In this article, I will tell you why Switching modes of thinking is one of the most important parts of learning, why sometimes you shouldn't chase those who have already achieved success in this area (Math, Physics, Programming, and whatever else you want), What is the "Einstellung Effect", misunderstanding and making mistakes are common things, we will be fighting with your Procrastination (when it is needed) and many other really useful outputs
Focused and Diffused Modes of Thinking
The ability to Switch Attention - first to grasp the detail of the general picture being studied, and then return to the subject
Focused - mode is very important and useful for learning, it assumes direct access to the problem being solved and uses a rational, consistent, and analytical approach.
Diffused - mode is essential for learning too. It allows you to experience sudden insights and find unexpected solutions.
With focused thinking, you sometimes can find yourself focusing deeply on a problem and trying to solve it in the wrong way. And with absent-minded thinking, does not allow you to clearly focus, but it allows you to get closer to the solution. The difference between them can also be explained with the help of a flashlight, which has two modes: focused and diffuse. If you are trying to understand or learn something new, then it is better to turn off precise focused thinking and turn on diffuse mode, which allows us to see the big picture. to switch from one mode to another, you need to distract yourself, for example: take a walk, do a few push-ups, eat, talk to someone or even play video games with your friends
What is the "Einstellung Effect" and How to Get Rid of It
"Einstellung Effect" - this is when the failure in the assimilation of new concepts and solving problems is due to our fixation on the wrong approach
Its essence is that sometimes it is difficult even to determine from which side to approach a decision. One of the common mistakes when studying math and science is that people jump into the water before they can learn to swim. In other words, they start working on the problem without reading the textbook. To remove that barrier we should switch our thinking as we said earlier. Remember that flexibility is your helper
The more you try to tune your brain to creativity, the less creative your ideas will be. Relaxation is an important part of hard work
Confusion and Misunderstanding is a Common Reaction
Misunderstanding is a useful part of the learning process; as soon as a student meets a dead end, he immediately gives up. It is even more difficult for excellent students in this because study has always been easy for them and they do not even realize that the feeling of misunderstanding and deadlock is a standard part of the process. Learning is overcoming mistakes. Asking the right question - 80% success
"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work" - Thomas Edison
How to Avoid Procrastination
Procrastination is not uncommon. If you postpone classes until later, you leave yourself time only for the superficial study of the material in a focused mode
If procrastination is your weakness, try to remove any noises and just sit for 25 minutes, concentrating on the task, but not thinking about the solution itself, but thinking about finding these solutions, and then reward yourself by surfing the Internet for aphids. You will be surprised at how effective it is. Will you get results if you postpone your training for an essential race until the last day? So it is with mathematics and natural sciences. The habit of procrastination affects all aspects of life negatively and when you remove it you will notice Improvement everywhere
Why Is Sleep So Important?
it can be compared to a rest stop during mountain climbing, in other words, if you are in an absent-minded state, this does not mean that you can wander around and wait for you to come somewhere, but just restore strength. Also, it flushes out toxins and deepens neural connections. If you repeat the material fractured by sleep, then in a dream the brain will abundantly chop it
Don't try to keep up with the excellent students
There are "Working" and "Long-Term" Memory
"Working" - which is working at the moment. It can store up to 4 objects on which you need to keep attention, otherwise, the information will be forgotten, you should not hammer it over trifles. Long-term memory as a warehouse. It is capable of accommodating billions of objects, many of which will remain buried. To move information from work to long-term, spaced repetition will help us. It is better to repeat the material several times a week than to repeat it 20 times in one day
Ideal Memory Isn't the Better Way
Focused thinking plus repetition gives an imprint on the memory. And if you have a phenomenal memory, then each memory imprint will be emotional and colorful, it will be difficult for you to compose an understandable portion for assimilation. In other words, you will not see the whole forest, because every tree will be alive for
The illusion of competence - when a solution has already been given and the student glances over it, saying that he understood the material
Conceptual Portions
It's one of the main things of learning, there are 3 steps how to format it:
- The first step - chunking is to just focus on the information
- The second - to understand the main idea
- The third - to accumulate context so that you know not only how to apply this information, but also where you can use it
- The fourth - practice periodically, nothing can be learned without a good practice
As Alan Baddeley said, the intention to learn only helps with the right learning strategy Knowing about gaps is the first step in closing them
The illusion of competence - when a solution has already been given and the student glances over it, saying that he understood the material
Why Is "Interlining" So Important For Further Training
Practicing only one problem-solving sport, will bring you to automatism, and in the subsequent time it will be useless to waste time on it, for this, you need to combine different approaches. You must understand that the ability to use a particular method is only part of the success, you need to know when to apply it.
How to Change Habits
- Signal. Find out why you are procrastinating. In the case of procrastination, this is an automatic habit and you don't even notice when you start scrolling through the feed-in social networks. It is useful to introduce new signals, for example, do homework right after school. Pierce Steele notes "if you protect your daily routine, it starts to protect you."
- The sequence of actions. The key to change is planning and developing a new ritual. The Tomato Method - This can be especially useful when you are training a new response to signals. Difficult classes should not start on an empty stomach
- Reward. Can you win a bet with yourself? Spend the whole evening watching TV without remorse or guilt?
- Faith. Faith in your strength is needed. Overcoming the cravings for old, comfortable habits can be done by believing in a new approach. One of the most effective methods is mental comparisons when you compose the current state of affairs with which you want to achieve
Conclusion
I hope that you enjoyed this article. These are some of the most useful tips for better learning that will help you. Don't forget about like :)
Top comments (2)
The illusion of competence was something I struggled with when first starting out. It's easy to feel like you have an understanding of some new concept until you have an opportunity to use it and realize that you don't actually know what's going on. I don't know if other people do this, but I've started to pretend that I'm learning this new thing to teach someone else. By that I mean, as I'm learning, I try to imagine how I would explain this topic to someone who doesn't know even have tangential knowledge of whatever the subject matter is. If I can't do that, then I know I need to go back and try again. This combined with spaced repetition is almost like a super-power for learning.
I really like this approach! I once read somewhere that one has understood something if they're able to explain it to others, which, at least from my experiences, holds true. Explicitly learning with the goal in mind to teach others therefore sounds very reasonable to me.
Also, one thing I noticed: Often times, people teaching can be so very used to the topic that they neglect the smallest details at the beginning, thinking they're "obvious" to the people they teach, but that's often not the case. With this in mind and with your approach, I can imagine that you'll pay some special attention to those very details while learning.