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Make It Stick

Peter Christopher Brown , Henry Roediger III , Mark McDaniel

Make It Stick

22min

22min

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As human beings, we share a common goal: to study and acquire new knowledge. Many widely used techniques, however, are not entirely effective, as they are often based merely on intuition and feelings. By understanding the mechanisms of the human mind and memory, we can optimise this process and make it truly beneficial. Make it Stick presents principles and strategies based on scientific research and studies that help students of all ages, teachers and all lifelong learners to develop a solid, reliable and personalised learning strategy.

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Analysis and key concepts

01.

The most effective learning strategies are not intuitive: this is why we need to rethink old practices

02.

Rereading and rewriting does not result in consolidated knowledge: to achieve this, we must reflect and re-elaborate concepts

03.

Effective learning is achieved by retrieving concepts, but it is important to space it out

04.

Tests are learning tools that help consolidate acquired knowledge and identify weaknesses to overcome

05.

It is better to change up different practice activities, rather than concentrate on just one

06.

Information coded by the brain is stabilised during the consolidation process that characterises long-term memory

07.

Remembering and forgetting are two sides of the same coin, and both are necessary to acquire new knowledge

08.

Desirable difficulties: interference and mistakes are an important part of the learning process

09.

The human brain makes mistakes because of misperceptions and memory distortions

10.

The most effective learning model takes individual differences into account

11.

Quotes

12.

Take-home message

01. The most effective learning strategies are not intuitive: this is why we need to rethink old practices

Much remains to be known about the processes that govern learning, but studies and research have clearly shown that certain traditional methods are far from effective. The application of cognitive psychology in education has led to new and important reflections on the topic that underline the need for change, especially in the approach. For example, most people believe that learning is somehow automatic, that it happens naturally after repeating a concept numerous times. They also think of learning as univocal and almost entirely passive, a simple transferal of knowledge from a teacher to a learner, or from a book to the mind of a reader. Nothing could be further from the truth: learning can only ever be active and is mainly based on unintuitive mechanisms, which enable connections to be made in the human brain that retrieve information quickly when it is needed. 

Another problem concerns difficulties in making judgements: evaluating what we already know can be hard because we tend to do this based on feelings rather than objective parametres. Effort and difficulties are seen as negative, but they are actually crucial to gaining deeper and more consolidated knowledge. 

It is also true that everyone has personal preferences when it comes to learning, because we all receive and process information differently: so each person needs to find their own strategy and develop their own method.

02. Rereading and rewriting does not result in consolidated knowledge: to achieve this, we must reflect and re-elaborate concepts

03. Effective learning is achieved by retrieving concepts, but it is important to space it out

04. Tests are learning tools that help consolidate acquired knowledge and identify weaknesses to overcome

05. It is better to change up different practice activities, rather than concentrate on just one

06. Information coded by the brain is stabilised during the consolidation process that characterises long-term memory

07. Remembering and forgetting are two sides of the same coin, and both are necessary to acquire new knowledge

08. Desirable difficulties: interference and mistakes are an important part of the learning process

09. The human brain makes mistakes because of misperceptions and memory distortions

10. The most effective learning model takes individual differences into account

11. Quotes

12. Take-home message

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Many useful tips to:

  • Discover failings within the traditional learning approach.
  • Learn about effective long-term methods of studying and memorising information.
  • Embrace difficulty and failure as part of the process. 

Originally from Missouri, Peter Christopher Brown worked for a long time as a management consultant. He is now retired and devotes himself entirely to writing. In addition to Make it Stick, he has written novels, such as The Fugitive Wife, as well as manuals such as Jumping the Job Track: Security, Satisfaction, and Success as an independent Consult and The Complete Guide to Money Making.

Henry Roediger III is an American cognitive psychologist and researcher specialised in memory and learning, who initially became known for his work on false memories. He has combined his academic career with editorial work for magazines such as Psychological Science in the Public Interest, Psychonomic Bulletin and Review and The Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory and Cognition. He was president of the Association for Psychological Science in 2003-2004.

Mark McDaniel is a cognitive psychologist and researcher and focuses on memory and learning. He is well known for his extensive work on ageing and prospective memory, as well as applications of cognitive psychology to education, aimed mainly at investigating the importance of tests and questions within the process. His goal has always been to research these cognitive processes in the field, so in actual school or college classrooms.

Publishing house:

Belknap Pr

Year:

2014

Pages:

336

ISBN:

978-0674729018