Cognition and Its Place for Teachers

Summary:
This chapters explores (briefly) the creative process. Lindeman references Graham Wallas' The Art of Thought and the "four stages of creative problem-solving". All of these processes (preparation, incubation, illumination, and verification) validate Lyndemann's point about having to be able to not only synthesize information, but also to filter it through all of the sensory modes which are available to us.
The chapter has headings which tell of the author's intent to focus on how we come to cognition, some theories about the cognitive process, and the ramifications for the English teacher specifically.
The section which discusses perception begins by emphasizing the idea that every person translates what they perceive into knowledge through a different route because everyone is different, forming their own set of realities. The section concludes with a discussion about language and the Whorf hypothesis which theorizes that different languages can affect how different cultures perceive the world.
Conception is an important part of the cognitive process and is discussed in terms of prewriting. Lyndemann reminds her readers that just because someone is educated in one field that doesn't mean they are going to understand every discourse situation. She emphasizes the importance of developing writing assignments that can help every student reach their own writing potential.

Response:
All of the things that Lyndemann point out about how the cognitive process can be enhanced the more it is explored made me think of the college experience. I think that the reason people can become such well-rounded individuals at the university level is that they are introduced to so many different approaches to problem-solving. If the depth of perception can lead to a brighter illumination, then all of the general education classes which students dread could be one of the ways to improving thinking.
Another interesting thing was a fairly mundane story in the perception section. Lyndemann relates the story about the wood worker's ability to see the problem through the actual materials he is using and relates this to the feeling of when we "know what we mean but can't put it into words". It seems that this could be why some students are better writers than others. If they are more inclined to think in terms of words rather than working parts, it naturally follows that their writing would be more coherent.