High Performance for academic and athletic success requires an understanding and application of The Science of Learning. My coaching will enable you to do exactly that. Below are excerpts from my forthcoming book; Conquering the Classroom.
Deep Learning Strategies
Retrieval
The most effective use of retrieval is to call up what you have just learned over and over and over again…and again…and again. As we have previously discussed, effective recall, rather than mindless recitation, requires some degree of cognitive effort (struggle). Repeated retrieval, and struggle with retrieval, embeds knowledge and skills so that they become automatic. In other words, the more times you call the information back up (retrieve it) the deeper it goes!
This is why some form of quizzing is essential (at least 50% of your time). When you recall it (write it, teach it, or draw it) you are able to re-visit what you already know, and then strategically restore it. This strategy also reduces the amount of forgetting that naturally occurs immediately following a class or study session. Some studies suggest that 60% of all studying should be in the form of information retrieval, and students who do not quiz themselves often (and most do not) tend to overestimate how well they have mastered class material.
Chunking
Chunking, or storing individual bits of information together and then grouping these bits into meaningful wholes, is a key component in the deep learning process. The learning process begins when we are presented with raw information. We then take this new information and memorize it, but without any true understanding of what it really means. To go deeper in the learning process we can then chunk these smaller bits into more meaningful, and memorable, wholes of information. For example, we can chunk our shopping list into different sections of the grocery store (fruits & vegetables, breads, meats, cereal, etc..). (See, Mind Map).
Making Connections
You can add to your repertoire by making connections to what you already know about the topic. You might also creatively relate the groupings based on their commonalities (see Chunking). You might even make connections to a topic that you know a lot about. For example, if you understand the game of basketball you might associate various pieces of information with the intricacies of the game. This strategy is limited only by your own creativity! The more you are able to connect new knowledge to what you already know, the more spacious your capacity to learn becomes.
Interleaving (spaced out learning)
Because learning occurs constantly (your brain is always engaged), the more study sessions you complete in one day (up to a point) the more engaged, and re-engaged, your brain becomes. When retrieval practice is spaced out (interleaved) over brief periods of time it leads to stronger long term retention. This process can be frustrating at first because it may not feel to you that anything is registering (see, Mindset). This also requires an awareness of your natural human tendency to take the easy way out (and simply memorize).