Powerful Mental Tools
to help you master tough subjects
by Dr. Barbara Oakley, Dr. Terrence Sejnowski - University of California, San Diego
https://www.coursera.org/course/learning
to help you master tough subjects
by Dr. Barbara Oakley, Dr. Terrence Sejnowski - University of California, San Diego
https://www.coursera.org/course/learning
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Most Popular Recommended Books in Learning How to Learn
We’re always interested in learning anything new. One of the best ways to do that is to keep open to reading. The most popular books that Barb has recommended in our weekly emails have been:
We’re always interested in learning anything new. One of the best ways to do that is to keep open to reading. The most popular books that Barb has recommended in our weekly emails have been:
- 10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works--A True Story
- Sapiens: A Brief History of Mankind
- Thinking, Fast and Slow
- Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning
- Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything
- Fluent in Three Months: How Anyone at Any Age Can Learn to Speak Any Language from Anywhere in the World
- Fluent Forever: How to Learn Any Language Fast and Never Forget It
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How to Study Way More Effectively | The Feynman Technique https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlJdMr3O5J4
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One of the best ways to grasp a deeper understanding of an idea is to utilize the Feynman Technique. There are four simple steps.
Step one: Explain the topic out loud to a peer who is unfamiliar with the topic. Meet them at their level of understanding and use the simplest language you can. Step two: Identify any gaps in your own understanding or points where you feel that you can't explain an idea simply. Step three: Go back to the source material and study up on your weak points until you can use simple language to explain it. Step four: Repeat the three steps above until you've mastered the topic. There are two main goals to strive for when using the Feynman Technique, be simple and concise. See if you can explain the concept to a five-year-old. If you can, try to come up with an original analogy to help you explain the topic. Creating an analogy is a fantastic way to gain mastery over an idea and learn empathy. It forces you to meet the person at their level of understanding and teach them something new by relating it to an idea they're already familiar with. |
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Illusions of learning:
Don't use a yellow magic marker to highlight your text or notes even if you are just highlighting the words or phrases you don't understand. In the end your reading material will look like a big yellow Sasquatch. Instead, just highlight the main idea or point the author is trying to get across but keep in mind the main idea is not usually in the reading, but rather about the reading. Read more http://www.smekenseducation.com/helping-students-identify-the-main-idea-of-any-text.html#sthash.pFEz0lqG.dpuf I've heard students say, “I read the material over and over again and I just don't get it.” It's not necessary to read and reread your work as you can tell it is probably a waist of time. Try this instead, after you read a paragraph, look away from the text and state out-loud or if you don't want people to think your talking to yourself again, just write down what you think you just read. Try to understand the passage or the message. If the reading involves revealing a solution to a problem as in chemistry or math, understand how and why that solution works to solve the problem rather than just accept it as fact. Memorization is for short term use only so if you plan on keeping that information for future use it is probably better if you find a way to retain it permanently. Test yourself regularly. Write questions on the side of a page, do the questions assigned in the text book, ask your friends to quiz you, create your own flash cards (ideally, they should be created throughout the course of the class not necessarily at the last minute) *************************************************************************** _A good night's sleep conveys many benefits to a person, including boosts to memory, concentration and learning. Now, another benefit of sleep has been discovered — it flushes out harmful toxins that build up in the brain during the day, researchers say. Read More: http://www.livescience.com/40510-sleep-cleans-brain-harmful-toxins.html |
Techniques to help you prepare for tests:
When given a project or an assignment, it is always completed before the due date but when it comes to tests, I have a tendency to procrastinate, the next thing I know the test is tomorrow and I have done little to no studying. Thank goodness for projects and assignments otherwise I would have never finished my education. Preparing for a test is a daunting task for me so here are some techniques to incorporate: Drafting a plan of action: 1. Focus on the target (test date) put it in plain sight, on a calendar on the back of my door which I open every morning 2. Schedule time for studying and place a big purple check mark if you completed that day accordingly 3. Cancel parties, dates or other events 2 days prior to the test 4. Find the test from last year and complete it in the allowed time. Review the assigned questions in the text book the instructor asked you to complete throughout your course, try new ones. 5. Ask teacher, instructors, fellow students for help on topics that allude you 6. Sleep 8 - 10 hrs the night before the test and Relax 7. If you know where the exam room is, visit it before the exam, make it a familiar place. 8. Reward yourself after the exam, get a massage/a pedicure |
time before becoming mentally fatigued. After 10 hours of being awake, the early-birds showed reduced activity in brain areas linked to attention, compared to the night owls. They also felt sleepier and tended to perform more slowly on the task. http://www.aaas.org/news/science-neuroscientists-probe-differences-between-early-and-late-risers.
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Techniques to help you learn more creatively
FIND Your INSPIRATION
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Let's Think About this
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Use Metaphors and Stories to Explain Ideas:
Metaphor (Example: Calling a person a "night owl" or an "early bird") An implied comparison is made between two unlike things that actually have something important in common. Remembering mathematical concepts is easier when you have metaphors that relate them to real life events,
Increase visualization in learning Build up the characters in your stories, place and sequence of event(s) Simile a comparison of 2 things using the word 'like' or 'as' - Coral found in the ocean is like bone in a human body - brave as a lion |
In the above example, you can see that your brain is always trying to understand concepts before it focuses on details.
Key to learning: Remember concepts Build them up stack then one on top of another layered levels of knowledge not the kind you memorize. Understand concepts A concept can be as simple as understanding that room 402 is actually located on the 4th floor. Analogy Analogies help simplify different concepts. Biology : Ever look under the hood of a car? There are lot of parts under there which work together to make the car run. This kind of analogy can be used to describe the inside of an atom and tell you about the different parts inside it. (atoms have fewer parts than a car engine.) Focus Focus your attention when learning something new. Use the pomodoro technique especially if you find you are a procrastinator. In addition, read the text, attempt the questions, attending lectures, viewing online lessons. Metaphors and analogies help when trying to learn something new and helps those who are being blocked by thinking about a problem in the wrong way (often referred to as being in a state of Einstellung) |
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Further Reading References: A Mind for Numbers: How to Excel in Math and Science (Even if You Flunked Algebra), by Barbara Oakley, Penguin, July, 2014 |
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Changing Environments Increases Mental Pathway for Information up to 40%
Image:https://london.ctvnews.ca/video?binId=1.1137524
CTV News London at Six for Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2020 Read More: https://wlcollins.weebly.com/learn.html |
Study Techniques
* Spacing Effect : the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice * Blocking Effect : Group topics together until you master it * Interleaving Effect when training three skills A, B and C: blocking uses the pattern of AAA-BBB-CCC while interleaving uses the pattern of ABC-ABC-ABC.[25] Research has found that interleaving is superior to blocking in learning skills and studying. * Review * Self quizzing * Changing environments - Increases mental pathway for information up to 40% * Analogy - Draw correlations from existing concepts * Summarize * Diagrams... |