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Using "Spaced Repetition" to force yourself to remember what you learn

laiscamuslaiscamus Live Member
in General 41 karma

Pro-tip from the academics that teach people how to learn best (not just my own). It’s called “Spaced Repetition.”

The idea is straightforward: You learn something best when you have to remember it.

So what does this look like in practice? You do some learning now, pause, then come back and do some more later. Most of us do something similar, but we take a more difficult approach. It’s easy to think that we should finish an entire lesson, take really good notes, and promise ourselves that we’ll study those notes later. These are still good practices, but there’s a way to make it more effective.

Just leave one or two lessons incomplete and finish them later. Then you’re forced to remember all that stuff at a later date.

For instance, I’m going through the CC in order, but I’ve left two or three problems in the grammar section incomplete. I’ll finish those next week. This way, I’m forced to go back and remember (and implement) what I previously studied. This doesn’t mean I can’t or won’t review my notes anymore, just that I’m creating a system where I have to space out the learning process and force myself to practice recall.

TL;DR Recommendation: Leave 1-2 lessons incomplete in each section to force yourself to practice Spaced Repetition.
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It makes the lessons shorter in a meaningful way; allows you to skip back-and-forth while still completing sections in order; and break apart the learning process so you’re giving your brain time to internalize what you learn.

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Comments

  • If Glory then GutsIf Glory then Guts Member
    175 karma

    Absolutely agree and can vouch for this method anecdotally.

  • blanklawblanklaw Member
    490 karma

    yep! #MakingitStick-- definitely recommend the book - one main takeaway is that you need a little forgetting to happen in order to solidify your learning in your long-term memory (which is the most ideal place for easy and accurate info recall)

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