#31 Barbara Oakley: Learning How to Learn
Barbara Oakley, Professor of Engineering, discusses effective learning strategies, debunking myths, and leveraging neuroscience. She covers the two brain modes, chunking, deliberate practice, overcoming procrastination, and the critical role of memory and sleep in mastering new material.
Deep Dive Analysis
16 Topic Outline
Barbara Oakley's Diverse Background and Motivation
Journey into the Neuroscience of Learning
Understanding Focused and Diffuse Thinking Modes
Applying Deliberate Practice to Learning
Overcoming Procrastination
The Role of Exercise in Brain Health and Learning
Balancing Focused Work with Creative Downtime
Reevaluating the Importance of Memory in Learning
Effective Math Learning Strategies for Children
Short-Term vs. Long-Term Memory and Chunking
Steps to Create Effective Neural Chunks
Key Study Techniques for Students
Learning from Others and Organizational Learning
Debunking the Myth of Learning Styles
Serial vs. Parallel Approaches to Learning
The Future and Challenges of Online Learning
7 Key Concepts
Focused Mode
This is a state of intense concentration where the prefrontal cortex actively works to figure out new or difficult information, akin to an 'octopus of attention' with limited arms. It's crucial for initial engagement with new material.
Diffuse Mode
A relaxed, non-focused state, often associated with the default mode network, where the brain consolidates information, makes random connections, and processes material in the background. This mode is vital for creative insights, making sense of complex ideas, and understanding material that initially seemed difficult.
Chunking
The process of creating a new neural pattern or 'subroutine' in long-term memory that can be easily accessed and activated by working memory. These chunks allow for more efficient processing of complex information, freeing up working memory for new tasks.
Deliberate Practice
A method of improving a skill by intentionally focusing on the most challenging or 'hurting' aspects of the task, rather than just repeating what is already easy. This targeted approach leads to faster and more significant progress in learning.
Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF)
A chemical produced in the brain, particularly through exercise, that acts like a 'fertilizer' for the brain. It helps dendritic spines grow and make new neural connections, promoting neurogenesis and significantly enhancing learning and memory.
Illusion of Understanding
This is the false belief that one knows material simply because it looks familiar (e.g., from rereading or looking at a solution), without actually testing one's ability to recall or apply the knowledge independently. It's a common pitfall that prevents true learning.
Neural Reuse Theory
A concept suggesting that the brain reuses existing neural mechanisms for new functions. This theory explains why metaphors can be effective in learning, as they activate the same underlying brain processes that would be used for the difficult concept itself, onboarding students more rapidly.
8 Questions Answered
The two modes are the focused state, where you concentrate intently, and the diffuse state (or default mode network), where your mind is relaxed and makes connections in the background. Effective learning involves moving back and forth between these two modes.
When you even just think about something you don't want to do, it activates a portion of the brain in the insular cortex that experiences pain, causing the brain to seek distraction to alleviate this discomfort.
Exercise helps produce Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) in the brain, which acts like a fertilizer, helping dendritic spines grow and make new neural connections. This process promotes neurogenesis and significantly enhances learning.
No, memorization is integral to learning. While rote memorization without understanding is not ideal, actively pulling out solutions or concepts from memory enough times (a form of memorization) builds a profound understanding of the material.
Sleep is crucial because it clears out the hippocampus and transfers newly learned information into long-term memory, consolidating neural patterns. Without adequate sleep, the brain struggles to retain what was learned during the day.
No, research indicates that people who identify with specific learning styles are often fooling themselves; studies show no significant difference in learning outcomes when material is presented in a preferred versus non-preferred style. Believing in them can be detrimental by closing off other learning channels.
A common mistake is rereading material or looking at solutions and believing they understand it due to familiarity, without actively testing themselves. This creates an 'illusion of understanding' that often fails during actual tests.
Organizations can foster a learning culture by having leaders model lifelong learning, sharing their struggles and successes, and making diverse learning opportunities (even unrelated to direct work) available to employees to encourage transfer of ideas and maintain freshness.
29 Actionable Insights
1. Alternate Focused and Diffuse Thinking
Understand that learning involves going back and forth between focused and diffuse (resting) modes of thinking to consolidate and make sense of material.
2. Take Breaks for Consolidation
If you don’t understand something while focusing, take a break and let it go; your diffuse mode network will work in the background to consolidate and make sense of the material, making it clearer when you return.
3. Prioritize Sleep for Memory
Ensure you get enough sleep, as it is crucial for clearing out the hippocampus and transferring new information into long-term memory, making those ‘subroutines’ easily accessible later.
4. Utilize Practice and Repetition
Employ practice and repetition as fundamental techniques to build and strengthen neural patterns for effective learning, whether for languages, music, math, or science.
5. Actively Engage to Grow Neural Patterns
To truly learn and form strong memory patterns, you must actively engage with the material yourself, as this effort stimulates the growth of dendritic spines and connections between neurons.
6. Build Understanding Through Practice
Recognize that understanding is not instant; after reading about a concept, actively practice working problems or applying the information, as this iterative process is what truly builds and develops your understanding.
7. Regularly Self-Test
Frequently test yourself on any material you are learning, as this active recall is a highly effective way to gauge your true understanding and improve retention.
8. Practice Active Recall While Reading
When reading complex material, after carefully reading a page, look away and actively try to recall the key ideas, as this method is far more effective for building understanding than underlining, rereading, or concept mapping.
9. Avoid Rereading as Study Method
Do not rely on rereading as a primary study technique, as it creates a false sense of familiarity and understanding without genuinely deepening your knowledge.
