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Education22 min read
Learn Like a Pro
by Barbara Oakley and Olav Schewe
Science-based Tools to Become Better at Anything
Published: July 16, 2021
4.4 (432 ratings)
Table of Contents
1
what’s in it for me? become an expert learner with science-based studying techniques.2
use the pomodoro technique to focus in 25-minute intervals, stay on track, and minimize distractions.3
for difficult problems, switch between focused and relaxed thinking.4
an active approach is the quickest path to deep learning.5
effective learning moves information from your working memory to your long-term memory.6
your procedural learning system turns learned knowledge into fast-acting intuition.7
prepare for exams by solving old test questions and discussing the material with others.8
become a metacognitive learner.9
final summaryBook Summary
This is a comprehensive summary of “Learn Like a Pro” by Barbara Oakley and Olav Schewe. The book explores science-based tools to become better at anything .
what’s in it for me? become an expert learner with science-based studying techniques.#
Introduction
barbara oakley, phd, and olav schewe.
learn like a pro.
science-based tools to become better at anything.
narrated by amanda marr and thomas florio.
if you find yourself easily distracted or stuck in an everlasting procrastination loop, these chapters are for you.
no one will dispute that learning is hard and can bring on disappointments.
unfortunately, with repeated setbacks over the years, it's easy to become a discouraged learner.
these chapters offer tried-and-true methods to relieve some of your learning frustrations and boost your memory's performance.
and while you might become a pro learner along the way, you don't have to be one to use these strategies today.
so, now that you're here, leave the distractions behind, give these chapters your full attention, and get ready to learn some of the most effective study techniques and the science behind why they work.
use the pomodoro technique to focus in 25-minute intervals, stay on track, and minimize distractions.#
chapter 1 of 7.
it's tough to focus in today's tech-heavy world.
so tough that you may yearn for a bygone era when life was simple and distractions were limited.
but here's the thing, it wasn't any easier to focus in the past than it is today.
you've probably heard of the french writer victor hugo.
he wrote the novel les miserables.
he lived in the 1800s, and he also struggled with focus.
according to one legend, he motivated himself by working in his study completely naked, with nothing but a pen and piece of paper.
his attendant was instructed to unlock the door only after he'd finished writing.
this worked well for hugo, but what are you supposed to do if you don't have an attendant and prefer to work fully clothed?
fortunately, we have modern methods for staying focused and overcoming procrastination.
perhaps the most powerful of these is the pomodoro technique.
the key message here is, use the pomodoro technique to focus in 25-minute intervals, stay on track, and minimize distractions.
in the 1980s, italian university student francesco sorillo took a stab at tackling his own tendency to get distracted.
he did this by dividing his learning time into 25-minute chunks of intense focus, separated by 5-minute breaks.
he used a tomato-shaped kitchen timer to time himself, and called each chunk a pomodoro, the italian word for tomato.
it works like this.
first, remove anything from your workspace that might distract you.
this includes unnecessary clutter and open tabs in your browser.
and turn off notifications on all your devices.
then, set a timer for 25 minutes, and work with as much focus as possible.
actual emergencies aside, everything else can wait until you're done.
if you finish your task early, use the remaining time to check your work.
when the timer rings, relax for 5 minutes.
but keep away from your phone, the internet, and reading, since these don't allow your brain to recharge fully.
instead, make a cup of tea or go for a walk.
this short mental break gives your brain time to transfer the material you've just studied into your long-term memory.
so, why is the pomodoro technique so effective?
it stops you from multitasking, which hurts focus.
in fact, a university of michigan study found that participants who switched to a second activity before finishing the first showed 30-40% drops in cognitive performance.
only about 2.5% of people can successfully transition among multiple complex tasks.
for everyone else, there's the pomodoro technique.
for difficult problems, switch between focused and relaxed thinking.#
chapter 2 of 7 one day, olav schua, one of the authors, was flying his remote-controlled drone when it got stuck high up in a tall tree.
the branches were too high to reach, even with the ladder, and too thin to support weight.
