Learning Scientists Blog — The Learning Scientists

Jun 3

Jun 3 Weekly Digest #111: Nutrition and the Brain

For Parents, For Researchers, For Students, For Teachers, Digests

We have published digests on the importance of exercise and sleep, but we have never compiled a digest on the importance of good nutrition for learning. In today's digest, we compile 3 blog posts, a podcast, and an interactive lesson on nutrition and the brain.

May 28

May 28 Weekly Digest #110: Creativity in Unlikely Places

Learning Scientists

For Parents, For Researchers, For Students, For Teachers, Digests

Ideas related to creativity pop up throughout this blog: we discuss how retrieval practice and spacing can actually increase creativity; how creative problem solving can benefit from sleep, and how to develop creative critical thinking skills.

May 27

May 27 How Does Question Difficulty Order Affect Evaluations of Test Performance? (Part 2)

Yana Weinstein

For Researchers, For Teachers, Learning Scientists Posts, For Students

Last week, I wrote a blog post that ended with a data prediction cliffhanger. I asked readers to predict how question difficulty order on a test might affect students’ evaluations of their own performance on that test.

May 20

May 20 Weekly Digest #109: Burnout

Learning Scientists

For Researchers, For Teachers, Digests

Now that most of us here at Learning Scientists have put the 2017-2018 academic year behind us I thought it would be a good time to reflect on an issue that affects a lot of educators: burnout.

May 18

May 18 How Does Question Difficulty Order Affect Evaluations of Test Performance?

Yana Weinstein

For Teachers, For Researchers, For Students, Learning Scientists Posts

If we want to improve student learning, we also need to worry about students' attunement with their own memory performance. That is, if students can't gauge how well they did on a test, they're going to have more trouble preparing adequately for the next one.

May 15

May 15 GUEST POST: How Test Expectancy Promotes Learning

Learning Scientists

Guest Posts, For Teachers, For Researchers

If you’re an educator, there’s no doubt your students have asked questions like, “Are we going to be tested on this?” and “Is the exam going to be essay or multiple-choice?” Why do students want these answers? One possibility is that students will use them to …