Do you relate to the nutty professor pr ofessor?? There are many differences of opinion when it comes to cognitive styles. Some researchers researchers support the notion of holistic and analytic learners. We sometimes refer to holistic learners as the student studen t type who is deep and contemplative. contemplat ive. This type of student - the smart over-achiever who sometimes comes across as scatterbrai scatterbrained ned and disorganized can sometim some times es become annoyed an noyed by his or her own brain. Holistic Holisti c brains like to take their time learning—they learning—th ey like to dwell on information and an d make constant mental menta l comparisons when they encounter new material. They like to compare new concepts to concepts they already know even as they read using mental pictures similes or analogies. !ecause of the constant "thinking about thinking" holistic brain types seem to be frustratingly slow when it comes to answering #uestions. #ue stions. This Thi s is the trait that makes students stu dents reluctant reluct ant to raise their hands in class. !ut holistic learners shouldn$t get too frustrated by the seemingly slow process of learning. This type of learner is particularly good at evaluating and breaking down information. This is so important when conducing research re search and writing wri ting technical techn ical papers like l ike the process essay. essay. %nce you decide you are a holistic learner you can use your strengths to improve your study skills. !y zeroing in on your strengths you can get more out of study time.
Are You a Holistic or Global Learner? & holistic 'big picture( person likes to start with a big idea or concept then go on to study and understand the parts. As a global learner, lea rner, you may be more likely to t o respond to a problem with wi th emotion first, firs t, instead of logic.
•
You Y ou can accept accept an algebra equation without without understanding understanding how how it works.
•
You Y ou may be late for for school a lot lot because you think about about everything. everything. And you think think while you you do
•
everything. You Y ou tend to remember remember faces, faces, but forget forget names. You You may act on impulse. impulse. You You might be just just fine
•
about playing music musi c while you study. (Some students cant concentrate while music plays.! plays. ! You Y ou might not not raise your hand hand much to answer answer questions, questions, because because it takes you you awhile to sort sort out your
•
answer. "hen you eventually do come up with an answer, it is much more thorough than the quick answer you
•
heard five minutes ago. You Y ou are likely likely to read read and read and become frustrated, frustrated, and and then suddenly suddenly #get it.$
•
Problems Some holistic learners tend to glaze over material to pursue the big idea. That can be costly costly.. %ften those small details show up on tests) Holistic or global learners can spend so much time thinking they react too late.
Holistic Style Study Tips & holistic learner may benefit from the following.
Pay attention to outlines. %f your teacher offers an outline at the beginning of a new term, always copy it down. &utlines will help you establish a framework for 'storing' new information. •
Make your own outline. his is a good way to remember important details youd otherwise miss. he visual
•
tool helps your brain organi)e more quickly.
Don’t skip introduction or summary. You will benefit from reading these before you read the actual book. Again, it is important for holistic learners to establish a framework early for storing and applying concepts. •
Look for boundaries. *olistic learners may have trouble discerning where one concept or event ends and another begins. %t might be helpful for you to establish concrete beginning and ending points. •
Ask for examples. Your brain likes to make comparisons, so the more e+amples, the better. "rite down the
•
e+amples, but label them as e+amples so youre not confused later. (Your notes tend to be disorgani)ed.!
Use imaes. se pictures and charts if they are offered. "hen reading a long passage or e+planation,
•
make your own charts and pictures.
Draw timelines. his is another way of creating boundaries. Your brain likes them.
•
Look at sample assinments. Your brain likes to use e+amples as a frame of reference. "ithout them, it-s sometimes hard for you to know where to start. •
Make drawins of concepts. he more you can sketch out and characteri)e concepts, the better. sing political parties as an e+ample, you could draw circles and label them. hen, fill in subcircles of beliefs and established ideologies. •
Make summaries as you proress. here is a difference between passive and active reading. You need to become an active reader to remember your material. &ne tactic is to stop after each segment to write a brief summary. •
Use a time!keeper tool. *olistic learners can get carried away thinking of possibiliti es and lose track of time.
•
A"oid thinkin of all the possibilities. *olistic learners like to make comparisons and find relationships. /on-t get distracted from the task at hand. •
Hey , In the last emails, I showed you how Nayamot went from failing to acing and how RJ, a self-professed "C student in college" dominated his professional designation exam. In this email, Im going to share !eepalis dramatic stor y of how she mastered two years worth of ma terial in two months, while scoring in the .# percentile for a national engineering entrance exam. --!eepali wrote me after $oining my rapid-learning course in January% "&ntil January, I struggled with confidence and focus due to some academic losses last year. 'y finals were in 'arch and it was easy for anyone to (uc)le up under the surmounting pressure to re*ise and master two years worth of wor)load in $ust + months."
