Learn How to Learn

 

Learn How to Learn Three key strategies to boost your learn-ability.

 

Learning Strategy for any Knowledge “Field”  Learning is a natural human behavior. We are the only animals

that passed on learning experiences in a systematic manner. We developed and still continue to develop various tools and ways to increase knowledge attainment and creation.  We, the humans, also enjoy playing sports. We play in “fields”

and set strategies to win. Strategies are not a foreign idea to us. We use them also in business, politics and diplomacy, writing, and even in presenting ideas!  We came to find that wins without strategies are usually accidental. Teams that plan to win a league or a cup are always keen to employ a strategy .  Sometimes, at first “goals” are not scored, but if the strategies

set by the coach are effective, the team gradually improves.

 

The “Soccer Coach” Learning Style  The following slides will introduce to you three learning

strategies that can boost your performance in studying any given subject.  The ideas introduced are metaphorically illustrated. They

are presented in alignment with soccer coaching strategies. Analogies from the examples provided can be easily concluded, even if you are not a soccer fan! analogy.  The picture on the right uses a metaphor and analogy. These business executives are racing to the finish lines – lines – achievement achieveme nt and success. Competitors Competitors race in business bu siness as 

runners race in the Olympics tracks! I am sure you got it

 

Focused vs. Diffused / Set Pieces vs. Free Dribble

Set Piece

 If you ever attend a soccer training, most likely you will get to watch two

kinds of drills that players go through: Set Pieces & Free Dribble.  In a Set Pieces drill, the coach train the players to handle a given game

scenario whether in att attack ack or defense. These drills stress on the position of players, their alertness and attention to details, i.e. in case of defense, the number of attackers from the opposing team.

Free Dribble

players  On the other hand in the Free Dribble drills, the coach allows the players to dribble the ball around the field in various sporadic directions. directions. These drills increase the player’ player’ss ball-sensitivity ball-sensitivity and get them in the mood for the forthcoming “focused” drills – like: Set Pieces.

 So, how does this relate to learning?

 

Focused vs. Diffused / Set Pieces vs. Free Dribble

Set Piece

Free Dribble

Focused Mode

Diffused Mode

 

Focused vs. Diffused / Set Pieces vs. Free Dribble  The Set Pieces drill in soccer are very much similar to the “focused”

learning time. You prepare the requirements (i.e. textbooks and cal alcu cula lattor or), ), cho hoo ose a su suiitabl ble e pl pla ace (s (siimi millar to players’ positioning)

Focused Mode

a yoiu erlve aellor ofgr yaosp ur. attention to the exercise or concept you an redtry ryi nggtaothso solv gra sp.  Again, how does this help in learning? Well, as you might see in a

soccer socc er tr trai aini ning ng  – Set Pieces drills don’t go forever, they are not replicated in the same way forever, and players get to have a Free Drib Dr ibbl ble e dr dril illl ev ever ery y ot othe herr wh whil ile. e.  You ought to do the same in learning. In your Focused Mode, you

switch swit ch fr from om on one e exer erci cise se to an anot othe herr. You don’t re repe peat at th the e sa same me ty type pe of exercise for three hours straight! And you get some free-t -tiime to browse other textbooks, surf the net to check for resources, get yourself a cup of coffee, go for a walk, settle yourself to study in a difffer di eren entt ar area ea an and d so on on..

Diffused Mode

 

Focused vs. Diffused / Set Pieces vs. Free Dribble Rese sear arch ches es ha have ve fou ound nd th that at ou ourr br brai ain n ha hass tw two o at atte tent ntio iona nall ne netw twor orks ks th that at  Re wor ork k li lik ke a “seesaw “seesaw..” ne netwo rk de. is. Th fore tfh est “focused” odeen aynou d r tm hein heartteisnti fo r an the  O “diffused” mode mo The irs ir is act ctiv iva atedmwh whe our ind dotis tiv ve and d actively engaged in tasks and the second is activated when you are carrying out daily habits that doesn’t requ quiire an any y min indd-w wor orki king ng an and d let’s yo your ur min mind d wa wande nderr.  The connections between the neurons in your brain during the

“focused” mo mode de ar are e st stru ruct ctur ured ed.. Si Simi mila larl rly y, th the e pl play ayer erss in Se Sett Pi Piec ece e dr dril ills ls.. mode de th the e conn nne ect ctio ions ns fl flo ow  On the other hand, during the “diffused” mo among disparate ideas allowing your brain to find creative and no nov vel soluti sol utions ons fo forr pro proble blems. ms.

