Tara Mohanan
Tara Mohanan, a co-founder of ThinQ, is well respected internationally for her work on theoretical issues in semantics, syntax, morphology, and phonology, based largely but not exclusively on phenomena in Hindi and Malayalam. She did her PhD in Linguistics at Stanford University. At NUS, where she taught for 16 years, she co-designed with K P Mohanan an Inquiry-Oriented undergraduate program in Linguistics. She has a rare range in educational experience that spans experimenting with Inquiry-Oriented activities in 2nd Grade to advising PhD scholars writing a doctoral dissertation
Articles by Tara Mohanan
The What and How of Learning
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
By and large, most discourses on educational reform focus on pedagogies: how teachers teach and learners learn. They implicitly assume that learners need to learn a body of knowledge and the skills of application associated with that knowledge. What kinds of learning outcomes should we focus on beyond knowledge content and application? This question hardly ever gets any attention. ThinQ departs from this tradition by focusing on two strands of learning — inquiry and integration — as valuable learning outcomes of any education.
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
learning inquiry
The What and How of Learning
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
By and large, most discourses on educational reform focus on pedagogies: how teachers teach and learners learn. They implicitly assume that learners need to learn a body of knowledge and the skills of application associated with that knowledge. What kinds of learning outcomes should we focus on beyond knowledge content and application? This question hardly ever gets any attention. ThinQ departs from this tradition by focusing on two strands of learning — inquiry and integration — as valuable learning outcomes of any education.
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
learning inquiry
Exploring Patterns in Language Structure
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
This book is an exploration of the structure of human language. It uses the scientific mode of inquiry, that of building an integrated and interconnected understanding of the information we gather by observing the world. In working through this book, we hope student readers will learn something about language structure as well as about scientific inquiry.
Photo by Jeremy Bishop on Unsplash
education patterns linguistics
Exploring Patterns in Language Structure
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
This book is an exploration of the structure of human language. It uses the scientific mode of inquiry, that of building an integrated and interconnected understanding of the information we gather by observing the world. In working through this book, we hope student readers will learn something about language structure as well as about scientific inquiry.
Photo by Jeremy Bishop on Unsplash
education patterns linguistics
Linguistics Education and Cognitive Liberation
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
We concluded the article, “Education and Cognitive Liberation”, with a plea to incorporate deep understanding, critical understanding, critical thinking, and independent inquiry as essential instructional goals — the desired learning outcomes — of education. In this article, we focus on critical understanding as a prerequisite to critical thinking, and explore ways to accomplish such understanding in an introductory course in Syntax, as an example of the ‘liberating’ approach to education in linguistics.
Photo by Rowan Heuvel on Unsplash
liberal education linguistics
Linguistics Education and Cognitive Liberation
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
We concluded the article, “Education and Cognitive Liberation”, with a plea to incorporate deep understanding, critical understanding, critical thinking, and independent inquiry as essential instructional goals — the desired learning outcomes — of education. In this article, we focus on critical understanding as a prerequisite to critical thinking, and explore ways to accomplish such understanding in an introductory course in Syntax, as an example of the ‘liberating’ approach to education in linguistics.
Photo by Rowan Heuvel on Unsplash
liberal education linguistics
Validity and Soundness of Arguments
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
An argument may make a logical conclusion given a set of premises, but the premises themselves may not be considered acceptable. Similarly, an argument may happen to reach a logical conclusion, but the reasoning used to get there may be invalid. This article explores the notions of validity and soundness, concepts crucial to reasoning and arguing effectively.
exposition conceptual inquiry textbook chapter
Validity and Soundness of Arguments
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
An argument may make a logical conclusion given a set of premises, but the premises themselves may not be considered acceptable. Similarly, an argument may happen to reach a logical conclusion, but the reasoning used to get there may be invalid. This article explores the notions of validity and soundness, concepts crucial to reasoning and arguing effectively.
exposition conceptual inquiry textbook chapter
Region of Inexactness
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
Most knowledge claims about the world are inherently inexact. In quantitative research, the 'region of inexactness' is captured by confidence intervals, but can inexactness be used in qualitative research as well?
qualitative research scientific inquiry conceptual inquiry
Region of Inexactness
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
Most knowledge claims about the world are inherently inexact. In quantitative research, the 'region of inexactness' is captured by confidence intervals, but can inexactness be used in qualitative research as well?
qualitative research scientific inquiry conceptual inquiry
Light and Vision
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
An investigation into different theories of light and vision, with the goal of demonstrating the importance of engaging learners in the process of scientific inquiry instead of disiminating the currently accepted conclusions of the scientific community.
light theory construction scientific inquiry
Light and Vision
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
An investigation into different theories of light and vision, with the goal of demonstrating the importance of engaging learners in the process of scientific inquiry instead of disiminating the currently accepted conclusions of the scientific community.
light theory construction scientific inquiry
The Logics of Scientific Inquiry
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
A detailed introduction to various types of logics including Classical Deductive, Inductive, Speculative Deductive, Causal, Abductive and Analogical. It explores their veracity and their domain of applicability.
logic reasoning textbook
The Logics of Scientific Inquiry
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
A detailed introduction to various types of logics including Classical Deductive, Inductive, Speculative Deductive, Causal, Abductive and Analogical. It explores their veracity and their domain of applicability.
logic reasoning textbook
Experimental Inquiry in the Kitchen
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
An illustration of how to design experiments. Beginning with an observation about the hotness of chillies, siblings Miko and Jomo formulate their own hypotheses and design experiments to test each one, being careful to control for different variables.
experiment design scientific inquiry experimental inquiry dependent independent variable observational inquiry lesson plan
Experimental Inquiry in the Kitchen
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
An illustration of how to design experiments. Beginning with an observation about the hotness of chillies, siblings Miko and Jomo formulate their own hypotheses and design experiments to test each one, being careful to control for different variables.
experiment design scientific inquiry experimental inquiry dependent independent variable observational inquiry lesson plan
What Makes a University 'Great'?
