There is an ongoing debate on whether students should take notes on their laptops (typed) or by putting pen to paper (handwritten). We have blogged about this topic in the past and presented papers that found…
All in Learning Scientists Posts
Stress and Memory
When we are presented with a stressful event, a variety of hormones, neurotransmitters, and peptides are released in our brains. All of these things work to activate systems to help us cope with the stressor. This initial response is typically referred to as the “fight-or-flight” response. If you were walking in the woods and actually saw three bears your fight-or-flight response would put your system on high-alert. Your body diverts resources from less-pressing matters, like digestion, and focuses on giving you superhuman strength and speed…
Promoting Far Transfer in Medical Education: An Experiment
About 8 years ago (seriously, I can’t believe we’ve been doing this for so long…), we published a pair of blog posts on understanding both near and far transfer (Part 1; Part 2). Transfer is one of my favorite topics, in part because it is arguably the whole point of most formal education. The purpose…
Enhancing Learning Through Storytelling
Imagine you are enrolled in a life sciences course and learning about stochastic molecular motion in biological systems (i.e., how molecules move in random ways within cells and other parts of living things). You are given the option to study the topic using either a) expository instruction…
What Exactly Is The Science of Learning Anyway?
It’s very clear that the average person does not have a great understanding of the broad field of psychology nor the interdisciplinary nature of the Science of Learning. What is the science of learning? How are we, four cognitive psychologists, involved in it? And when and how do you know if you can “trust” the science?
Retrieval Practice with First Graders (6-7 years)
The great thing about effective learning strategies is that they tend to work well for a lot of different people, as long as they are modified in appropriate ways when needed. One individual difference between people that often comes up in learning research is developmental age or stage. Our …