"The brain makes subtle associations between what it is studying and the background sensations it has at the time..." Image credits: Tati
I just read a very interesting article in The New York Times titled Forget What You Know About Good Study Habits. A great read which I thoroughly recommend.
Here are a couple of summarised points from the article (based on what appears to be fairly reliable research) that I personally found interesting to think about as a language teacher.
- Alternation of study location improves retention (or, outside variation in context enriches information and makes it easier to remember)
- Studying distinct but related skills in one sitting is more beneficial than focusing intensely on one skill at a time
- There is a huge contrast between the popularity of so-called "learning styles" (visual, auditory, etc.) and any credible evidence for its utility
- Common threads linking different teaching styles to constructive learning environments have not yet been conclusively identified
- Outside variation in context enriches information and makes it much easier to remember
- Mixed sets of problems or tasks can result in skills and recall that are twice as effective as approaches focusing on repeated use of single-type tasks
- The speed and manner in which our "neural suitcases" are packed has a direct impact on how well and how long the suitcase manages to hold its contents
- Forgetting can be a friend of learning, offering opportunities to relearn something and strenghten that awareness about it
- Practice tests and quizzes can be very effective tools for learning, as they don't just measure knowledge but actually change it
- "The more mental sweat it takes to dig [something] out, the more securely it will be subsequently anchored"
What do you think? Is there anything here that challenges your own experience or beliefs about language teaching?
:-)
