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Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning

Book
Brown, Peter C.; Roediger, Henry L. III; McDaniel, Mark A.
2014
Harvard University Press
LB1060.B768 2014
Topics: Cognitive Development   |   Constructivist & Active Learning Theory

Additional Info:
To most of us, learning something “the hard way” implies wasted time and effort. Good teaching, we believe, should be creatively tailored to the different learning styles of students and should use strategies that make learning easier. Make It Stick turns fashionable 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 carry out complex cognitive tasks, such as applying knowledge to problems never before encountered and drawing inferences from facts already known. New insights into how memory is encoded consolidated, and later retrieved have led to a better understanding of how we learn. Grappling with the impediments that make learning challenging leads both to more complex mastery and better retention of what was learned.

Many common study habits and practice routines turn out to be counterproductive. Underlining and highlighting, rereading, cramming, and single-minded repetition of new skills create the illusion of mastery, but gains fade quickly. More complex and durable learning come from self-testing, introducing certain difficulties in practice, waiting to re-study new material until a little forgetting has set in, and interleaving the practice of one skill or topic with another. Speaking most urgently to students, teachers, trainers, and athletes, Make It Stick will appeal to all those interested in the challenge of lifelong learning and self-improvement. (From the Publisher)

Table Of Content:
Preface

Ch 1. Learning Is Misunderstood
Ch 2. To Learn, Retrieve
Ch 3. Mix Up Your Practice
Ch 4. Embrace Difficulties
Ch 5. Avoid Illusions of Knowing
Ch 6. Get Beyond Learning Styles
Ch 7. I ncrease Your Abilities
Ch 8. Make It Stick

Notes

Suggested Reading

Acknowledgments

Index
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