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
What makes an undergraduate program of a university a great liberal education program is very different from what makes it a program for specialization in, say, neuroscience, philosophy, or mathematics, and both are different from what makes it great for nurturing future researchers. This article reflects on how to evaluate the quality of an educational program depending on what the program sets out to achieve.
liberal education research university ranking
What Makes a University 'Great'?
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
What makes an undergraduate program of a university a great liberal education program is very different from what makes it a program for specialization in, say, neuroscience, philosophy, or mathematics, and both are different from what makes it great for nurturing future researchers. This article reflects on how to evaluate the quality of an educational program depending on what the program sets out to achieve.
liberal education research university ranking
Perceiving, Counting, Measuring, and Calculating
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
The process of scientific inquiry begins with our observations of the world. This article explores the ways in which we can make systematic observations, and through the process of scientific inquiry, construct knowledge.
perceiving calculation counting measurement
Perceiving, Counting, Measuring, and Calculating
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
The process of scientific inquiry begins with our observations of the world. This article explores the ways in which we can make systematic observations, and through the process of scientific inquiry, construct knowledge.
perceiving calculation counting measurement
Thinking Like a Chef
By KP Mohanan, Madhav Kaushish and Tara Mohanan
In this episode, we are joined by Suvir Saran. Suvir is a Michelin starred chef for his restaurant Devi in New York. The focus of this episode is on thinking like a chef. However, the podcast goes far beyond that.
podcast transdisciplinarity inquiry thinking
Thinking Like a Chef
By KP Mohanan, Madhav Kaushish and Tara Mohanan
In this episode, we are joined by Suvir Saran. Suvir is a Michelin starred chef for his restaurant Devi in New York. The focus of this episode is on thinking like a chef. However, the podcast goes far beyond that.
podcast transdisciplinarity inquiry thinking
Thinking like a Theoretical Linguist
By KP Mohanan, Madhav Kaushish and Tara Mohanan
This first episode is titled ‘Thinking Like a Theoretical Linguist’. In this episode John Schettman Marko, who interned with ThinQ in summer 2019 and Madhav Kaushish, a ThinQ member, will be interviewing two other members of the ThinQ team, KP. Mohanan (who we refer to as Mo) and Tara Mohanan. They are both professional theoretical linguists and educators.
podcast transdisciplinarity inquiry thinking
Thinking like a Theoretical Linguist
By KP Mohanan, Madhav Kaushish and Tara Mohanan
This first episode is titled ‘Thinking Like a Theoretical Linguist’. In this episode John Schettman Marko, who interned with ThinQ in summer 2019 and Madhav Kaushish, a ThinQ member, will be interviewing two other members of the ThinQ team, KP. Mohanan (who we refer to as Mo) and Tara Mohanan. They are both professional theoretical linguists and educators.
podcast transdisciplinarity inquiry thinking
Aptitude Tests, Talent Tests, and Achievement Tests
By Tara Mohanan
Any educational program must begin with a clear articulation of its desired learning outcomes. This articulation must percolate in spirit throughout the design of the program's admission procedures, syllabus, assessment, and so on.
education inquiry
Aptitude Tests, Talent Tests, and Achievement Tests
By Tara Mohanan
Any educational program must begin with a clear articulation of its desired learning outcomes. This articulation must percolate in spirit throughout the design of the program's admission procedures, syllabus, assessment, and so on.
education inquiry
Intellectual Independence
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
This is the second of a series of dialogues between Rafa and his mother Samira. Samira loves troubling Rafa by asking him difficult questions. This dialogue focuses on authority vs intellectual independence.
dialogue inquiry conceptual inquiry
Intellectual Independence
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
This is the second of a series of dialogues between Rafa and his mother Samira. Samira loves troubling Rafa by asking him difficult questions. This dialogue focuses on authority vs intellectual independence.
dialogue inquiry conceptual inquiry
Education and Cognitive Liberation
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
Education, even the best possible kind we can dream of, won’t solve all the problems of humanity. But it surely has the potential to help us make the world better than it is. And flawed education can make it worse. This article is an attempt to diagnose the failure of modern education to address a configuration of natural weaknesses in the human mind and society and suggest a solution.
inquiry critical thinking critical understanding deep understanding education integration
Education and Cognitive Liberation
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
Education, even the best possible kind we can dream of, won’t solve all the problems of humanity. But it surely has the potential to help us make the world better than it is. And flawed education can make it worse. This article is an attempt to diagnose the failure of modern education to address a configuration of natural weaknesses in the human mind and society and suggest a solution.
inquiry critical thinking critical understanding deep understanding education integration
Cells, Humans, Nations, and the Planet
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
The concept of analogy is extremely useful in academic inquiry. Yet, it is often overlooked in education. This article explores the concept in relation to cells, humans, nations, and the planet.
analogy education transdisciplinarity
Cells, Humans, Nations, and the Planet
By KP Mohanan and Tara Mohanan
The concept of analogy is extremely useful in academic inquiry. Yet, it is often overlooked in education. This article explores the concept in relation to cells, humans, nations, and the planet.
analogy education transdisciplinarity