How to Study according to Cognitive Psychologists - Research Paper Example

How to Study according to Cognitive Psychologists Introduction Studying is the method of sourcing information from different sources, learning, and retaining them in mind for use either in class or research work. How to study is a question that seeks to know the best methods used by learners to source and retain information. Different methods of studying affect how the learner retains the information gathered from sources and they determine how effective a learner is. The work that follows combines findings from cognitive psychologists’ research on how to study, and makes a summary of how one should study. With regard to the varying suggestions on how to study, psychologists have conducted research to find out some of the best methods that people can use to study. The methods brought out in the studies differ from each other as some are more supported to be better methods of study than others. One of the methods is testing, where the learners test on the retention of what they have learned (Rohrer and Pashler, 2010). The method tests the ability to master and retain the content learned for a longer time because the learner has to maintain the learned material in memory. This method is also said to slow the rate of forgetting by the learners, as the researcher point to an example where a test given one week later showed an improved performance by the learners. The study shows that this method is effective for study because, the learners have the ability to recall what they have learned after a longer time. Although the method is effective, college students prefer re-reading instead of the tests (Rohrer and Pashler, 2010). The researchers also talk of another method of studying, the spacing effect, that calls for distribution of training sessions in multiple training periods. The method improves performance as the researchers give an example of the ability of participants to recall vocabularies learned eight years earlier at college (Rohrer and Pashler, 2010). It is a good method because it gives the learners the opportunity to restudy the content before sitting for a test thus; it enhances their performance. Another method brought out in the research is interleaving, which is best where multiple kinds of skills have to be learned, for example, in mathematics where different methods solve different problems. Another research conducted by Roediger, H. L and Karpicke, J. D came out with their findings on how to study. Their research says that students take tests in class to access whether they can recall or whether they have knowledge on what they have learned. Although tests are a bother to students and faculty as well, it is a viable method of accessing whether the students can recall what they learn during the semester (Roediger and Karpicke, 2006). This is because the students will keep on rereading because as the tests come at close intervals and this does away with the habit of forgetting what they have learned. This method of study is helpful to the learners because the repeated testing makes them memorize and retain what they learned, and they can remember it in future (Roediger and Karpicke, 2006). The experiments conducted by the researchers show that the number of study opportunities increases the performance on immediate retention tests because lack of spacing produces short-term benefits (Roediger and Karpicke, 2006). The research also shows that testing learners after studying promotes retention on the delayed tests as compared to studying for a long time without test. The experiments conducted by the researchers on the retention ability between learners who repeatedly conduct their studies and those who do test after studies show that, the students who study repeatedly do well in immediate tests as compared to those who do tests, but their long-term retention of what they learned is poor (Roediger and Karpicke, 2006). This research also shows that, although repeated studying improves performance than repeated testing, spacing effect is an important method of study because it helps learners to retain knowledge for a long time. Rohrer D and Taylor K . conducted another significant research, which brings out the importance of interleaving. They give an example of participants who perform different skills at equal number of times, but in a different order of performance where, the individual who performs the tasks in a spaced order does well than the other who does the task in a massed or concentrated approach (Rohrer and Taylor, 2007). This brings out the spacing effect, where the interleaved practice done on a task ensures better performance of the task given, consequently to studies. However, interleaving has a shortcoming in that; whoever uses it must know how to relate the performances (Rohrer and Taylor, 2007). Another research presented by Rohrer et al (2005) presents the method of over learning where learners repeat their study over an issue for a number of times. This process involves studying one session repeatedly in order to retain it in mind. According to the research, over learning leads to greater recall that when learners study at a lesser degree (Rohrer et al, 2005). They talk about participants who undertake a trial with the same list of words, which they had to study and be tested, where there were those taking the controlled learning and those over learning. The test came after one day and again after twenty-eight days. The trial revealed that the other learners recalled most of the words than the controlled learners (Rohrer, et al, 2005). This example shows that over learning can make a good method of study because learners will recall everything they study. Seabrook et al (2005) also presents their research finding on the effect of distributed and massed practice on learning. The group argues that condensed session makes it difficult for students to understand and retain what they have learned. The research talks of conceptual understanding of topics as compared to course lengths. If learners understand the concept in a topic, they can perform better in any test (Seabrook et al, 2005). The researchers brought out the main methods of studying, which can be applied; the first one is the testing method, which, however, acts as an assessment tool for learners, but is an important method of studying. It helps learners to prepare adequately for the exam, a practice that makes them retain the knowledge in them. The main aim of studying by learners is to understand, and be able to retain the knowledge to help them in their lives, and enable them to tackle exams in their course of studies. The second method is the spacing effect where the learners receive lecture sessions at different periods (Seabrook et al, 2005). This method helps learners to understand the concepts in a topic, and this helps them to perform well. Conclusion The above research findings bring out the various methods on how to study as the cognitive psychologists found in their research. They all bring out viable methods, which can help learners to study and understand any topic or concept, although some of them are more applicable than others. The other method is over learning which has a noticeable impact on learners. The research points that over learning can be a good method of studying because the experiment conducted brought it out as one of the methods that can help a learner to recall most of the things taught (Rohrer et al, 2005). However, all the methods brought out in the research help in studying; the testing method is the best method that can help people to study. This method does not have many shortcomings as compared to the others. The research has shown the advantage of the method over the others. Experiments done show that, those learners who sat for a test after a period performed better than those who restudied what they had learned, without a test. The method is the best because it meets the aim of studies by learners; to acquire knowledge and retain it for use in future be it in life or exams. References Roediger and Karpicke, (2006). Test-enhanced learning: Taking memory tests improves long-term retention. Psychological Science, 17, 249-255. Rohrer and Pashler, (2010). Recent research on human learning challenges conventional instructional strategies. Educational Researcher, 39, 406-412. Rohrer and Taylor, (2007). The shuffling of mathematics practice problems boosts learning. Instructional Science, 35, 481-498. Rohrer, D, et al, (2005). The effect of over learning on long-term retention. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 19, 361-374. Seabrook, R, et al (2005). Distributed and massed practice: From the laboratory to classroom. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 19, 107-122. Read More