olav had no idea how to get the thing down, and the more he focused on the problem, the farther he was from a solution.
so what did he do?
well, he started by doing nothing.
he relaxed and forgot about his predicament.
a few minutes later, the solution came to him.
he fastened a fishing line to an arrow, shot it into the tree, and pulled on the line.
the branches shook, and the drone fell to the ground.
here's the key message.
for difficult problems, switch between focused and relaxed thinking.
so how did olav solve his problem by forgetting it?
to answer this, let's look at the two modes your brain uses for absorbing information and thinking through it.
focused mode and diffuse mode.
with the pomodoro technique, you use focused mode, paying close attention to your task.
this is better suited for solving problems with existing information.
but when you're learning something new and complex, like differential calculus, you might hit a wall with focused mode alone.
your brain can then actually harness the power of diffuse mode to sort through and absorb new information.
by focusing less, you find the solution more easily.
think of your brain as a maze.
in focused mode, you're inside the maze and know your way around, connecting the dots that lead to your answer.
but when you get stumped, taking your mind off the issue allows your diffuse mode to jump into action.
metaphorically speaking, it releases drones over the maze for a bird's-eye view of the problem.
without realizing it, you're making connections that may be invisible when you're focusing intently from within the maze.
so what gets you into diffuse mode?
any mindless activity, like brushing your teeth, doing the dishes, or going for a walk will do the trick.
the beauty of diffuse mode thinking is that it can be active even while you're focusing elsewhere.
to use your diffuse mode for studying, try the hard start technique.
first, scan through the content and mark any especially difficult questions.
begin working on the hardest one until you get stuck.
leave it be for an easier question, and then return to the harder one after a bit.
just like olav with his drone, you might find that aha moment sooner than expected.
an active approach is the quickest path to deep learning.#
when you learn something new, you make connections at the microscopic level.
your brain's long-tailed nerve cells called neurons link to each other using cellular appendages called synapses.
so when you're trying to learn something new, like the meaning of the word metaphor, the neurons link up when you first hear the word.
as you learn the definition, those links become stronger.
then you start noticing metaphors in different contexts, and those links become even stronger.
this continues as you practice your new knowledge.
but this doesn't happen automatically.
to make new materials stick, you really need to make your brain work hard for it.
the key message is this.
an active approach is the quickest path to deep learning.
and what better way to exercise your brain than to keep challenging it?
traditional rote memorization can be very effective for certain types of learning.
every time you memorize a concept or revisit it, your brain strengthens the synaptic links associated with the concepts.
for this, flashcard apps like anki and quizlet can be very helpful.
but for more complex concepts, you'll need to make your brain work harder.
to truly absorb information, try to articulate what you're learning and apply your knowledge to new situations.
here are a few ways to make this part of your study routine.
the first method is called elaboration.
also known as self-explanation, this technique tests your ability to explain what you're learning in your own words.
it's been shown to have a positive effect on test scores.
one study demonstrated that students explaining the logic behind their answers averaged 90%.
the other group, which didn't self-explain anything, failed the exam with a meager 23%.
consider another situation.
you're studying for an art history exam on three great painters, manet, van gogh, and gauguin.
as part of the exam, you'll need to distinguish the style of each artist.
now, you might think to study the paintings as presented in the textbook, which has them clumped together by artist.
but this actually doesn't stimulate your brain much because you already know what to expect when looking at each example.
instead, if you randomly mix or interleave the images so you don't immediately know who painted what, you'll have to think harder about the differences among the three styles.
the more you contrast the artist's works, the clearer those differences will become.
finally, while deep learning requires active thinking, it's also helped along by physical exercise and adequate sleep, both of which are essential to the learning process.
effective learning moves information from your working memory to your long-term memory.#
chapter 4 of 7 one morning, you wake up and feel a bit funny.
you're not yourself.
in fact, you've transformed into a four-legged octopus.
this octopus is a metaphor for your short-term or working memory, which the co-authors call an attentional octopus.