!espite this pressure, !eepali managed to get, "a ran) of , out of ./ million0, a feat that seemed near impossi(le to me in January." How did she do it1 2he started (y changing her studying ha(its, learning through connections, instead of (y rote. 3his is often a difficult shift, since learning this wa y is outside of many students comfort 4one. 5s !eepali herself shares, "Id sometimes resort to rote learning in desperation, (ut I strongly prefer we( learning." Rote memori4ation has the appeal of (eing straightforward. 3here is no creati*ity in*ol*ed, so learning is a mechanical tas), e*en if its inefficient. 6earning through connections re7uires insight and creati*e thin)ing. It can (e difficult to stretch your mind to come up with metaphors or associations. 8specially if you*e (een told the only way to learn things is through repetition.
!eepali was a(le to switch her learning style ( y focusing his practicing efforts onto $ust a few techni7ues. "5fter a clear analysis of time and wor) I started on the two most effecti*e techni7ues of the program - 6in)ing and 9egging and 'etaphors." Heres one example of how !eepali used the metaphor tactic to (etter understand inorganic chemistry% "In the rxn of concentrated and dilute nitric acid to oxidi4e metals and compounds, concentrated HN:# was a greedy thug. He released less nascent oxygen, was less reduced, )ept the oxygen to itself and made acidic oxides. !ilute HN:# was mild and charita(le. He ga*e away a lot of nascent oxygen and hence )ept less oxygen for himself, so resulted in (asic oxides. "I )now it sounds stupid. ;ut this way Im going to remem(er this method for years to come, something that I couldnt ha*e done (y simple rote learning."
!eepali uses here a tactic I teach called anthropomorphi4ation for generating metaphors, and it can help you too if you*e (een struggling to use metaphors in your learning. 5nthropomorphi4ation is a fancy name for a simple idea. 3he idea is attri(uting human traits
!eepali concludes with some thoughts to others who ma y (e considering ta)ing the rapid-learning course% "Its a daunting tas) to stand apart from the crowd. 3he program helped me (rush up on my analytical s)ills and also inspired me to dream (ig and dream practically. 3his program isnt $ust a(out excelling in your class, its a(out a way of life which is (ased on our natural instincts of lin)ing, imagination, analy4ing."
!eepalis results are impressi*e. >hile e*ery student who $oins wont (e a(le to score in the top .?@ of their field, e*en a small impro*ement can add up to huge sa*ings in time and stress. An analytic person likes to learn things step-by-step, or seuentially! Sound familiar* +f so look over these characteristics to find out if these traits hit home as well. Then you may want to capitalize on the study recommendations and improve your study skills. Are You a Seuential Learner? An analytic or sequential learner may be more likely to respond to a problem with logic first, instead of
•
emotion. %f youre a sequential learner, you may feel the need to understand each part of an algebra equation.
•
You may be good with time management, and you probably get to school on time.
•
You tend to remember names.
•
Your notes may be divided and labeled. You categori)e things a lot.
•
You plan ahead.
•
Problems
You may get hung up on details when reading. You have to understand something before you move on.
•
You might get frustrated easily with people who dont understand things as quickly as you do.
•
Analytic Style Study Tips ,o you become frustrated when people assert opinions as facts* eople who are very analytic learners might. &nalytic learners like facts and they like learning things in se#uential steps. They are also fortunate because many of their preferred methods are used in traditional teaching. Teachers also enoy giving tests that favor analytic learners like true and false or multiple choice e/ams. Since your learning style is compatible with traditional teaching styles and you enoy order your biggest problem is getting frustrated. &n analytic learner may benefit from the following0
Ask for clear rules. You need clarity. "ithout rules, you might feel lost. Don#t et frustrated by opinions. Some students may offer opinions in class, especially the holistic learners who want to make comparisons0 %t is just their way of understanding, so dont let it bother you. Don#t worry about not finishin a task. You may not want to move on to a new task if something (like a lack of supplies! interferes with your work. ry not to get hung up. Sometimes its okay to move on and revisit a project later. Don#t worry if thins don#t seem loical. "e dont make the rules sometimes. %f you come across a rule that doesnt make sense, dont let it bother you to distraction. $roup your information. Analytic learners are good at categori)ing information. 1o ahead and place your •
•
•
•
•
information into categories. %t will help you recall the information when you need it. %it in the front of the class& to a"oid distractions. %f youre annoyed by rowdy or talkative students in the back •
of the class, try to sit where you wont notice them. Don#t worry about bi concepts riht away!i"e yourself time. %f youre reading a book or chapter and you dont •
seem to be 'getting the message,' give it time. You may need to know all the details first, and then put them together. 'ake thins step!by!step& but don#t et hun up. %f youre doing a math problem with an equation, dont get •
hung up if you dont understand a certain step. ake a leap of faith0 Ask for specific oal. Analytic learners may feel the need to understand the specific goal before they can •
get into a project. 1o ahead and ask for clear goals if you need them. You may want to check out the characteristics of a global learner. You can also discover the characteristics of students who learn best by seeing, hearing, or e+periencing .
