3 Most Effective Learning Tips for Students Practice Retrieval It is the most powerful way to study. We have to practice getting information out of our brains. It often feels clunky and slow, but it will increase how long and how much of the information you can learn. Space out Retrieval Forgetting is part of the learning process. Your brain needs time to forget a little between study sessions. The length of these gaps depends on the material and how…
Be Active See learning as a lifelong quest. Use tests and assessments to gauge your travels but do not give up on the journey because you got a lower grade than expected. Use it to help you rethink your strategies and tools. Use strategies like retrieval practice, spacing, and interleaving as much as possible. Ideally start early in the semester. Don’t rely on what feels best, quiz yourself to make sure you know what you know. Step out of Your…
Metacognition Metacognition is the technology that means thinking about our thinking. Thinking about our thinking is very important because our brains no matter how smart are prone leading us astray by letting us feel we know more than we do. Two Systems Metaphor In Daniel Kahneman’s book Thinking, Fast and Slow he outlines a model of how we can think about decision making in our brains. System 1 – automatic and fast and is more susceptible to the illusion System…
Learning is a Multi-Step Process 1- Encoding – knowledge that is being learned, [working and short-term memory] 2- Consolidation – moving to learn into long-term memory 3- Retrieval- practice strengthening pathways and update your learning. See how the Learning Cycle connects all these stages of learning. We build Learning on Stuff that we Already Know Our brains are hard-wired to make connections. One very important learning strategy is to connect new ideas that students are learning to things they already…
Reflection Often learning feels so dry that students stop thinking about their learning as soon as they leave a class. But studies have shown that being able to reflect on and process the information they get each day and connect all the ideas that they are learning. The best way I have found to help students do this is to use a Graphic Organizer. Cramming is Not the Answer We have these firm beliefs that studying with the single-minded focus…
Effortful Learning Our brains have evolved to be efficient because they require a lot of calories. And learning is an activity that involves a lot of effort. It can feel hard because it is creating new pathways and connections in the brain. We can use strategies to make it more efficient, but not all learning will be fun or fast. Spaced Practice vs Massed Practice We often think of forgetting as the enemy of learning, but it is an important…
The first chapter highlights the collection of research findings that will be discussed in more detail throughout the book. Th purpose of this chapter is to addresses many of the common misunderstandings about learning and education. Specifically, it outlines the misconceptions surrounding common study strategies, effortful learning, and the memorization. I will discuss these three topics in more detail below. Study Strategies The most useful study method is retrieval practice, also know as quizzing or self-testing. Despite these findings, roughly 80% of…
Getting Things Done for Teens is the newest GTD book by David Allen, Mike Williams, and Mark Wallace. The book’s message is essential: teens need a strategy to address their complex world. The book is intended to help teens and tweens avoid many of the common pitfalls that happen when we enter adulthood without tangible organizational skills. While there are many positives parts of this book, it, unfortunately, falls into the trap of trying to adjust an adult level organization system…
I will be reviewing the book Make it Stick: The Science of Successful Learning, by Peter C. Brown, Henry L. Roediger III, and Mark A. McDaniel. Because the book is so important I will be creating a blog post for individual chapters. Each post will outline the main takeaways from that section. I will also share stories about how I have used these strategies with my own students. In addition, I will include tips from other academic coaches and teachers about how…