the average person's attentional octopus has four legs, each one holding a thought or concept in working memory.
the trouble is that the octopus's legs are slippery, some more than others.
they can't hold a thought for very long before your focus turns into a precarious underwater juggling act.
luckily, your attentional legs link to your long-term memory and pull information from it as if it were a mental locker.
the key message here is, effective learning moves information from your working memory to your long-term memory.
while your working memory is limited to between three and five thoughts, your long-term memory is basically infinite.
it houses pre-formed links of information that can be called up at any time as extensions to your short-term memory.
here's an example.
what does the word apricity mean?
okay, so you might have a hard time parsing the meaning if you've never encountered it before.
but if you hear the word beautiful, you know exactly what it means.
thanks to your long-term memory, you can easily grasp concepts without having to relearn them.
you can rely on a few strategies to prioritize the move from working memory to long-term memory as follows.
one approach is to break material into manageable chunks.
if you're learning a monologue, focus on short passages.
then, once you've mastered each segment, string them together one by one until you can recall the entire piece.
another technique is to translate information you're processing into more easily understood terms.
sometimes this means exchanging a more technical term, like torque, for its more common equivalent, twist.
for note-taking, use the split notes method.
make two uneven columns by drawing a vertical line one-third of the way from the left side of the page.
as you jot down notes in the right-hand column, use the left column to summarize the key ideas of each section.
review your notes at the end of the day by covering the right side and trying to recall the details.
your procedural learning system turns learned knowledge into fast-acting intuition.#
imagine you're trying to deliver a quality tennis serve.
at first, it'll be tough.
for your first few lessons, you might focus mostly on your basic serving technique, keeping an eye on the ball each time.
with enough training, though, it'll become second nature.
after all, during a fast-paced match, professional tennis players don't remind themselves to look at the ball.
in the early stages of learning, you rely heavily on your declarative learning system, which is this conscious way of acquiring skills or knowledge.
but how does it become automatic?
whether you're a tennis player or a brain surgeon, your declarative system works with your procedural system, which helps you apply that new knowledge through intuition.
here's the key message.
your procedural system turns learned knowledge into fast-acting intuition.
in contrast to your declarative system, in which you're conscious of what you're learning or trying to learn, the procedural system operates in the background.
it's like a black box.
it receives input from the outside world, but you can't see inside.
that's how we get to the expression, it's just like riding a bicycle.
if you learned to ride a bike as a child and did it enough to become a somewhat proficient cyclist, it's been ingrained in your long-term procedural memory.
even after a decades-long break, you may be nervous about trying again, but once you get rolling, your procedural system kicks in and it's smooth cycling from there on out.
you may also make use of your procedural system while studying subjects like math or a foreign language.
one way is to adapt the self-explanation method outlined in chapter-3.
start with easier problems and for each step, even if you already know the answer, write out your thinking.
if you have an algebra problem with multiple parentheses, for example, ask how you can simplify the equation.
the more you do this for harder questions, the more intuitive these solutions will become.
when studying a language, practice retrieving new words or expressions using a spaced repetition system.
many flashcard apps use spaced repetition algorithms to test you on more difficult items more often and easier items less often, until they enter your long-term memory.
it takes time for new skills to migrate to your procedural learning system, but by starting early, you can prepare yourself for more advanced material later on.
chapter-6 of 7 barb oakley, one of the authors, was studying electrical engineering when an exam was announced.
prepare for exams by solving old test questions and discussing the material with others.#
it was clear from the get-go that it wasn't going to be a breeze.
barb tried learning everything about the subject, electric circuits, that was brought up in class.
she did practice questions and even explained difficult concepts to other students.
yet somehow she flunked while everyone else didn't.
how could this happen?
well, barb knew she had to show that she'd mastered the material, but the other students took things farther.
they studied the professors' past exams and realized that they contained a twist that was never brought up in the book or class.
barb knew the material, but she'd missed this crucial detail.
the key message is this.
prepare for exams by solving old test questions and discussing the material with others.
