How Students Learn
There really is a "science of learning"
Have you ever sat through a lecture or presentation but nothing stuck? Is there a book you swear you read but you can’t remember what happened? As a student, did you ever cram for exams?
A large and growing body of research in cognitive science can give us a clearer picture of what’s happening here and how to learn better. Those findings have real, practical implications for teachers, parents, and coaches.
The Science of Learning report from Deans for Impact unpacks what cognitive science researchers have learned about learning and development. The report was originally written in partnership with cognitive and educational psychologists and is aimed primarily at teacher candidates and early-career educators. Now in its second edition, it was updated this month to reflect the most current research. It also flags common mistakes teachers make when trying to apply the science in practice.
Here are nine of my takeaways from the report.
1. Prior knowledge is the foundation of all new learning
Students don’t absorb new information in a vacuum — they connect it to what they already know. A well-sequenced, knowledge-rich curriculum is essential.
Moreover, teachers shouldn’t assume that just because a student has prior knowledge that they’ll know how to use it. Teachers may need to activate that knowledge through questions, retrieval practice, or analogies.
2. Your brain has limits
The brain can only consciously process so much at one time. When students are overwhelmed with new information, or asked to perform tasks that are cognitively too demanding, learning breaks down. This is why it can be valuable to pre-teach vocabulary words before a lesson and why worked examples are valuable for novices. This “working memory” is a practical constraint teachers must work within every day.
3. Practice is good
Practice is essential for long-term learning, in almost every endeavor we face in life, but the type of practice matters as well. The most effective practice is spaced out over time, requires effortful retrieval from memory, and is woven across different problem types rather than blocked by topic.
Asking students to actively retrieve information rather than simply re-read it is one of the most well-supported study strategies. Crucially, this doesn’t have to feel like a test: think-pair-share, teaching a peer, or fill-in-the-blank exercises all count. As the report puts it, retrieval from memory should be “challenging but doable.”
4. Feedback is also good
Good feedback is one of the highest-leverage tools a teacher has, but not all feedback is good feedback. To be effective, the feedback must be specific and clear, focused on the task rather than the person, and oriented toward improvement rather than just grading in-the-moment performance.
5. Learning is hard
This is an unfortunate one, but if learning feels easy, it probably isn’t sticking. The strategies that produce the strongest long-term retention, such as spaced practice, retrieval, and interleaving, tend to feel more difficult and less satisfying. But they work. Students and teachers alike can mistake how easy something is in the moment for durable learning.
6. Skills may not transfer, at least not automatically
A student can’t just be told to “think critically” and apply that to new domains. In fact, knowledge and skills are deeply tied to specific content areas. A student who learns to identify the main idea in a reading passage won’t automatically apply that habit in a science lab.
Teachers can help this transfer process somewhat by helping students make those connections and recognize when a familiar concept applies in a new setting.
7. Self-regulation is a skill that can be taught
We can learn to actively manage our own learning. The report describes this as a cyclical process of planning, monitoring, and self-reflection.
Teachers can cultivate these skills by asking students to track their own progress, discuss strategies for tackling problems, and reflect on what’s working. When students get stuck, teachers should avoid jumping in with a quick answer. Instead, the report suggests asking students “What else can you try?” or “What resources could you use?” to foster independent thinking.
8. Common myths about learning are still surprisingly widespread
Despite decades of research, several popular ideas about learning turn out to be wrong or misleading. Learning styles — the idea that students are visual, auditory, or kinesthetic learners who need information delivered in their preferred mode — are mostly bogus. The left-brain/right-brain distinction is a myth. The belief that memorization is mere “rote” learning and therefore bad is actively harmful. Instead, building strong knowledge in long-term memory actually frees up the brain’s capacity for deeper thinking.
9. Motivation doesn’t have to precede learning
It might be tempting to assume that students need to be motivated before they can learn. But the relationship runs both ways. When people get better at something, motivation tends to follow.
In other words, teachers can build motivation by breaking complex tasks into manageable steps, sequencing content so early success is likely, and making improvement visible. Teachers don’t always have to manufacture student interest before teaching something.
Those are my takeaways. Read the Deans for Impact report for yourself here.
Reading List
Checker Finn: State leaders should opt in to the 12th grade NAEP tests
SRI Education: Connecting Word Reading to Meaning in Early Literacy
Daisy Christodoulou: Why we need both more and less technology
Linda Diamond: When “Productive Struggle” Becomes “Destructive Frustration”