Zettelkasten Proficiency Levels
What learning a language taught me about building a second brain.
Today I took an online test for „English as second language“. The test uses the popular CEFR standard (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) for evaluation.
The CEFR defines six levels of English proficiency: A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 and C2. These levels are widely accepted as the global standard for grading an individual’s language proficiency. I achieved a C1 level and was very proud.
But what‘s the connection to Zettelkasten? My brain automatically transferred the phrase „English as a second language“ to „Zettelkasten as a second brain“.
Why? I have no answer. However, my thoughts were heading in a new direction. What do these levels mean? Google showed me a list of related vocabulary:
- A1 - 500 words
- A2 - 1,000 words
- B1 - 2,000 words
- B2 - 4,000 words
- C1 - 8,000 words
- C2 - 16,000 words
- native speaker - 32,000 words
It's a nice, non-linear function. The vocabulary at each level is double that of the level below.
What might this list look like for a Zettelkasten user? My proposal:
- A1 - 500 ideas
- A2 - 1,000 ideas
- B1 - 2,000 ideas
- B2 - 4,000 ideas
- C1 - 8,000 ideas
- C2 - 16,000 ideas
- native Zettelkasten user - 32,000 ideas
On the CEFR scale, you are expected to have a reasonable degree of fluency at B1 level, which should improve further up the scale.
How many ideas do I have in my vault? Let's take a look: 1,606 permanent notes. According to my newly created CZFR standard (Common Zettelkasten Framework of Reference for Second Brains), this is an A2 level.
Wow! According to CZFR, I need less than 400 ideas to reach my B1 level.
I’m very excited.
Edmund Gröpl
100% organic thinking. Less than 5% AI-generated ideas.
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Comments
I've also been involved with the CEFR levels, both as a learner and a teacher.
When teaching a language (English), my learners found these levels a bit confusing, so I renamed them to something they could understand better:
A1; Lower beginner
A2; Upper beginner
B1; Lower intermediate
B2; Upper intermediate
C1; Lower advanced
C2; Upper advanced
This helped them to understand what was expected of them, and at the same time encouraged them to not judge their own ability too harshly.
As a learner of a language myself, I felt a great sense of achievement when I got my C1 certificate in my 2nd language, and I thought quite a bit about integrating language learning with the Zettelkasten method.
But here's the thing... the CEFR levels are about what you can do with the language, not just what you know about the language. It's not only about what you've learned, it's also about what you can do with what you've learned. That's why speaking and writing (output) are included in the test, not just reading and listening (input).
I believe that to better grade ourselves as Zettelkasten users, it can't be just about how many ideas/notes we've recorded (input). What we do with that information is just as important, whether that means writing or something else (output).
For example, when I was looking for a new job last year, I spent time with books about interviewing skills and recruitment tests, converting them into notes in my Zettelkasten and revising them weekly. Then I found a new job... so a productive use of the notes.
Also, I completed a part-time Masters and spent time with related books, adding key notes to my Zettelkasten. The result was passing the modules and writing my final thesis. Last but not least, a book on presentation skills to prepare for defending my thesis (which I successfully did and got my Masters). This is also a kind of output.
If it wasn't for the output side of things I wouldn't use Zettelkasten at all.
I would consider other parameters, like degree of connections of zettels (even if I don't know if this value can be obtained). Connections, the edges of the graph, are as important as the zettels, the nodes.
Others are lenghts of train of thoughts, number of "ah" ideas emerged from zettelkasten, number of original links between two distant zettels, quantity of output/outcome/purpose artifacts produced from zettelkasten.
All these values are much more difficult to quantify, I know, in this case I would prefer a qualitative aproach.
One of my preferred aproach to qualify the maturity of a section of my zettelkasten is if I can easily develop answers to questions about that section.
My most mature section within my zettelkasten is precisely the one that deals with the zettelkasten :-), and in this topic I feel like an expert:-P.
I always feel like I can give an answer or build a reflection on a topic about the zettelkasten theory.
Based on my zettelkasten, I can report that the behavior of the zettelkasten stopped changing after roughly 4000 notes and I stopped learning at a reasonably fast pace after roughly 10-12 years. Now, I think I learn specifically how to solve particular problems, but my zettelkasten skills are either fully matured or I plateaued for other reasons.
This could be a reference for a scale?
I am a Zettler