barb realized too late that she didn't just need to learn the material to succeed on an exam.
there are other factors that go into making or breaking your test performance.
individual practice questions like the ones barb used are a great way to study material, but as barb found out, full practice tests are even better.
according to research, an hour spent taking practice exams is more effective than an hour of regular studying.
but the way you take the old exams is important.
it's not about just examining answers, which doesn't teach you how to get the right results.
only studying answers also forces you to depend on your working memory, which, as we learned, isn't effective.
holding on to so many concepts at once without allowing for time to process can also over-task your brain, which works against you on exams.
instead, put the burden on your procedural memory by working out the answers yourself.
even for questions you already know, going through the motions strengthens the links in your brain and trains your procedural memory for the real exam.
what's more, it can help reduce test anxiety.
one strategy for acing tests isn't much of a strategy at all, but it is critical and often overlooked.
it's reading the exam questions carefully to ensure you're following directions.
some tests might not require you to answer all of the questions, while missing a question could reduce your grade on other tests.
finally, keep an eye on the clock.
since tests usually have questions of varying difficulty, you want to make sure to leave enough time for the harder ones.
become a metacognitive learner.#
chapter 7 of 7 you've probably seen a contestant on a tv show like the x factor or america's got talent react with utter disbelief when the judges give him two thumbs down.
he was absolutely certain that his singing would blow them away.
and yet, to everyone else, it's very clear that this guy didn't have much talent.
how did he get to this point without one single mistake?
how did he get to this point without once questioning his chances for success?
perhaps he lacked the metacognitive skills necessary to evaluate his own singing objectively.
metacognition, thinking about thinking, allows us to seek out feedback from others and assess criticism with an open mind.
the key message here is, become a metacognitive learner.
some people think more metacognitively than others.
the good news is that, as with any skill, you can train your metacognitive thinking, too.
a starting point is to ask yourself metacognitive questions periodically, such as, should i prioritize what i study differently, and how can i be a more effective student?
canadian psychologists phil wynn and alison hadwin have taken this farther and developed a four-step model for self-regulated learning.
first, make sure you understand the task at hand.
knowing what's expected will help shape your learning process.
for individual tasks, have a clear idea of the exact objective before getting to work.
often, when students aren't sure where to start, it's because they don't fully understand the task.
the second step is to set goals and make a concrete plan.
instead of saying you want to learn italian, plan to learn 1,000 italian words within a certain time period.
your plan might look like this.
practice 50 words twice a day for three weeks, once in the morning and once in the evening.
next, begin learning.
test out different tools and resources, such as those mentioned in these chapters.
the final step is to take a breather and check your progress.
is everything going according to plan?
are some things taking longer than others?
why?
if a method isn't helpful, what's a better one that gets you closer to your goal?
learning something new is always going to be difficult.
but by using these learning techniques and evaluating yourself critically at each stage, you'll learn like a pro in no time.
final summary#
Conclusion
you've just listened to our chapters to learn like a pro by barbara oakley, phd and olav schuwe.
the key message in these chapters is that learning something new doesn't have to be a dead-end road of ceaseless frustration.
in fact, many learners have used the strategies in these chapters to face their challenges and come out on top.
to stay focused, use the pomodoro technique and concentrate on just one topic at a time.
if you get stuck, relax and let your diffused mode of thinking take over.
the more actively you learn, the more knowledge will move to your long-term memory and the better you'll be prepared for future learning challenges.
and here's some more actionable advice.
memorize material by creating a memory palace.
the next time you need to learn something by heart, why not make it a visual experience?
people have been using the memory palace technique for millennia to learn huge amounts of information.
first, memorize the layout of a location, maybe your house, apartment, or even a museum.
for each item you'd like to memorize, assign a memorable image, then place it somewhere in that location.
for example, if you're trying to learn the chemical element hydrogen, you could visualize a fire hydrant outside your front door.
for helium, think of a helium balloon tied to a kitchen chair.
as long as you make sure to test yourself every so often, your memory palace will stand the test of time.
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