I am going to share four learning strategies/techniques that I personally use and have worked for me. I’m going to go over what to do before ever cracking open a book, breaking down a large topic into smaller pieces, repeating what you are learning until mastery, and using a time management technique called the Pomodoro Technique.
Watch a video on a topic before ever reading about it
Watching a video before reading about a topic helps with seeing the big picture of what it is I’m studying. At this stage I’m not taking notes or otherwise trying to record what I’m watching. If I want to watch the video again, that is when I take notes.
Watching a video is my first pass through a subject. When I go through the subject again by reading or practicing the material, I am reinforcing what I learned in the video and practicing repetition which commits the topic to memory. In addition, a video is typically a smaller sub-section of the material I’m working on learning, and we can call this a “chunk” of information which I will get into in the next point.
Chunking
Chunking is a method of breaking down a topic, especially a large one, into smaller units (chunks). Studying a textbook is a good example, as typically you will go through it section by section and/or chapter by chapter.
Smaller units of information are more manageable and are easier to remember. For example, let’s say you are trying to learn a song on guitar. Instead of trying to learn the whole thing from start to finish, you can break it down into verse, chorus, and perhaps bridge. You take the song and break it down into smaller, easier to learn and memorize chunks. Then take that chunk and repeat it until you are proficient at it. This leads into my next point which is about repetition.
Repetition
This one is pretty simple to explain. Take a topic, break it down into chunks, and practice each chunk until you have mastered that unit of information. Using the example of practicing a musical instrument, you know you are proficient at that chunk when you can play through it without mistakes. Another example is practicing a math operation like multiplication until you have it nailed down.
Pomodoro Technique
The Pomodoro Technique is a time management technique that breaks work (or study) into blocks of time with breaks in between. A suggested session is 25 minutes with a 5 minute break before starting another 25 minute session. The idea is to accomplish what you are doing in short bursts where you are focused on nothing but that task until that 25 minutes is up. Instead of working without a break for, let’s say four hours, you can split up whatever you’re working on into more manageable blocks.
Exactly how long a time slot needs to be can be suited to your needs. 25 minutes is only a suggestion. There needs to be a balance between being too long where your focus can waver to being too short to be productive. The main idea with the Pomodoro Technique is to help you focus, avoid distractions, and work for manageable sets of time so that your work doesn’t get overwhelming or painful.
Putting it all together
An effective way to learn is to combine the concepts I listed above. Take a topic, break it down into smaller chunks, watch a video to introduce you to the material in that chunk, then repeat each chunk until you are at the mastery level you desire. What I like to do is set a timer for 25 minutes and then watch a video if it’s the first time I’m learning about something. I will then move to more videos or start reading books or articles on the subject. I will break down each topic into smaller, more manageable pieces (chunks), and practice repetition if it’s something I need to commit to memory for something like a test or hands-on activity. I take small breaks in between each 25 minute session and this helps me with focusing and not burning out quicker than I would otherwise.