6 unusual, but very effective ways to learn anything
The latest research of neuroscientists has shown that a person learns much more effectively if he overcomes purposefully created difficulties. If you are studying a foreign language, mastering a musical instrument, a new profession or software, then the advice offered by scientists will certainly be useful to you.
If you have set a goal for yourself, but you are moving towards it very slowly, then it is quite logical that sooner or later you will begin to lose heart, and treacherous thoughts will climb into your head to abandon a difficult undertaking. This is normal — initial enthusiasm and gradual disillusionment are familiar not only to you, but also to great people.
But this is the difference between great people and ordinary people — they can overcome themselves and, despite years of failures, come to their intended goal triumphantly. It may seem to you that your abilities are not enough to master thoroughly the tenses of the English language or to learn to play the guitar too much. Drive away these thoughts — you are all right and success is just around the corner.
Many individuals, whose abilities we do not doubt for a second, have openly declared that they do not have any natural abilities. Among these moderates are such pillars of science as Charles Darwin and the Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman.
Most of us have more than enough skills to master a new discipline, but we just can't always apply them correctly. The latest discoveries in the field of neuroscience help us use the potential given to us by nature as efficiently as possible and reach the finish line faster than apathy sets in.
The idea of "desirable difficulties", described in detail by scientists Robert and Elizabeth Bjork from the University of California, Los Angeles, USA, has aroused great interest around the world. Researchers believe that in the process of learning, you need to consciously come to a slight disappointment. This spurs our brain to work more deeply and causes it to create the most lasting memories.
Here you can draw an analogy with physical exercise — the stronger the resistance of a sports projectile, the more significant and long-term the result of exercise. The strategies presented by us will allow you to better assimilate the material and go to the intended goal in leaps and bounds.
To understand the essence of this strategy, let's start with a simple test. How is "thank you" in Finnish? The correct answer is "kiitos", but only a few of those who have never encountered this language have tried to find possible options in the recesses of their memory.
Now, thanks to our test, you know this word and, perhaps, it will stay in your head for a long time. Scientists say that taking the test before studying the related material is a great way to get the brain to absorb information with a vengeance in the future.
This method works both with complex things, and when memorizing small things. Once, as an experiment, doctors were asked to answer questions about an essay by Oliver Sacks on the neurology of vision. Of course, nothing intelligible could be heard from the test subjects, but they subsequently learned this material 10-15% more successfully than their colleagues who did not pass the tests.
Therefore, whatever you are doing, try to test your current knowledge on this subject before you start an in-depth study. This will give a good result, even if the result of the check turns out that the new case is absolutely zero.
After passing the preliminary test, it is best to immediately test your knowledge without postponing it for later. Psychologists believe, not without reason, that this is a great way to create a significant trace of information in the memory. Surprisingly, this simple method has shown a more obvious result in research than such a popular method as making intellectual games based on the material being studied.
Are you preparing for exams? Take some time and come up with your own questions for them. Professor Miriam Ebersbach from the University of Kassel in Germany claims that the process of generating questions improves the memorization of the material. This is attributed to the fact that by formulating the material in a new way, you achieve a deeper understanding of it.
It is possible that teaching another person is the most effective way of self-learning. This will help to show a deep conceptual understanding of the topic. It is not easy to find a patient volunteer for such training, and it is not necessary. It is enough for you to imagine that you are explaining the material to an imaginary student. In addition, you can state everything in an email addressed to your non-existent student.
Try not to get hung up on any one topic and switch between different tasks regularly. If you are learning a foreign language, change the vocabulary topics and tenses of verbs from time to time, and do not systematically master them in order. This strategy is called interleaving.
At the beginning of its use, as in the case of preliminary testing, it can cause you frustration. You can't dive deep into the material you're studying and have to jump from one to the other. But neuroscientists say that's exactly what the switching strategy is good for — short-term confusion provides an invaluable service to our long-term memory.
By using switching, you not only boost learning, but also improve motor skills. When playing a musical instrument, alternating scales with playing individual passages, you can move forward faster.
There is a stereotype that people who have achieved a lot in this life are diligent "nerds" who prefer to stay locked up. This is not the case — most people who make amazing progress in their studies are very active. It has long been proven that cardiovascular exercise initiates the release of neurotransmitters-dopamine and epinephrine, which are directly involved in the formation of memory.
This means that for a fruitful school day, you need to arrange a morning jog or hold a workout in the gym. When planning the learning process, do not forget to include physical exercises in the schedule. So you will improve the memorization of the material, and in addition, you will avoid hypodynamia and problems with the spine.
You have probably noticed that after returning to your hometown, you are overwhelmed by memories of what seemed to have been erased from your memory for a long time. This interesting phenomenon is due to the fact that our memory is connected to the context and the signals of the surrounding world affect it quite strongly.
Contextual memory evokes pleasant memories in us, but it can also have a negative effect on our brain. It binds us to the environment — the lighting, the sounds, the smells, the sight of a place. That is why it is more difficult for us to remember the answers to exam tickets in an unfamiliar audience — we do not receive subconscious hints from our senses.
You can get rid of this addiction by changing the environment more often. Robert Bjork, in one of his experiments, found that by changing rooms between sessions at the university, it is quite possible to increase your learning outcomes by 21%.
Your brain, like your muscles, needs regular rest to be productive. Therefore, sometimes arrange "days of laziness" - leave your studies and do nothing. This means giving up any activity in the literal sense — you don't even have to play video games or watch TV.
Professor Michaela Dewar, from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, found that this "waking rest", which excludes external stimulation, gives the brain time to consolidate what it has already learned. So just leave everything, close your eyes, and mentally go somewhere nice for you. Be sure that your brain is busy at this time and provides maximum consolidation of the acquired knowledge.
Keywords: Capabilities | Intelligence | Brain | Learning | University