Learning Strategies

Digging in and wrestling with the material is crucial to gaining a deep understanding of the material and retaining it in your long-term memory.

Research shows that we gain a deeper understanding of what we've learned when we explain it to someone else. After learning a certain concept and before going to the next lecture, try summarizing the concept in your head. Imagine that you’re trying to explain it to someone…or better yet go and actually explain it to someone! You can do this in person, on a video call with a friend, or you can share your insights with your fellow learners right in the classroom!

Try out these strategies to improve your understanding and your retention of newly learned material:

Ask yourself follow-up questions about the material. Here's an example: "If I changed X in the example, would the code still work? How would it change?"

Connect the new information to something you already know. In which ways are the two similar? How are they different?
Draw out the information in a visual form. Share your diagrams, visual models, or flowcharts.

These strategies will help you gain a deeper understanding of the material, help your classmates learn the material, and have a lot of fun while learning!

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