Using Holistic Learning Techniques Holistic learning is one of the most effective ways of studying. Read on to understand some of its techniques. 8*er wonder how some students can ta)e an exam after studying *ery little and still score more than those who spend hours studying for the same exam1 5re these indi*iduals extremely intelligent or is it something else1 3he chances are that they are using a different approach to their studies. 3raditional methods li)e learning (y rote are not *ery effecti*e, especially when your child is dealing with a lot of information. In addition, your child might la(our away for hours and still not (e a(le to recall what he has studied. Holistic learning is a different method of studying. 3his method focuses on understanding the information and lin)ing it to other topics, creating a framewor). 3herefore, your child does not ha*e to memorise pages ofinformation. If practised properly, this method is more effecti*e and re7uires less study time. Here are some holistic learning techni7ues to get your child started.
Ask Questions >hen your child first (egins studying a topic, tell him to as) a few 7uestions. Airst, he should determine what exactly he is studying or the name of the topic, to gi*e the session some clarity. 3he next 7uestion is how it relates to the other topics in the same lesson or su($ect. He could create a ladder where each topic is one of the rungs. 3he third 7uestion is how does this relate to other su($ects1 Can he ma)e a connection (etween the topic and an acti*ity in his daily life to ma)e it easier to remem(er1 3hese are $ust a few (asic 7uestions. :nce your child gets the hang of things, he can modify them accordingly. He can e*en add or reduce the n um(er of 7uestions, depending on the topic. 3he point of this techni7ue is to find as many connections as possi(le to that topic. ;y as)ing these 7uestions, your child will (e a(le to gi*e that topic its own uni7ue place in the framewor). Visualise the nformation >hile studying, your child should try to mentally see the information. 3his may seem difficult at first so your child can actually draw what he sees. Bour child is attempting to draw a diagram, which will show the relationships (etween different *aria(les. Aor example, if he is studying the human (ody, he could try drawing the different parts separately and then ma)ing a cyclic diagram lin)ing them together. 3he diagram does not ha*e to (e a fancy wor) of art. 8*en crudely drawn diagrams can (e highly effecti*e as long as your child is a(le to understand the o($ects in the diagram. :nce your child is comforta(le with his diagrammatic s)ills, he will find himself a(le to *isualise and connect the information in his mind itself, (efore he actually draws the diagram. !eel the "ata 2ometimes, not all the data can (e *isualised, li)e a(stract formulae for example. In this case, your child will ha*e to rely on a different sense to guide him. :ne of the methods he can use is his sense of touch. He can imagine himself touching a topic and acti*ely trying to figure it out. Aor example, if he islearning something li)e finding the diameter of a circle, he can imagine himself tracing the e ntire circle with his fingers and then cutting it in half, using parts of the formula. 2imilarly, he can use this techni7ue to deal with historical dates and other pieces of information, which cannot always (e gi*en a mental picture. #reate Random Links :ccasionally, your child may come across information that he cannot relate to or understand, (ut still needs to remember . In such a scenario, your child will ha*e to actually create a lin) to this information. 3his is accomplished (y $oining the necessary information to something that is completely unrelated. 3he point of this exercise is to create a picture that is so outrageous or funny that a connecting lin) is forced (etween the t wo pieces of information. Aor example, he could connect a particular num(er with a dog and connect it so that the dog is pulling a cart with the num(er placed in it. Holistic learning is a techni7ue that wor)s not only during exam time. It is something that must (e incorporated into regular study sessions as well. :nly then will your child truly deri*e the (enefits of this techni7ue.
