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Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Cramming is indisputable proof of the superficiality of most classrooms in America | Dangerously Irrelevant

Cramming is indisputable proof of the superficiality of most classrooms in America | Dangerously Irrelevant:

Cramming is indisputable proof of the superficiality of most classrooms in America

Cramming
Marion Brady says:
The Procedure: 1. Take notes during lectures, and hi-lite key sentences in the textbook. 2. Before a big test, load the notes and hi-lited passages into short-term memory. 3. Take the test. 4. Flush short-term memory and prepare for its re-use.
The Procedure, of course, is called “cramming.” Do it well and it leads steadily up the academic ladder.
But here’s a question: Does The Procedure have anything do with educating?
Learning – real LEARNING – starts when, for whatever reason, the learner wants it to start. It proceeds if the aim is clear and what’s being learned connects logically and solidly to existing knowledge. It’s strengthened when mistakes are made, clarifying the potential and limitations of the new knowledge. It’s reinforced when it’s put to frequent, immediate, meaningful, real-world use. It becomes permanent when it’s made part of the learner’s organized, consciously known “master” structure of