Barbara Oakley | Learning How to Learn | Talks at Google
1,897,143
Published 2015-02-22
Whether you are a student struggling to fulfill a math or science requirement, or you are embarking on a career change that requires a higher level of math competency, A Mind for Numbers offers the tools you need to get a better grasp of that intimidating but inescapable field. Engineering professor Barbara Oakley knows firsthand how it feels to struggle with math. She flunked her way through high school math and science courses, before enlisting in the army immediately after graduation. When she saw how her lack of mathematical and technical savvy severely limited her options—both to rise in the military and to explore other careers—she returned to school with a newfound determination to re-tool her brain to master the very subjects that had given her so much trouble throughout her entire life.
In A Mind for Numbers, Dr. Oakley lets us in on the secrets to effectively learning math and science—secrets that even dedicated and successful students wish they’d known earlier. Contrary to popular belief, math requires creative, as well as analytical, thinking. Most people think that there’s only one way to do a problem, when in actuality, there are often a number of different solutions—you just need the creativity to see them. For example, there are more than three hundred different known proofs of the Pythagorean Theorem. In short, studying a problem in a laser-focused way until you reach a solution is not an effective way to learn math. Rather, it involves taking the time to step away from a problem and allow the more relaxed and creative part of the brain to take over. A Mind for Numbers shows us that we all have what it takes to excel in math, and learning it is not as painful as some might think!
About the Author:
Barbara Oakley is a professor of engineering at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan. She has received many awards for her teaching, including the coveted National Science Foundation New Century Scholar Award.
Get the book here: goo.gl/rLUHLC
All Comments (21)
-
-
Nice talk really liked it, here is my note, feel free to add if I missed anything 1. Focused mode and diffused mode – thinking – Switching between two modes of thinking - learning current subject makes quicker a. Unable to come up with solutions – go for a walk .. etc 2. Combat Procrastination using Pomodoro technique – focus of time not on “Completion” of task. 3. Sleep – Take good rest – it cleans brain toxins and helps for new leaning connections 4. Exercise – yes Walking in an exercise 5. Practice and Repetition – moves patterns from working memory into long term memory a. Spaced repetitions is much better 6. Attention – and create chunks of information 7. Homework – do it more than once and see if you can play it in your mind? 8. Recall - Recall 9. Passion – Follow your passion but BROADEN your passion
-
She seems to be kind and encouraging teacher, her students must be lucky to have her
-
Learning how to learn should be a foundational subject taught in every school. Incredibly, it's not.
-
13:00 If you don't know something diffuse your brain 14:40 Use your relaxing brain to help you with the focused brain 22:30 Learn, sleep. And use pomodoro 30:30 Just focus 36:30 Chunk concepts 45:50 Do homework straight after the lesson, do quizzes. 54:00 Create some stories in chunks 1:04:00 Interleave, use small chunks of the big picture and connect them
-
Her strategies about how to overcome procrastination LITERALLY CHANGED MY LIFE. Love this woman!
-
Firstly thanks a lot madam for your presentation. Points she focussed as follows: 1. Focused Mode and Diffuse mode learning and how to connect both while learning. 2. Pomodoro technique to improve focus. Where not to focus on pain but on work. Eg. Pain in process of learning is like "target to be completed" Instead of that focus on process. 3. Sleep and exercise plays major role In the process of assimilation of knowledge you are learning. So sleep well, exercise daily and learn and repeat the cycle. 4. It's okay to have poor memory. It's just takes little more time in learning. You will enjoy the flavour which might have missed by speedy minds. 5. Imposter syndrome. It's quite common among us and just be aware of that. 6. Do the homework and just practice as much as you can till you will feel ultra comfortable. 7. The most valuable technique "RECALL" what you read or listened or learned. Which am doing now. 8. Learn judicially with classmates or colleagues which helps a lot. 9. Explain the concept so a 10 year old can understand which is my favourite among all. 10.Last but not least just read her book "A MIND FOR NUMBERS" by BARBARA OAKLEY and Course on learning how to learn which is absolutely free. I will definitely read and complete the course. Once again Thank you mam ❤ for your huge research. I will follow your 👣.
