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Back to Learning How to Learn: Powerful mental tools to help you master tough subjects

Learner Reviews & Feedback for Learning How to Learn: Powerful mental tools to help you master tough subjects by Deep Teaching Solutions

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88,662 ratings

About the Course

This course gives you easy access to the invaluable learning techniques used by experts in art, music, literature, math, science, sports, and many other disciplines. We’ll learn about how the brain uses two very different learning modes and how it encapsulates (“chunks”) information. We’ll also cover illusions of learning, memory techniques, dealing with procrastination, and best practices shown by research to be most effective in helping you master tough subjects. Using these approaches, no matter what your skill levels in topics you would like to master, you can change your thinking and change your life. If you’re already an expert, this peep under the mental hood will give you ideas for turbocharging successful learning, including counter-intuitive test-taking tips and insights that will help you make the best use of your time on homework and problem sets. If you’re struggling, you’ll see a structured treasure trove of practical techniques that walk you through what you need to do to get on track. If you’ve ever wanted to become better at anything, this course will help serve as your guide. This course can be taken independent of, concurrent with, or prior to, its companion course, Mindshift. (Learning How to Learn is more learning-focused, and Mindshift is more career-focused.) A related course by the same instructors is Uncommon Sense Teaching. To join the fully translated Portuguese version of the course, visit: https://www.coursera.org/learn/aprender To join the fully translated Spanish version of the course, visit: https://www.coursera.org/learn/aprendiendo-a-aprender To join the fully translated Chinese version of the course, visit: https://www.coursera.org/learn/ruhe-xuexi To join the fully translated French version of the course, visit : http://www.coursera.org/learn/apprendre-comment-apprendre...

Top reviews

JS

Aug 13, 2017

I really appreciate the time these guys invested in this course and am willing to take it again if they re-explain some topics in order to refresh some things that with time haven't stayed in my mind.

RS

Dec 31, 2021

This class really focused on the process of learning. It taught me so much. I even shared ideas with my college and high school student. They were surprised as some concepts were helpful to them also.

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651 - 675 of 10,000 Reviews for Learning How to Learn: Powerful mental tools to help you master tough subjects

By J

Jun 26, 2020

Hello Instructors,

This course was wonderful. It has been a long time since I attended school or any kind of formal education. This course taught me things that I never learned in school but, wish I had. Important topics included how the brain functions when learning, why we procrastinate and how to prevent it, as well as the importance of recalling material through spaced repetition and deliberate practice. As someone who wants to continue learning and assist my family with learning this course introduced ideas that I will use daily and pass on to my children. Thank you so much for taking the time to produce this course.

Best wishes, Joe P.

By Ramachandran C

Apr 12, 2020

I really enjoyed taking this course. The course content was very engaging. Dr. Oakley's delivery was very lively and kept me thoroughly interested in the lectures. I also learned a lot from the optional interviews, particularly the ones related to language learning, memory, and the humanities. I am confident that I will be able to apply the lessons in this course not just for learning better but also for leading a more productive life in general. This course has taught me how I can adopt a learning attitude in anything I do and engage more fruitfully with whatever I do. I am sure I will keep revisiting portions of this course in the future.

By Luiz C

Feb 11, 2019

The course allowed me a great reflection on how I have been learning what I want to learn. Such reflection, accompanied by new studies on the functioning of the brain, has made me change my study habits, for example, in language studies (English and French) and music, facilitating better memorization and understanding of languages. You, Dr Barbara and Dr Terence, are to be congratulated for the excellent didactics and simplicity in teaching a very complex subject, for the selected texts and the interviews that stimulated me a lot in the conduct of my daily life. Congratulations to the Coursera team for having provided this course. Thankful!

By Ely B

Oct 3, 2018

My middle-aged eyes have been opened, thank you. I have often thought myself academically inadequate by having failed most of my school life, particularly panicking on tests, but this course has shown me, as well as the concept of Divergent Thinking, that I simply never had the tools to use my brain and body more effectively. These techniques and the knowledge should be taught to children and up, not later in life (I am aiming this at schools in general). At one point during this course I cried, because I was made to feel not a failure, but a person with the potential and ability to succeed if I simply change my attitude. Thank you so much.

By Sam M

Mar 23, 2020

In my little experience of MOOCs, one of the best I've come across.

The great things about this course is that it unlocks 'keys' that will help you in learning any topics and in life in general.

I think that's one more reason why it ranks among the best.

The use of videos, reading materials and other activities is well 'balanced'.

There is also a great use of metaphors and illustrations. Emphasis is on making things simple and accessible, without 'dumbing down'.

I'd recommend this course to anyone.

I have actually recommended the Spanish and French version to 2 people close to me; as it will be accessible to them in a language they understand.

By Deleted A

Aug 17, 2015

As someone who has only ever know subpar public schooling, poor parental involvement during formative years, and the old cram, regurgitate, repeat, study strategy, I cannot stress the amount of change in my educational paradigm that has blossomed forth because of this course. Learning everything I should have known all along including study habits, tips for procrastination, and learning how my own mind works are only a few of the tools that I will use for the rest of my life. I preach the Coursera word whenever I get the chance evangelizing anyone who will listen, and have nothing but appreciation for the entire Learning How to Learn team.

