Book SummaryLearning How to Learn, by Barbara Oakley and Terrence Sejnowski

1-Page Summary1-Page Book Summary of Learning How to Learn

According to Barbara Oakley, anyone can master any subject by applying good study techniques. You don’t have to be gifted or have natural abilities in a particular subject to excel at it. All you have to do is apply the study techniques that we’ll present in this guide.

Oakley attests to this based on personal experience. From childhood through her career in the US Army, she struggled with technical subjects. However, recognizing the benefits of technical competence, she set out to overcome her technophobia and eventually earned a doctorate in systems engineering.

In Learning How to Learn, she teamed up with Dr. Terrence Sejnowski to dig into the neuroscience behind how you learn and relate it to practical study techniques. In this guide, we’ve extracted their key...

Learning How to Learn Summary Strengthen Your Learning by Strengthening Your Synapses

Oakley and Sejnowski suggest a number of learning strategies and tips that take advantage of the way information is stored in your brain.

As you think, brain cells called neurons make connections with each other, creating a neural pattern or pathway that represents the information in your brain. The connections between the neurons that make up this pathway are called synapses. The more synapses a certain idea produces in your brain, the better you’ll learn it, because it’s connected to more different neurons, giving your brain more neural pathways it can use to retrieve it. In this section, we’ll explore the authors’ tips for using the process of synapse formation to maximize your learning.

Embrace a Multisensory Learning Style

Oakley and Sejnowski’s first tip for improving your learning by building more connections is to embrace multisensory learning because the more senses you engage in learning something, the better you’ll learn it. Depending on your preferred learning style, you might learn something better if it's presented visually, rather than verbally, or vice versa. But **regardless of your learning style, you’ll learn it even better if you see it and hear...

Learning How to Learn Summary Stimulate Learning by Stimulating Neuron Growth

We’ve discussed some techniques for connecting information to build stronger synapse chains in your brain. Oakley and Sejnowski also discuss how you can strengthen these synapse chains by stimulating growth in parts of your neurons.

To understand how these techniques improve your learning, you have to understand the anatomy of a neuron. The authors explain that every neuron has one arm called an “axon” and multiple arms called “dendrites.” The dendrites are covered with tiny dendritic spines. The axon of one neuron will transmit electrical signals to be picked up by the dendritic spines of other nearby neurons. The gap between the axon (sender) and the dendritic spines (receivers) that the signal jumps across is the synapse. The more spines there are on a dendrite of a receiving neuron and the closer they are to an axon sending a signal, the stronger the synapse. And, as we’ve said, stronger synapses make it easier to recall the information that they contain.

Myelin Also Helps Synapse Strength

In Make it Stick, Henry...

Learning How to Learn Summary Manipulate Your Modes of Thinking to Maximize Your Learning

Oakley and Sejnowski also offer a number of tips for enhancing your learning that are based on your brain’s ability to alternate between different modes of thinking. They assert that your brain operates in two separate modes, each of which contributes to learning and problem solving in different ways. They call these two modes “focused thinking” and “diffuse thinking.”

The authors explain that focused thinking happens when you focus on something, such as a specific problem you’re trying to solve. In this mode, your brain activity gets concentrated in a particular network of neurons (which network depends on what you’re focusing on). Focused thinking can process information in detail, but it limits the scope of your thoughts to ideas that are already connected to that particular network.

They then explain that diffuse thinking happens when you let your mind wander, not focusing on anything in particular. In this mode, your brain activity is delocalized—it’s not concentrated in any particular network of neurons. Diffuse thinking doesn’t process information in detail, but it can link ideas from diverse parts of your brain to generate creative solutions or help you see the...

Learning How to Learn Summary Make Efficient Use of Your Memory

Finally, let’s discuss some tips that are based on making the best use of your brain’s memory. Oakley and Sejnowski note that your brain has two different types of memory: working memory and long-term memory.

Your working memory resides in your prefrontal cortex (the part of your brain just behind your eyes). It holds whatever you’re actively thinking about at the moment, and tends to drop any neural connections that go unused for more than about ten seconds. On average, it can only hold about four ideas (or active chains of synapses) at once.

(Shortform note: Different studies have come up with different numbers for how many ideas your working memory can hold at once. In the 1950s, researchers thought working memory could hold about seven ideas, but by the early 2000s, studies indicated it could hold only about four. Today, there is still little agreement...

Shortform Exercise: Alternate Between Focused and Diffuse Thinking

Oakley and Sejnowski say that alternating between focused and diffuse thinking is important for stimulating creativity and problem-solving. In this exercise, you’ll optimize your schedule to promote alternating between modes of thinking.

Of the things on your to-do list this week, which ones will require intensive focus? (For example, doing your taxes.)