 

Focused vs. Diffused / Set Pieces vs. Free Dribble modess pra practic ctically ally? ?  How can you apply the “Focused” & “Diffused” mode  Just like the soccer coach organizes her/his players’ drills. They set

timess for each dr time dril illl. Th The e tim imes es ar are e lim imit ite ed and wi wittho hout ut ext xte ens nsiion on.. Onc nce e the time for the dr driill is finished, they whistle! – An Anno noun unci cing ng th the e sw swit itch ch to the ne next xt..  The drills are not long to allow variation. So for your next learning

session: You ought to break it down into smaller drills. Let’s say 30 minutes each. You can use a timer or set an alarm on any electronic device. By the way, the alarm sound could be the sound of a whistle! So you can al alw ways remem embe berr th the e aim of thi hiss setu tup. p. orma mati tion on,, or in  Next, we’ll talk about how the coach sets the team’s for othe ot herr wo worrds ds,, ho how w yo you u can br brea eak kdo down wn you ourr stu tudy dy ma matter eria iall in intto ch chun unks ks!!

 

Focused vs. Diffused / Set Pieces vs. Free Dribble  Sources:  Week 1 Videos from “Learning How to Learn” MOOC developed at University of California, San Diego by

Dr. Barbara Oackley and Dr. Dr. Dr. Terrence Terrence Sejnowski Sejnowski and published on the Coursera Coursera learning platform. platform.  Daniel J. Levitin, (August 9, 2014), "Hit the Reset Button in Your Brain," The New York Times.  Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/10/opinion/sunda opinion/sunday/hit-the-reset-button-in-y y/hit-the-reset-button-in-your-brain.h our-brain.html?_r=0 tml?_r=0

 

Chunking Information / Tactical Formation  Be Beffor ore e th the e so socc ccer er se seas ason on st star arts ts,, th the e coa oach ch as asse sess sses es th the e te team am

players in order to be prepared for the league. One of the key as asse sess ssme ment ntss is to ev eval alua uate te ea each ch player’s pla playing ying posit position. ion.

Defense

Midfield

Offense

Som ome e pl pla ayers can pl pla ay in de deffen ense se,, ot othe herrs in th the e mid idfi fie eld or in the offense. Certain players have the ability to play in more tha han n po posi sittio ion. n. Ac Acccordi ding ng to the nu num mbe berr of pl pla ayers avai aila labl ble e in eac ach h po posi siti tion on an and d th the eir sk skiill llss (i (i.e .e.. sp spee eed, d, ba ball ll con ontr trol ol,, etc.) the coach sets a team formation (see the clipart picture). T hecosaocchcese r egs aim eosptossuitiitoanbeled foinr tshuecm h fohremaptliaoynertshaitnthte s tehearm to be bea at th the e opp ppo osi sing ng team and wi win n th the e game me.. Alll so socc ccer er te team amss mu musst ha have ve a ce cert rtai ain n al alig ignm nmen entt of pl pla ayer erss for  Al thr hree ee lin ines es:: De Deffens nse e, Mid idfi fiel eld d an and d Offens nse. e. We can th thin ink k of  these lines as groups  – “Chunks “Chunks..” A certain number of   pla pl ayer erss ar are e gr grou oupe ped d in a pr pre eci cise se man anne nerr to for orm m a li line ne..

 

Chunk Information / Tactical Formation information – i.e.  Similarly, in order for you to learn best you ought to group information – ideas and concepts.  Such grouped units of information, we call: “Chunks.”  What if the 11 soccer players in the field are left to haphazardly run around

without being related in a form of structure?! It might work if they play for fun, but not to win an official game. concepts and ideas into small parts  In learning, it is best to breakdown new concepts  – “Chunks” – in order to better grasp it. It is easier to go about working out a problem after breaking it down into smaller parts rather than trying to solve it holistically.



It is easier for a has soccer coach to fix the problem his/her team’s defense when the team a structured formation formation –  – andinnot haphazardly running around in the field.

 

Chunking Information / Tactical Formation tra ateg egy y in le lea arn rnin ing, g, you  In order to using the “Chunking” str ough ou ghtt to co cons nsid ider er th the e fol ollo lowi wing ng::  Ch Chun unki king ng ta tak kes pl plac ace e in th the e “Focused” mode.  Con onsi sid der the rel ela atio ion n be betw twee een n step epss or par arts ts of the id idea eass. It is

import impo rtan antt to un unde derrst stan and d th thes ese e re rela lati tion onss as th they ey ar are e su supe perg rglu lue e thatt st tha stick ick the dif diffe fere rent nt par parts ts to toge gethe therr.  Use th the e meth tho od of  f “Trial “Trial & Error” to mak ake e su surre what th tha at you are grasping the information correctly. In other words, test yourself on the understanding for information and the “chunks” you for orme med. d. Af Afte terr al all, l, th the e so socc ccer er coa oach ch pl pla ays fr frie iend ndly ly game ga mess to tr try y di diff ffer eren entt pl play ayer erss in di diff ffer eren entt po posi siti tion onss be befo fore re th the e league leagu e sta starts. rts. 

