Learning how to learn

Learning is something that we enjoy from childhood. Every child grows by learning – how to walk, how to talk, how to connect, how to express yourself, … Curiosity leads us to become a better and better learner.

We start with chunking – collecting and connecting information, peace by peace, into different structures. The more we practice, the more effective at learning we become. To practice more, we need to allow ourselves to make mistakes and learn from them.

When we become a pupil, we start focusing more on the product and not on the process, which makes us tenser and takes away the joy of learning. But learning how to learn will help us recall the true inspiration of being in the process of learning, and by this, optimizes our development.

It would be wonderful if the education system implemented this subject in the program and focused on our ability to learn as a process and skill. Much of our ability to learn effectively will optimize both the progress of each discipline in school and the ability of each student to prepare independently at home. For example, the „Pomodoro technique“ would be great when writing homework - it involves concentration and focus, for 25 minutes, followed by a break and a small reward for the effort. Another useful tool would be knowing that a systematic review of the material is much more effective than long and tiring reading repeatedly.

Something valuable for adolescents and children, and why not for the adults also, is to know that after time spent concentrating and learning - play and physical exercises help the process of absorbing and consolidating information. In this way, they will have fun with a clear conscience and will feel more satisfied. Similarly, learners would rest and sleep with a better understanding of how important this process is for them to be effective the next day. This is because, during sleep, many of the processes condense, toxins are released, and the brain is fresh in the morning.

A precious skill that we can learn by learning how to learn is the ability to use metaphors and analogies. These will not only support memory and build more stable and secure structures in it of new knowledge, but they also develop our imagination and creativity. Creativity brings joy and makes the world colourful and beautiful. That is why building and using metaphors in the learning process is a beneficial process. The analogy can help us transfer a solution from one field of activity to another. There is a real story in which a father engineer manages to find a cure for his son's extremely rare disease by reasoning by analogy. The film is called Lorenzo's Oil and is worth watching.

Many discoverers were either incredibly young or successful in a field other than the one in which they were originally trained. It is pure consciousness and analogous thinking that have played a role in some of the greatest achievements of science and art. That is why learning using metaphors and analogies can help better understand and learn and provide a basis for creativity and innovation.

Irina Kiryakova - Gestalt therapist