10. Actively Work Problems, Don’t Just View
Avoid the common mistake of merely looking at a problem’s solution and assuming you understand it; always actively work through problems yourself to confirm genuine comprehension.
11. Review Material Daily
Actively review some aspect of learned material every day, even if you completed the assignment early, to keep it fresh in your mind and significantly improve learning and retention.
12. Overcome Procrastination with Pomodoro
To overcome procrastination, use the Pomodoro technique: turn off all distractions, set a timer for 25 minutes, focus intently, and then reward yourself afterward.
13. Take Active Physical Breaks
When taking breaks from focused mental work, engage in physical activity rather than activities that use the same brain areas (like social media after writing) to allow those areas to rest effectively.
14. Exercise for Brain Growth
Incorporate regular exercise into your routine, as it helps produce brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), acting like a fertilizer to grow dendritic spines and make new neural connections, thereby enhancing learning.
15. Embrace Boredom for Creativity
Dedicate time each day to let your brain ‘go random,’ such as during a walk, and allow yourself to be bored, as this diffuse mode activity is crucial for creative thinking and is suppressed by constant focus.
16. Memorize for Deeper Understanding
Actively memorize concepts, equations, or poems, as this process, when coupled with understanding, can lead to a deeper and more profound comprehension of the material.
17. Build Knowledge in Small Chunks
When learning, start by creating small neural patterns or ‘chunks’ (like a single word or chord), then gradually build upon them, adding more links to form larger, more complex patterns.
18. Consistently Access Knowledge Chunks
To keep knowledge fresh and easily accessible, consistently practice and actively recall information, as this makes neural ‘chunks’ easier to pull to mind and prevents them from becoming rusty.
19. Learn Multiple Topics in Parallel
When mastering multiple subjects, consider learning them in parallel by breaking up intense focus on one topic with other subjects, which can prevent overwhelm and allow for better consolidation over time.
20. Learn Unrelated Topics for Creativity
Dedicate time to learning something completely unrelated to your job, as this fosters ’transfer’ of neural patterns through metaphor, bringing fresh ideas and maintaining freshness in your primary work.
21. Use Metaphors to Accelerate Learning
When explaining difficult concepts, use metaphors, as neural reuse theory indicates this activates the same brain mechanisms as the concept itself, helping to onboard students more rapidly without ‘dumbing down’ the material.
22. Avoid Learning Style Labels
Do not label yourself as only one type of learner (e.g., visual or auditory), as this can close you off to other sensory channels and hinder your overall learning development by limiting practice in diverse methods.
23. Leverage Poor Working Memory
If you have a poor working memory, view it as an advantage, as research suggests it can make you more creative and better able to see simplifications that those with stronger working memories might overlook.
24. Utilize Structured Math Programs
Consider using structured programs like Kumon or Smartick for children to provide consistent practice and repetition, which helps build solid neural patterns and overcome struggles in subjects like math.
25. Leaders Model Lifelong Learning
For organizations to become learning corporations, leaders should model lifelong learning by openly sharing their own learning experiences and struggles, demonstrating its value from the top.
26. Embrace Bizarre Opportunities
Say ‘yes’ to bizarre opportunities that arise, as this can lead to a path where doing ‘wacky things’ becomes more comfortable and you’ll seek out new experiences.
27. Use Concentration as Therapy
Engage deeply in concentration on a task, as it can serve as a form of therapy and alleviate feelings of restlessness or antsy-ness.
28. Apply Yourself in One Direction
Recognize that even as an ordinary person or slow learner, you can achieve significant things by trying new experiences and applying yourself consistently in a specific direction.
29. Focus on What Hurts Most
Engage in deliberate practice by identifying the most challenging or ‘hurting’ aspects of what you’re trying to learn and focusing your efforts there to make faster progress.
6 Key Quotes
I just love it when I'm concentrating on something. That's sort of my therapy.
Barbara Oakley
If you don't get something the first time, guess what? That's okay. If you don't get it when you're sitting there focusing the first time, back off, you know, after you focus, back off, let it go.
Barbara Oakley
Memorize the poem and you will understand it more deeply. It's why should we let the poets have all the fun? I mean, it, if you memorize an equation, you will also understand it more deeply.
Barbara Oakley
I think it's important to spend at least some part of your day letting your brain just go random.
Barbara Oakley
Sleep clears out your hippocampus and puts it in long-term memory.
Barbara Oakley
Moving a university is like moving a cemetery, you cannot expect any help from the inhabitants.
Barbara Oakley
3 Protocols
The Pomodoro Technique for Overcoming Procrastination
Barbara Oakley- Turn off all distractions (phone, computer notifications, etc.).
- Set a timer for 25 minutes.
- Focus intently on your task for those 25 minutes, gently bringing your mind back if it drifts.
- Reward yourself immediately after the 25 minutes with a comfortable distraction (e.g., listen to music, go on Facebook, walk around, dance).
Effective Reading and Comprehension Technique
Barbara Oakley- Read a page or section of complex material carefully.
- Look away from the material.
- Actively try to recall the key ideas or what you can remember from that page/section.
Creating Neural Chunks for Learning
Barbara Oakley- Start small, learning one tiny pattern (e.g., a word, a chord).
- Gradually add to that pattern, creating larger chunks that incorporate parts of previous ones (e.g., adding words to form a phrase, combining chords into a sequence).
- Practice accessing these chunks from different directions or contexts to make them rich and instantly accessible.
- Continue practicing and repeating to make the chunks easier to pull to mind and activate.