A Book Review called “Make it Stick The Science of Successful Learning” by Peter C Brown, Henry L Roediger, and Mark A. McDaniel

This blog is a review of a book called “Make it Stick The Science of Successful Learning” by Peter C Brown, Henry L Roediger, and Mark A. McDaniel.  Learning is a key component of any successful career.  Above all learning is a skill and it is that simple. It does not matter if a person is starting out, doing a career change, or advancing their career, we are always learning. So being a proficient learner is an asset as it will allow us to steer and move our careers and lives in a direction that we intended to. In essence, being a good learner will give us freedom because we will have the confidence to absorb and deal with new material as opposed to being anxious about it, which can hurt our careers and lives.

As pointed out, learning is a skill. To be able to take in information, understand it, and apply it is a good quality. Unfortunately, many of us have not been taught how to develop this talent. And it is because of this that frustration in learning can lead to limited career choices. We all have so much more potential the key is learning to learn.

And it is because of this I am addressing how to develop this skill. I have written another blog about the same topic, and it is another book review  “A Mind for Numbers” https://www.thecareerguy.ca/blog/a-book-review-of-a-mind-for-numbers-written-by-barbara-oakley which is filled with strategies on how to develop our skill as a learner.

In this particular blog, I will provide examples from the book “Make it Stick” and how they relate to some of my guests’ experiences on my podcast regarding learning. And I will also add some of my familiarities based on my years (31) of working at a university. For easy reference, I have broken this blog into the following categories: pushing boundaries, dabbling, practical testing, mindset, technology, and a conclusion.

In Tyler Foley’s interview  https://www.thecareerguy.ca/episodes/being-on-stage, his suggestion is not to be afraid to dabble. It is true that the more we try things and different things we can learn to relate patterns to each other. Also, trying new things and or different things will push our comfort level as well. Two things can be derived from this; one pushing ourselves and the other is dabbling in something.

Pushing boundaries

Pushing ourselves physically will make us stronger physically. The same analogy can be used for mental strength as well. The caveat that a lot of us encounter is frustration especially when we do not understand a concept right away and this can be particular to math and sciences.  Frustration is normal as Chandler Cook explains in his interview https://www.thecareerguy.ca/episodes/working-and-living-in-silicon-valley-part-1. When he was doing his undergrad and master’s in engineering, he claims that sometimes it was best to walk away and let the ideas simmer.

 A suggestion then is to work for a short period of time and walk away. Two things will materialize with this concept. One, when we divorce ourselves from what we are doing we are relaxed our brain works differently, however, the ideas are still simmering. And this is where we get those breakthroughs. The other is when we go back to the material at a later date, we may have a different perspective which can help as well. In essence, taking a break can give us those “Aha “moments but also can give us a new point of view.

Also, by walking away and returning later, we have to review the material, forcing us to solidify it more so. Too many of us walk away too fast thinking that we know or understand the material but we do not. We cannot rush learning it takes time and by taking our time it becomes more of a natural process, which is why it is suggested to break up studying time into smaller segments.  This is the opposite of cramming which does not work.

Dabbling

Concerning dabbling, I would like to relate my experience working at the University of Calgary in Geoscience for 31 years, where I managed and operated a prep lab. Over the years, I expanded the lab’s portfolio outside of geology in serving engineers and other sciences. This enabled me to learn more about other disciplines which became a real asset in my development in operating the lab. In addition, during my endeavor at the U of C, I completed two degrees, attended public lectures, and joined other clubs. I also made use of the library as I read a lot. In all, I would not be the person doing what I am doing if I was not willing to open up and try new things. So dabbling is vital and it can help a person grow. More importantly, dabbling enables us to relate knowledge to other areas. Finding commonalities between topics will help us relate concepts, which is a good tool for helping us learn new material.

Practical Testing

We have to learn to be honest with ourselves and admit whether we understand something and this comes from testing ourselves. There are two ways we can test ourselves. One way is to explain the concepts or material to someone else so they can understand it well.  The other is to be able to apply the concepts that we are learning to practical applications. Both of these can be hard but testing ourselves allows us to realize if we understand something.

Ron Salahub is a good example of this. In his interview https://www.thecareerguy.ca/episodes/mechanic-mechanics-and-more-mechanics he explains how after 40 years of working as a mechanic, working in the oil fields and as a heavy-duty mechanic he has seen compromises in safety leading to accidents. In taking courses in health and safety for his personal reasons he was able to apply these skills with his experiences from being a mechanic to a career in occupational health and safety which he does now.

 How we can transfer our skills can demonstrate whether we understand the material. More importantly being able to apply our knowledge to practical applications demonstrates our understanding. Ron is a good example of both as he is a very hands-on person.   

Mind Set

Mindset is another key component that the book points out. Rome was not built in a day. Neither is our learning, it is a continuous journey. The idea that we read something, attend a lecture or even view something online and understand a concept is misleading. It does take time and effort to fully understand something. And we will make mistakes along the way in developing our knowledge of something, the key is to learn from them. As mentioned, to have the humility to test ourselves by explaining concepts we have learned to others or to see how we can apply them to other aspects of our lives is truly learning. Paul McNeil is an excellent example of this as the talks about how he overcame all the obstacles as he took his career from engineering to becoming a paleontologist https://www.thecareerguy.ca/episodes/a-passion-for-dinosaurs-working-as-a-paleontologist.

Technology

Technology has encompassed every industry and it is ever-changing itself and how business functions as well. It is imperative then to develop the skill of learning more so as the impact of technology has had and will continue to do so on us and society. What I have covered in this blog can be applied in dealing with technology.  

It is important to dabble with it and try new things; there are patterns in how technology works, and the ability to see this can help. The most effective way to test ourselves is the ability to use it. Stay away from pretending that we know how to use it, as it can, and will catch up to us as my interview with Alistair Bentley https://www.thecareerguy.ca/episodes/what-a-person-can-do-with-a-math-degree, suggests.  Develop the mindset of how this works and how can I use this to enable me to do my job better. With that do not be afraid to take courses or ask people around you.

Conclusion

I would recommend this book, it is a simple and easy read with many examples. The examples from the book itself tend to repeat themselves, this is to drive the concepts home. Overall if there was one key take away it would be small steps. Learning is done incrementally it is a growing process. The key is to be curious, to learn something out of pure interest, not for the end results, and to be honest with ourselves. Above all, learning should be fun as it is exploring which is creating. Thanks for reading and I hope that this blog has helped.