-
She is not only a great teacher but came across as a compassionate human being by also touching on the fears and insecurities we all face and gave solutions for them as well . So thoughtful !
-
One of the most enlightening and interesting talks I have ever watched. I am a dyslexic and this explanation of what goes on when learning is very relevant, dyslexics are top down learners. Thank you Barbara I will watch this more than once.
-
Btw, about procrastination she says that it is an addiction, because it feels good to avoid the initial pain by focusing on more pleasant tasks. But if you constantly avoid what you choose to do it will get very detrimental to your life. So the trick is just to get used to that initial pain, to have a bigger pain tolerance, and just go through it. It lasts for a few minutes, then you can focus on the task. And when you start thinking about everything else, just allow those thoughts to drift away, exactly like when meditating, and return focusing on the task. When there is a lot of chaos in rhe thoughts, it is time to diffuse thinking: it could be going for a run, a walk, or relaxing until a key fall from your hand. But it is important to switch from the focused mode, or you wont get new important link
-
Her positive outlook is really contagious. Her life story is an inspiration.
-
Very thoughtful yet humble presenter, which is a lesson in itself. The Q&A session starting at 51:21 is as valuable as the talk itself.
-
I loved this talk. Also, I watched it while procrastinating a lot of other stuff.
-
SUMMARY: (and link to transcript at the bottom) 1 - Two types of thinking: Focused and Diffused (resting etc). Focused helps when you have experience with a similar problem and can draw an analogy. When you don't, use Diffused (e.g. doing other things with the problem in the background The Pomodoro technique (cycles of working and taking short breaks) allow you to experience both types 2 - Learning can be stimulated by: A. Sleeping (also reinforces learnt info), staying up does the opposite. Therefore breaks are a part of the learning process. B. Being in new environments (e.g. travelling) C. Exercising (even taking a walk) 3 - Brain has limited short-term ("Working") memory, and understanding something requires holding all of its component parts in this working memory. You can store more by tying information together with patterns/connections into chunks ("Chunking") so you can remember 4 chunks each holding a lot of information, not 4 pieces of information. These chunks can then help you learn more information by analogy to new information with similar patterns/connections (improving Focused thinking) 4 - Poor working memory/being a 'Slow thinker' can be an advantage but requires more work to benefit: it is a sign of focusing on more things simultaneously compared to fast thinkers. Allows more notice and understanding of detail, though it takes longer to reach the goal 5 - Practice reinforces information/chunks into long-term memory, ways of practising: A.Testing B Explaining to someone else Transcript: https://singjupost.com/barbara-oakley-learning-how-to-learn-talks-at-google-transcript/?singlepage=1
-
I am glad that someone asked about the speed of reading. I remember being in grade school when we were doing silent reading. I would feel embarased if I was last to finish my reading assignment so i would end up reading faster but cause of it I never grasp what I had read. I wish there was someone to tell me that it did not matter how you learn or how slow or fast but rather that you retained the information.
-
Here is a little trick for Book Readers. When you're reading and get distracted by thoughts don't blame yourself. Attach the source of disturbance to page numbers. They easily take it and usually don't reply back. Great talk by Barbara.
-
maths it's about being relaxed and remembering to learn something new each time. forget about finding the solution. try to understand something new and commit it to memory.
-
This is the best lecture I have heard on YouTube. Thank you to Ms. Oakley. I have had imposter syndrome my entire career and it has set me back. Your presentation was engaging throughout the entire hour, which is difficult.
-
I have read and implemented all these concepts in my life and I was able to study hard topics and get my masters in Data Science , and before that I barely used to get high marks, indeed everyone should watch this video and learn the techniques that teaches you how to learn, Thanks Barbara
-
1:01:48 "Because for a long time there's been this feeling that 'too much practice and repetition in mathematics will kill your creativity' instead of the reality that every great expert has to have practice and repetition.."