B botookgeotr asntuid deya goufidth e,e chhoelicsktictp hiectutare b.leThoisf   coro nw tesnets tahned tseuxcth way wa y yo your ur “Chunking” wi will ll be me mean anin ingf gful ul an and d pu purp rpos osef eful ul..

 

Chunk Information / Tactical Formation  Sources:  Week 1 Vid ide eos fr from om “Learning How to Learn” MO MOOC OC de dev vel elop oped ed at Un Univ iver ersi sity ty of Ca Cali lifo forn rnia ia,,

San Di San Dieg ego o by Dr Dr.. Ba Barb rbar ara a Oa Oack ckle ley y an and d Dr Dr.. Ter erre renc nce e Se Sejn jnow owsk skii an and d pu publ blis ishe hed d on th the e Co Cour urse sera ra learning learn ing plat platform form..  Fer erna nand nd Go Gobe bet, t, Pet eter er C. C.R. R. La Lane ne,, St Stev eve e Cr Crok oker er,, Pet eter er CC-H. H. Ch Chen eng, g, Ga Gary ry Jo Jone nes, s, Ia Iain in Ol Oliv iver er an and d Julian M. Pine ( June, 2001), “Chunking mechanisms in human learning,” TRENDS in Cogn Co gnit itiv ive e Sc Scie ienc nces es Vol ol.. 5 No No.. 6. 

Link: http://www //www.brunel.ac.uk/~hsstff .brunel.ac.uk/~hsstffg/papers/Chunking-TICS.pdf  g/papers/Chunking-TICS.pdf 

 

Teamwork: Learning/Soccer!  One of the key skills in team sports, such as: soccer, is

teamwork. Players are required to play in unity. If one player falls short, the other can cover her or his position. p osition. A good soccer coach is the one who can get the players to work togetherr in harmony – togethe harmony – they will complete each other! advantage. Learning alone  In learning, teamwork is a valuable advantage. might be easier to ensure a “focused” mode, but with a good study group one can reach peak performance.  Like soccer who stand at different positions and see the ball from different angles, learners who form a study group get to “tackle” hard problems from different angles as well. Study groups act as a coalition to solve problems and share resources.

 

Teamw eamwork: ork: Learn Learning/Socc ing/Soccer! er!  In the midst of studying, unintentionally can develop false

perceptions and wrong unde derrstandi din ngs. The hesse pitfalls if not realized early one can create a huge snowball of mistakes in the th e en end. d. impe pera rati tive ve to st stud udy y in “teams “teams..”  So it’s im  Le Lear arni ning ng col olla labo borrati tion ons, s, su such ch as as:: st stud udy y gr grou oups ps,, can he help lp ou outt to

decrease tests-stress. The learner gets a chance to make mistakes and receive corrections without any marks deductions.

 

Chunk Information / Tactical Formation  Sources:  Week 4 Vid ide eos fr from om “Learning How to Learn” MO MOOC OC de dev vel elop oped ed at Un Univ iver ersi sity ty of Ca Cali lifo forn rnia ia,,

San Di San Dieg ego o by Dr Dr.. Ba Barb rbar ara a Oa Oack ckle ley y an and d Dr Dr.. Ter erre renc nce e Se Sejn jnow owsk skii an and d pu publ blis ishe hed d on th the e Co Cour urse sera ra learning learn ing plat platform form..  Oakley, Barbara, Richard M. Felder, Rebecca Brent, and Imad Elhajj. "Turning Student Grou Gr oups ps in into to Eff ffec ecti tive ve Tea eams ms." ." Jo Jour urna nall of St Stud uden entt Ce Cent nter ered ed Le Lear arni ning ng 2, no no.. 1 (2 (200 003) 3):: 99-34 34..  Link: http://www4.ncsu.edu/unity/locker y/lockers/users/f/felder s/users/f/felder/public/Paper /public/Papers/Oakley-paper(JSCL).pdf  s/Oakley-paper(JSCL).pdf 

 

Images Credits  All images and clipart pictures included in the presentation are retrieved from the Office.com

Clip Art library available online and accessed via Microsoft PowerPoint desktop application.

 

Thank You! Created by: Ahmed El Azhary