Does
a good grade always mean a student has learned the material? And does a bad
grade mean a student just needs to study more?
In the new book “How We
Learn: The Surprising Truth About When, Where, and Why It Happens” (Random
House), Benedict Carey, a science reporter for The New York Times, challenges
the notion that a high test score equals true learning. He argues that although
a good grade may be achieved in the short term by cramming for an exam, chances
are that most of the information will be quickly lost. Indeed, he argues, most
students probably don’t need to study more — just smarter.
Mr. Carey offers
students old and young a new blueprint for learning based on decades of brain
science, memory tests and learning studies. He upends the notion that “hitting
the books” is all that is required to be a successful student, and instead
offers a detailed exploration of the brain to reveal exactly how we learn, and
how we can maximize that potential.
“Most of us study and
hope we are doing it right,” Mr. Carey says. “But we tend to have a static and
narrow notion of how learning should happen.”
For starters, long and
focused study sessions may seem productive, but chances are you are spending
most of your brainpower on trying to maintain your concentration for a long
period of time. That doesn’t leave a lot of brain energy for learning.
“It’s hard to sit there
and push yourself for hours,” Mr. Carey says. “You’re spending a lot of effort
just staying there, when there are other ways to make the learning more
efficient, fun and interesting.”
The first step toward
better learning is to simply change your study environment from time to time.
Rather than sitting at your desk or the kitchen table studying for hours,
finding some new scenery will create new associations in your brain and make it
easier to recall information later.
“The brain wants variation,”
Mr. Carey says. “It wants to move, it wants to take periodic breaks.”
Understanding how the
brain processes, stores and retrieves information can also improve your study
habits. For some people, cramming for a test can work in the short term, but by
studying only once in a concentrated fashion, the learner has not signaled to
the brain that the information is important. So while the initial study session
of French vocabulary words starts the process of learning, it’s the next review
session a few days later that forces the brain to retrieve the information —
essentially flagging it as important and something to be remembered.
“When you are cramming
for a test, you are holding that information in your head for a limited amount
of time,” Mr. Carey says. “But you haven’t signaled to the brain in a strong
way that’s it’s really valuable.”
One way to signal to
the brain that information is important is to talk about it. Ask a young
student to play “teacher” based on the information they have studied. Self-testing
and writing down information on flashcards also reinforces learning.
Another technique is
called distributed learning, or “spacing,” and it’s a particularly relevant
aspect of brain science for ambitious students. Mr. Carey compares it to
watering a lawn. You can water a lawn once a week for 90 minutes or three times
a week for 30 minutes. Spacing out the watering during the week will keep the
lawn greener over time.
Studies have shown that
for a student to learn and retain information like historical events,
vocabulary words or science definitions, it’s best to review the information
one to two days after first studying it. One theory is that the brain actually
pays less attention during short learning intervals. So repeating the
information over a longer interval — say a few days or a week later, rather
than in rapid succession — sends a stronger signal to the brain that it needs
to retain the information.
Spaced study can also
add contextual cues. At home, a student trying to memorize the presidents may
hear the dog bark or phone ring. Move the study time to the coffee shop a few
days later, and the student hears the barista steaming milk. Now the list of
presidents is embedded in the student’s memory in two contexts, and that makes
the memory stronger.
In a 2008 study of
1,300 people, University of California, San Diego researchers tested their
subjects on obscure facts. (What’s the name of the dog on the Cracker Jack box?
Answer: Bingo) The study subjects reviewed the material twice at different intervals:
some just a few minutes apart, others a day or a week apart.
From the data, the
scientists determined the optimal intervals for learning information. If your
test is a week away, you should plan two study periods at least one to two days
apart. For a Friday test, study on Monday and review on Thursday. If your test
is a month away, begin studying in one-week intervals.
And not surprisingly,
sleep is an important part of good studying. The first half of the sleep cycle
helps with retaining facts; the second half is important for math skills. So a
student with a foreign language test should go to bed early to get the most
retention from sleep, and then review in the morning. For math students, the
second half of the sleep cycle is most important — better to review before
going to bed and then sleep in to let the brain process the information.
“Sleep is the finisher
on learning,” Mr. Carey says. “The brain is ready to process and categorize and
solidify what you’ve been studying. Once you get tired, your brain is saying
it’s had enough.”
출처: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/10/06/better-ways-to-learn/?_php=true&_type=blogs&smid=tw-share&_r=0