest first. Usually we want to work on the easy material first.
This forces us into the difficult situation of working on the hardest material at the eleventh hour. The last part of our study for a test ought to be a review of all of the material, not trying to work on the complexities of the hardest stuff.
3.) See if you can create a "memory palace". Ricci, was trained in Renaissance Italy for the mission to China.
He knew that he might be stranded in a foreign land for months or years at a time. This caused him to study the best mnemonic devices for learning large amounts of information and retaining it.
During his years of work at the Imperial court of China in the 16th and 17th century, Ricci was able to recall the writings of classical Greek philosophers, Roman rhetoricians, and medieval theologians.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
John McLaughlin
posted 3/01/07 @ 9:43 AM EST
Hi,
Nice article. Thanks for writing it. Although I am not at St. Joe's, I like to keep an eye on the "Ignatian Corner." Keep up the good work.
I think that the term that you used -- "adjure contra" -- may be incorrect. (Continued…)
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