Back when I studied for tests in school...

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I was just now thinking about how in high school, while cramming for tests during study hall, people would ask me,

"What's the answer to this?" or "What does this mean?"

I'd say, "Ummm... I don't know..."

"Yes you do! You're going to get it right on the test!"

... And they were right. I very often would get it right. But I wasn't lying! I really wasn't so sure that I knew the answer. Or, at least, I wasn't sure that I could explain it. It was more like, I had a vague enough of an understanding of the concept that I could conjure up the correct answer while taking the test, but in the social context, I had no means of making that knowledge come out of nowhere. It's like the thoughts and knowledge that I have are stored in such a way that only I can understand, and I'm not really sure if it's there until I'm forced to access it. And even then, I may or may not be able to lay it out in such a way that someone else could understand.

I'd be a horrible teacher.

If it was not for me tutoring people at school, I don't think anyone would have talked to me.

Me in a nutshell, yet some people think I would make a great teacher/professor. I could be unable to help my classmates right before the test, and still receive a perfect score. It's like the knowledge and understanding is there, but isn't triggered in social settings. Ironically I would excell at oral examns an presentations. Of course this could have something to do with me opening the book or minutes before the tests, but generally I find it easier to solve problems if I read or observe rather than listening.