Although I have completed more than 100 courses, they haven’t all needed deep concentration or memorization. I am embarrassed by how little I can remember of some of those courses. Some others, though, are still clear in my memory even years later. Why? And how can we improve our recall of what we learned after a course has finished?

A useful strategy is to make sure the knowledge finds its way into your brain to start with. We won’t remember something later if it didn’t even find a place in the memory. The next step is to move the information from your short-term memory into long-term storage for later recall.

Focus

Focus on the material. Think about it as you watch the lecture video or read the text. Pause or replay the video if necessary. Re-read the words. Take notes, preferably by hand rather than by typing. You absorb more by writing as you listen or read. If you find yourself thinking about something else, bring your mind back to the course.

It can help to study a course that engages your interest, although sometimes we are required to learn material that is less than riveting. This may require more effort.

Pomodoro

A Pomodoro can help here. Remember to take away distractions by studying in a quiet room (or with white noise, sound-cancelling headphones, or a ticking Pomodoro). Turn off your phone, or if you are using your phone for your course, turn off email and social media notications so they don’t distract you during your study session.

After focussing, take a break. The Pomodoro Technique teaches us to concentrate fully on the task for 25 minutes, then take a 5-minute break. As Barbara Oakley explains in the Learning How to Learn course, taking breaks helps the brain make connections between newly learned things and prior knowledge by slipping out of the focussed mode and into the diffuse mode of thinking. The break can also be a handy way to reward yourself for finishing another period of learning.

Explain

When you think you understand or remember a concept, explain it in your own words to someone, or your cat, or a mirror, or a teddy bear. You will quickly find out just how well (or how badly) you can remember the material. Keep going back to your notes, or go back to the course material and write better notes, until you can explain it properly. Don’t try to be word-perfect. Using your own words means you have understood the concept without blindly reciting it.

Flash Cards

Flash cards are great for memorizing facts. Names, dates, formulae, or others! They can be time consuming to prepare, but so effective. Make your own or try a flash card app. Read more about why flash cards work here. Although the article is directed at parents helping their children learn, the same principles are at work in adult learning.

Memory techniques

Practice memory techniques such as those used by four-time US memory champion Nelson Dellis and others. Jim Kwik explains the Memory Palace technique which you can use to memorize a textbook.

To keep the material fresh in your brain, revisit it later the same day, then again the next day. Keep returning to it regularly. You can gradually space out the time between revisions. This is called spaced repetition.

If you are trying to learn several subjects, learn each in short sessions in what is called interleaving.

There is a discussion about improving your recall after finishing a course in the Coursera Community at How do you retain your knowledge after completing a course?

A Final Thought

Focus and use memory techniques to learn, then take breaks and reward yourself after a solid study session.

By Pat Bowden, published April 16, 2019.