“I know it. I just can’t remember it right now!”
Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? How many times have you heard this sentence? How many times have you said it yourself?
According to the Oxford Dictionary, learning can be defined as ‘The acquisition of knowledge or skills through study, experience, or being taught.’
Since the day we’ve opened our eyes in this bright, colourful world, there is one thing we’ve always done without trying- we’ve learned. Right from knowing that food goes inside our mouth and not the nose to knowing that Force = Mass*Acceleration, it is through the different kinds of learning that we understand things the way we do.
One can say that learning is very difficult, but do we not learn every day? You know all the twists and turns you take to come back home, you’ve by hearted the lyrics to your favourite songs and you can clearly remember the embarrassing incident that took place during middle school, so why is learning so strenuous?
Memorizing vs. Learning
It is a task trying to remember what you studied for the test but you can remember what you read years ago. Here’s why. Memorizing is not the same as learning. It is a much shallower concept compared to the latter. When you memorize, you mostly do it for a short term application of the same- perhaps an exam, a presentation or maybe just to impress someone with your outstanding knowledge. Learning, however, goes much deeper than that. It requires in-depth analysis, a clear understanding of the concept and internalizing the information to generate your own ideas and concepts.
The best way to understand the difference would be to take the help of an example. For instance, you’re taking classes to learn German. Why can’t the teacher just teach the different kinds of words and sentences right in the beginning and be done with it? Why do foreign language teachers always focus on grammar so much?
Isn’t it enough if you’ve memorized what ‘the’, ‘writing’, ‘is’, and ‘letter’ mean in German to say “A is writing the letter.”?
”A schreibt den Brief“
But what if you had to say ‚“The letter is being written by A“?
Do you think it would be possible to write the sentence in German without having learnt the verbs, articles, prepositions and the changing sentence structures required to form sentences in the first place?
Do you think it would be possible to write the sentence in German without having learnt the verbs, articles, prepositions and the changing sentence structures required to form sentences in the first place?
”Der Brief wird von A geschrieben“
The difference between the two German sentences can appropriately show the difference between memorizing and learning.
Some things are worth memorizing: phone numbers, addresses, birthdays and etc. Logical and technical concepts on the other hand? Not very much so. You learn how to play the Piano, you learn how to play Basketball, you learn how to multiply numbers; it is important to understand that not everything can and should be memorized.
Some things are worth memorizing: phone numbers, addresses, birthdays and etc. Logical and technical concepts on the other hand? Not very much so. You learn how to play the Piano, you learn how to play Basketball, you learn how to multiply numbers; it is important to understand that not everything can and should be memorized.
So, how do we answer the question, “What is the right way to learn?“
To begin with, we first have to know the different types and styles of learning that exist already.
According to the VARK Model, there are mainly four types of learning- Visual, Auditory, Reading/Writing, and Kinaesthetic.
As people stumbling through life, trying to understand all that happens around us, different kinds of learning suit different kinds of people. Because we all process information differently, no one style of learning fits for everyone. Visual Learners learn best when they get to see pictures, diagrams or graphs. Auditory learners tend to remember information best after listening to it and reciting it back to the presenter. While reading/writing learners retain more when they jot the information down and read it over and over again, kinesthetic learners remember best when they participate in a hands-on activity.
Now, we approach the most important part.
“What is the right way to learn?”
That’s a trick question. There is no right way to learn. There isn’t even a wrong way to learn. Everyone learns in their own way and what is important is to figure out the learning style that suits you as an individual.
However, even though the process of learning is life-long and we learn from whatever we do or don’t do, we make a lot of errors while figuring out how to learn a particular skill. Here’s a list of the 5 most common mistakes we make-
Mistake 1: I will just mug it up!
As mentioned before, one of the most common mistakes people make is when they try to memorize what should be learned. You can memorize what 5*4 is but you can’t memorize what 5*65524 is. You need to learn how to multiply for that. It is important to understand facts and try to connect them with what they mean on a deeper level.
Mistake 2: I’m not interested!
Not everyone wants to learn Trigonometry (and that’s completely okay), but it is needed to get through high school. Be curious. Try to inculcate some interest in what you’re trying to learn. Question things for the way they are. Things aren’t created boring. It is our biases that make them boring. Being curious doesn’t mean that you’ll end up learning everything you need to, but it will make the process a little more tolerable. Nothing is easy until you work to make it so.
Mistake 3: I don’t need the practice!
Staring at your notes for an hour is not practising. Trying to play the guitar in your head is not practising. You aren’t being productive unless you’re actually doing what needs to be learned. It may sound clichéd considering the number of times you’ve already heard this from your parents, but it is practice that makes you better at what you’re trying to learn and it is what increases your confidence.
Mistake 4: I can do it right here!
Nobody ever learned anything in the wrong environment, and neither will you. A lot of skills require a certain level of silence for you to concentrate, while a lot of things can be learned even if you have music playing in the background. Figure out the environment that promotes learning for you. Just like everybody’s learning styles are different, their learning environments are different too. Just because your friend feels comfortable listening to hard rock music while learning, doesn’t mean you have to tolerate those shrieky background noises as well.
Mistake 5: I’m afraid of looking stupid so I won’t ask!
You’re not the only one who doesn’t know how to use chopsticks. It isn’t just you who didn’t understand the equation, and you’re not the only one who’s afraid of looking dumb. Ask. Even when you don’t want to, even when you’re afraid and even if you do end up looking stupid; ask. Asking for help goes a long way in trying to get better at what you want to learn.
Now that we know 5 of our most common mistakes and how to improve upon them, here are a few hacks to make learning a more productive experience for you-
1). Eat well - Your mum was right about this one as well. Eat well and eat healthy. A heavy lunch is likely to make you drowsy so try eating a heavy breakfast instead. Eat in small quantities throughout the day and make sure you get your protein, carbohydrates and vitamins in proper quantity.
2). Take a break - You can’t learn the whole periodic table in one go and that’s okay. Go for a walk, take a long bath or just take a nap. Loosen up and try to distract yourself from how difficult the task at hand seems.
3). Set a goal - Instead of setting a long term goal that doesn’t let you sleep at night, set short term goals instead. Take it by the day, by an hour if you have to, but set goals that are achievable.
4). Allow yourself to make mistakes - You’re not perfect. Nobody is. There is no cheat sheet to learning, and making errors is the only way you grow. Make mistakes, make a whole lot of mistakes and allow yourself to learn from them.
5). Quiz yourself - Learning isn’t complete until you test yourself. Ask someone else or do it on your own, but quiz yourself to know where the gaps in your memory lie.
6). Be Realistic - If being positive seems too hard, be realistic instead. Trust your instincts and trust your ability to learn and retain information. Remember why you started in the first place and let it motivate you. It’s okay to dream.
In the end, be you and don’t let anyone else tell you what is or isn’t right for you.
Now, the next time you hear somebody saying, “I try to learn but then I always end up forgetting!”, you know where to guide them, don’t you?
-Vaishnavi Mohan
Want to become a leader and develop your skillset? Here is an opportunity to join the Board of Young Leaders Program by Eat My News. Click here to know more: bit.ly/boardofyoungleaders
Social