Studying? Let’s Embrace Distraction

A DTK Book Review:  How We Learn, by Benedict Carey

Learning to Study

Benedict Carey’s book, How We Learn: The Surprising Truth About When, Where, and Why It Happens deserves a look by serious students and teachers. Students at all levels of education spend a lot of time in the classroom and the library. They hear a lot of familiar advice from teachers about how to study. Sit still. Avoid distraction. Focus on the book. Put away your phone. Study in the same place every day. Make studying a habit. It’s good advice for lots of students. But that’s not the only way to learn. Neuroscience suggests alternative routes to memory.

Benedict Carey Presents New Ideas From Brain Research

Benedict Carey covers medicine and science for The New York Times. He says many old adages about studying and focus don’t withstand the scrutiny of research. For example, studying in the same place every day. In fact, Carey says, “Changing context and changing environment aids retention.” Carey even states that discipline isn’t the key component of effective learning.

Discipline and learning

It turns out scientists have discovered that pure discipline doesn’t cut it for learning. The brain likes to forage. It’s a scavenger, just like early humans were. When you realize that, you can take some pressure off yourself and perhaps enjoy studying a little more.

How Do We learn, Anyway?

Brains excel at picking up information in bits and pieces while on the move. Really! So there’s a lot to be said for “playing around” with the material we want to learn. Highly effective classrooms and home schools provide plenty of downtime to “inefficiently” play with new information.

The Value of Distraction

Everyone worries about distractions. And I have to echo that concern, especially the increasingly ubiquitous cell phone with its window to Facebook, games, and news.

However, there’s now a whole field of science looking at problem-solving. It turns out that in problem-solving if you get stuck, distraction becomes your best friend. If you walk around the block, go to the coffee shop, get a drink, anything — the break allows you to come at the problem from a new perspective.

Carey Talks About Testing: Important Ideas

Some of the most interesting research looks at using testing as a study tool. Doing tests before a course starts, and using tests as a way to study rather than an evaluation, present new ways to approach assessment and instruction. I recommend How We Learn: The Surprising Truth About When, Where, and Why It Happens for teachers and college students.

Reviewed by Yvonna Graham, M.Ed.

www.dyslexiakit.net

@GrahamYvonna

One great way to study, especially for dyslexic students, is through audiobooks. You can download classics for free at Librivox. Audible has newer titles for $15/mo. Learning Ally provides audio textbooks if you have a dyslexia diagnosis. Best of all — your public library has audiobooks AND paper books. Use them together for reading awesomeness!