By JOHN R

Sep 11, 2023

In all of its good intention to have a person retain and give you ways to learn as effectively (can be efficiently) as it can be while not putting a lot of work, there's still some hiccups. The quizzes are not really that hard since it is multiple choice ( so the flashcard method isn't really use to its full potential in my opinion) but I know that this course is intended for a busy person (is sometimes isn't me) to take upon. With that one problem that I saw out of the way, I think all of the topics, deep insight on how brain interacts with information and some wacky relation to zombies and other stuffs makes the course fun and engaging.

By Mark A

Apr 9, 2018

What a truly wonderful course about learning. Barbara and the rest of the presenters are fantastic. The course gathers together some of the most knowledgeable minds in the world to help explain how to improve the way you learn. The course is backed up by scientific studies and exudes quality in every way. I've learnt more about learning how to learn in this short course than i have in my entire life to date, if only this had been taught during my early education. I am already work out how I can teach the concepts and techniques to my young children so they will have these amazing skills when they start their education. Thank you so much.

By Kateryna D

Jul 9, 2017

The best course ever! Really helpful and easy to understand. I highly recommend it for all people who want to understand how their brain works and how to make their study efforts more efficient. The course is also really useful not only for studying but in career - here is a lot of tips&tricks which help in everyday life and work.

To my mind the best is not only to take this course but also read books by Barbara Oakley and watch the second course Mindshift on Coursera. Part of material would be the same but that is even for good - you constantly repeat the most important parts of knowledge and at the same time get a lot of extra material.

By Javier C C

Oct 23, 2016

This is a great course for everyone, I am a 28 year old Industrial and Systems Engineer about to start an MBA program in one of the most recognized Universities in Europe, and I am sure the tips and tricks taught in this course by Barbara and Terry will be of great help for this new endevour and the rest of my life without a doubt. I recommend this course to anyone who wants to keep learning anything the rest of their lives! This should be the very first thing teachers teach in school! I´ve been learning wrong all of my life. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and keep up the good work! Best Regards. JCC

By Akshay J

Dec 29, 2021

Everybody told me that study hard, always keep trying and always try to learn new things but no one told me that how I can learn effectively. This course helps me alot to understand that learning is not so much hard if you try some mental hacking tricks and some daily ethics which we should follow. If you want to be successful in your life then you need to have a genius and great mentor like this course mentors. Both are very intelligent and they they know our problems even if we are not interacting with them. So dont think so much, take this course because learning how to learn is the best lesson you will ever learn. Happy Learning....

By Himanshu S

Sep 19, 2020

Hello Readers,

This is really a Master Class Piece ...."A work with great precision and perfectly executed. This is so much insightful that i recommend this for all, specially the people who wants to know enjoy learning.

I really want to thanks each and everyone, who is associated in making this, from the bottom of my heart for being there, with small words i can say that "YOU CANNOT EVEN IMAGINE UNLESS YOU ACTUALLY ENJOY THE PROCESS GIVEN IN THE COURSE AND ONCE YOU DEVELOP THE HABIT OF ENJOYING THE PROCESS, THERE WILL NOT BE ANY PRODUCT OR SUBJECT YOU CANNOT MASTER ........HAPPY LEARNING !

Thankyou once again !!!

Always Grateful / Himanshu

By Mohd S A S S

Sep 29, 2019

It is a good course. Highly recommended for High-school and college students for sure. However, you can take the course at any point in your life and benefit from the learning tips and insights. I had known some of the techniques before through other books and resources I had read in my school years, but it was nice to find all the information packaged so neatly and consume it in an organized fashion. It helps to remember the materials and apply it. And ofcourse there were many more new insights and sources of inspiration from the course. This is knowledge that you can then pass on to your family, friends and colleagues. Happy learning!

By Nikolay K

Apr 14, 2016

Thank you Terrence and Barbara! Your course was so enjoyable that I passed it in less than 3 days. That's how good it is.

As the English say: "The more you study, the more you know. The more you know, the more you forget. The more you forget, the less you know. So why study?"

Your course helpes to overcome this vicious practice by using focused & diffused thinking, chunking, mnemonics, tests technique. I'll use them for passing Google AdWords exam.

I am convinced that real democracy starts when you start to learn and apply your knowledge into practice for the sake of future generations. Thanks for all!

Nikolay Kochnev, from Russia with love

By Iwan K

Feb 15, 2021

Thank you very much to the Coursera for giving me the opportunity to study in the How to learn learning course. I am very excited and grateful to be able to take this course because it can support my career and provide a lot of experience for me, especially regarding how to learn properly and correctly. I really appreciate the tutors who have provided their knowledge, this course is extraordinary for me because the material presented is very relevant and easy to understand, not only for students but non-students can learn this specialty because learning applies to everyone and everything can be found only study in this course thank you

By Sharry L A

Nov 3, 2020

I recommend this course 100%! As learners, we think our personal learning ways are satisfactorily effective for us. But upon taking this course, it opened my mind to how our brain actually works and how we can actually override cues by being aware of what's happening back in our brains. It made me realize that yes I have lots of things to work on with the way I learn. Some of the topics that really made a mark on me are the methods to prevent procrastination, test-taking tips, modes of learning, and how these things can be applied in my day-to-day learning. :) I'm positively looking forward to be able to apply this in my everyday life.

