Effective ways of learning

As members of WA community, we are learning new things on a daily basis. Nowadays, learning is not only about reading and listening; learning is happening in a variety of ways, and every person can choose the most effective ways of learning.

In pedagogy, there are 7 most popular ways of learning, and they are divided into 2 groups: passive learning and active learning.

The following 4 learning methods belong to passive learning:

• Listening to lectures – learners can recall 5% of the information;
• Reading – very important and popular method of learning, and learners retain 10% of knowledge;
• Watching video recording – the method gains popularity and it helps to retain 20% of the knowledge;
• Practical demos show how to do something, they help to remember significantly more than in the above mentioned methods – up to 30% of the information.

Another group of learning methods is called active learning, and it is more efficient than passive learning. This is why passive learning methods should be enhanced by active learning. The implementation of active learning is more demanding, but the end result is always better:

• Group discussions help to retain up to 50% of the information;
• Real life experience helps to learn fast and develop professional competencies – learners can retain 75% of knowledge;
• Teaching others things you have experienced in real life helps to retain 90% of knowledge; it is the most effective way of learning.

I just want to point out that there is no a single learning method which works effectively for all people. Each person is different and learns different things in different ways. And to make our learning more effective and successful, it is good to know what are the methods which match to our personal learning preferences.