Benedict Carey: How we learn (2014)
254 pages
English language
Published Sept. 13, 2014
From an early age, we are told that restlessness, distraction, and ignorance are the enemies of success. Learning is all self-discipline, so we must confine ourselves to designated study areas, turn off the music, and maintain a strict ritual. But what if almost everything we were told about learning is wrong? And what if there was a way to achieve more with less effort? Here, award-winning science reporter Benedict Carey sifts through decades of education research to uncover the truth about how our brains absorb and retain information. What he discovers is that, from the moment we are born, we all learn quickly, efficiently, and automatically; but in our zeal to systematize the process we have ignored valuable, naturally enjoyable learning tools like forgetting, sleeping, and daydreaming. Is a dedicated desk in a quiet room really the best way to study? Can altering your routine improve your recall? Are there …
From an early age, we are told that restlessness, distraction, and ignorance are the enemies of success. Learning is all self-discipline, so we must confine ourselves to designated study areas, turn off the music, and maintain a strict ritual. But what if almost everything we were told about learning is wrong? And what if there was a way to achieve more with less effort? Here, award-winning science reporter Benedict Carey sifts through decades of education research to uncover the truth about how our brains absorb and retain information. What he discovers is that, from the moment we are born, we all learn quickly, efficiently, and automatically; but in our zeal to systematize the process we have ignored valuable, naturally enjoyable learning tools like forgetting, sleeping, and daydreaming. Is a dedicated desk in a quiet room really the best way to study? Can altering your routine improve your recall? Are there times when distraction is good? Is repetition necessary? Carey's search for answers to these questions yields a wealth of strategies that make learning more a part of our everyday lives--and less of a chore.--From publisher description.
Similar to Make it Stick. I wish I'd taken notes while reading because there were definitely some things I have trouble remembering about learning (quite a few of counter-intuitive things).
This was a great book. I would recommend it to others because Carey has a talent for taking obscure, sometimes turgid psychological studies and translating their findings into practical, accessible language.
For those well-versed in cognitive psychology (especially memory and learning) you probably won't find much new here. Nevertheless, I discovered some new ideas for study techniques—varying study locations, interleaving materials, and using the spacing-effect to maximize recall. I'll expand on the first idea more for the purpose of this review. When we study material and try to convert information from short-term to long-term memory, we often encode those memories with visual cues from our study location. While common wisdom stresses discovering a "study spot" that you always use for studying/reading, most psychological studies show that as our mind grows accustomed to one location it can actually inhibit learning because the visual cues are not novel. Therefore, if you study …
This was a great book. I would recommend it to others because Carey has a talent for taking obscure, sometimes turgid psychological studies and translating their findings into practical, accessible language.
For those well-versed in cognitive psychology (especially memory and learning) you probably won't find much new here. Nevertheless, I discovered some new ideas for study techniques—varying study locations, interleaving materials, and using the spacing-effect to maximize recall. I'll expand on the first idea more for the purpose of this review. When we study material and try to convert information from short-term to long-term memory, we often encode those memories with visual cues from our study location. While common wisdom stresses discovering a "study spot" that you always use for studying/reading, most psychological studies show that as our mind grows accustomed to one location it can actually inhibit learning because the visual cues are not novel. Therefore, if you study in multiple locations you can often recall more of the information because your mind relates the information with new environments. In short, do not always study in the same space.
Great book. Highly recommended, especially for those looking to maximize retention and seeking study aids.