By Laura C

Feb 13, 2020

This course makes me opened my mind about how we really learn and make me realize how wrong I was about the techniques I was using to study, that only helped my at the moment for the exam but not to understand and remember in a long term way. I thank you because not only you helped us with teaching how we learn but also you taught us tips that will help us in daily life like how to manage stress, how to avoid procrastination (so difficult now a days) and how our thoughts can helps us in our learning.

Thanks to the teachers for teaching us your knowledge and also to make us believe in ourselves that we can achieve everything that we want

By Pilakyaa K

Jun 20, 2023

This course has been so interactive, educative, enlightening, timely and impactful to me. I thank Prof. Barbara Oakley and Prof. Terry Sejnowski for taking the time to put this amazing coursework together and making it available to the global crowd as it is today.

My special appreciation also goes to Coursera for providing the platform from which I got access to this course material. I want to particularly say a Big THANK YOU to Coursera for the financial aid that enabled me to take and complete this course with a certificate.

I have recommended this course to close friends to whom I thought this course might be of great help.

Thank you.

By Risa T

Jul 23, 2020

I am at the stage where I have to take many exams that will determine my career for the future, and that will enable me to be where I want to be. I am so grateful for finding this course just in time. It has helped me learn so much about learning. I have never learned about so many learning tips in my life, and I am sure that these tips that the course offers will change my life forever, and will hopefully help me fulfill my dreams. To tell you the truth, I am already seeing a huge improvement in my understanding of the subjects I'm taking and I was able to do my tests well. With all honesty, I highly recommend this course. Thank you.

By Guillaume C

Jun 7, 2020

I have just finished the Massive Open Online Course entitled “Learning How to Learn: Powerful mental tools to help you master tough subjects”. I think this course is the quintessence of a good course: it is interesting, well-illustrated, and transmits with passion by Barbara Oakley and Terry Sejnowski.

I truly recommend it to everyone as this subject concerns everybody. It really is an eye-opening course. I think I will go back to it in the future as some of the concepts I learned are really relevant for me (the Pomodoro, the Impostor Syndrome, the Hard start – Jump to easy technic, the concentration on process rather than product …).

By neha

Jan 19, 2017

This is a fantastic course. It really helped my understand how we learn and how to become a better learner. It combines facts about the brain with our daily life which makes the information not only interesting but also highly relevant . Questions at the end of the videos are a great tool to make sure you were actually paying attention. during the video.

Barbara Oakley is a splendid coach and made this course a memorable experience for me and Terry Sejnowski helped me understand science simply without over simplifying it. :)

Kudos to the entire team of Learning How To Learn !

Cheers!

p.s. Thank you Coursera for offering such courses. :)

By Barbara L

May 15, 2020

Initially I started taking this course to keep my mind stimulated during the COVID-19 stay at home order. Soon I realized how valuable it was for not only any future courses I take, but also for training and learning new things at home and in my job. Or learning old things better! This course is very relatable. It was enlightening; it helped me discovery some of my own weaknesses and potential ways to correct and strengthen. I intend to recommend it to friends and family with school-age children. I believe if a parent understood this information, they could better relate and assist their children. Loved it!

Thank you very much!

By Valeria T

Jan 25, 2020

This was my first Coursera course and it has been absolutely brilliant! Thanks Dr Barbara Oakley for putting this together because you have outlined so many practical tips for optimizing learning. On top of that, I really appreciated the interviews you did with different people on the subject - sharing their personal experiences in learning. You even addressed many of the challenges people normally face and demystified it all - Einstellung and Imposter Syndrome for example. You delved into a essential topic and made it so accessible - an indispensable start to learning anything else! I wish I knew all this when I was at school!

By Holly

Jan 28, 2016

This course is the foundation to success in all you do! I can't praise these instructors enough for the time they spent in laying out the groundwork so clearly and efficiently. For those of us with ADHD, it's a life changing discovery of skills. Years of feeling like our brain is "broken" and doesn't function like others that are "normal" can be embarrassing and defeating to say the least. For those of you that want to simply improve your study habits and retain more, deeply... this is the course for you. Simple, effective and practical... This course was a delight! I highly recommend it, no matter your IQ, skill level or profession.

By cjpembo

Sep 16, 2015

I was a first-generation college student back in 1990. I was intelligent, hard working, and had excellent grades in high school. But I was totally lost in college. I didn't know how to spend my time efficiently to maximize my learning potential. My method was to just carve out a block of time at night to sit down and brute force my way through engineering homework. That was the hard way to do it... this course will introduce the correct way to tackle tough courses.

The subject material is not difficult at all; putting it all into practice may take some un-learning and effort, but you will certainly see benefits in the long run.