Stay on Track. The Science of Successful Learning MB14..

Making It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning

For most of us, learning something “the hard way” involves wasting time and effort. We believe that good teaching must be creatively adapted to students’ different learning styles and must use strategies that make learning easier. Make It Stick turns trendy ideas like these on their head. Drawing on recent discoveries in cognitive psychology and other disciplines, the authors offer concrete techniques for becoming more productive learners.

Memory plays a central role in our ability to perform complex cognitive tasks, such as applying knowledge to problems never before encountered and drawing conclusions from facts already known. New insights into how memory is encoded, consolidated, and then retrieved have led to a better understanding of how we learn. Addressing the obstacles that make learning difficult leads to both more complex mastery and better retention of what has been learned.

Many common study habits and practice routines are counterproductive. Underlining and highlighting, rereading, cramming, and doggedly repeating new skills create the illusion of mastery, but the gains fade quickly. More complex and lasting learning involves self-assessment, introducing some difficulty into practice, waiting to re-study new material until some forgetfulness has set in, and interspersing practice with a skill or another subject. Urgently speaking to students, teachers, coaches, and athletes, Make It Stick will appeal to anyone interested in the challenge of lifelong learning and personal development.