Academia Stack Exchange
Academia Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [learning]

Questions about learning process in academia, lesson plans, learning problems, etc.

151 questions
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6 answers

What is the best way to retain learned materials

No matter who you talk to, students or professors, they all say that the materials they once learned can be quickly forgotten without further experiences that utilizes or enhances on that prior experience. I fondly remember a professor once telling…
Fraïssé
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3 answers

Swiss cheese holes in my education. Do I go back and fill them?

In this recent blog post the author lists several interesting concepts he has discovered pertaining to learning. One thing he mentions is the following: Mastery is more important than passing grades. You will reach limits in learning when you…
jessems
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3 answers

Skimming through a math paper with a group

I am an M.Sc. student in mathematics. I was recently invited by some Ph.D. students and Post-Docs (a group of 5 people, including myself) to join their study group. We are reading a specific text, which should get us ready to read some more advanced…
user302099
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3 answers

What is the best way to learn without thinking ahead?

I've run into this issue in many fields in which I'm interested in learning about. For the purposes of this question let's assume electricity/circuits/power systems. I find myself starting at the basics and as I try to understand each concept, I…
edaniels
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4
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2 answers

How to set goals when the challenge is to continually, gradually improve?

I work in engineering education in Canada. One of our biggest challenges is to instill the students with a desire to become "lifelong learners". This isn't just an academic ideal, either - we are required by our accrediting body to ensure that…
Michael Stachowsky
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3 answers

Is "backward learning" well-documented?

I was initially in the field of pure math, but I successfully transitioned to being a researcher of machine learning with much less effort than I expected. My strategy was, instead of learning CS and ML from scratch, to read many interesting recent…
Math.StackExchange
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How do you re-learn a subject that you've started to forget?

Due to my lack of revision I've realized that I have started to forget most of the organic chemistry that I had learnt a few months back (spend about 3 m/o on a textbook). I'm trying to think of how to get back my edge but I can't seem to figure out…
user110816
2
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2 answers

Most efficient way of developing a comprehensive understanding of a field

Are handbooks on a particular field you are interested in, the fastest and most comprehensive way of learning about that field. For instance, if I were interested in cognitive science would a book like "Oxford Handbook of Cognitive Science" be the…
hughlebowski
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1 answer

Does it matter if you have three or four possible answers when making a multiple choice test for learning?

I have built several apps in Norwegian about hunting, philosophy etc. Students use the app to learn a subject and test their knowledge before doing their exam. In current state i have one question with three alternatives, where one is correct. The…
bogen
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2 answers

Improve learning skills

I want to improve my learning skills. Is there any advice or a good method for that? For example, I want to read an article or book and retain as much information possible. But sometimes I read and lose focus, or when I read I can't remember…
Pulse9
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1 answer

How to use spaced repetition and active recall help to learn new topics, rather than just memorize them

I’ve used spaced repetition and active recall help to memorize things that I already understand. It has been helpful to me. Here is how I did it-: I UNDERSTAND something. I write short notes (version 1). I read version 1 notes. And again write…
gidser
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1 answer

how to apply The Feynman technique efficiently to effectively improve my learning in math and physics?

I have known the Feynman technique two years ago, I tried to use it in my studies. I usually read a text about some topic(usually math, physics) and wrote in some paper what I understood. But I had a bad experience with that, I spend a lot of time,…
Lucas Vital
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2 answers

Does telling students to take notes in high school really help them learn better?

I don't feel like it actually helped me. I now sense long after high school that taking notes and reading them probably did not help. Now I understand why it could work. In theory, somebody who thinks for themself could use their own method of…
Timothy
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How can I get better at Learning Things?

I am currently a Software Engineering apprentice, doing a related degree as the academic side. I have noticed that despite how passionate I am about software, things never 'click' with me when I first read about them or when someone explains them to…
fwr nr
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0
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1 answer

What are some tips to keep in mind when solving back of the book exercises?

I am pretty convinced at this point that the most difficult task when learning in a new topic in physics/mathematics is to actually sit down and do the back of the book problems till you figure out how to do the calculations at least once without…
user110816
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