Promoting Rapid And Sustained Learning Of Novel Information: Towards A New Learning Technique For The Classroom

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In education, we want students to acquire new information quickly and retain that information over long time periods. Unfortunately, student learning rarely conforms to this ideal. We can learn quickly when new information is supported by previously acquired knowledge of the topic. However, when a topic is entirely novel, learning is typically slow and effortful. For example, we might rapidly learn about the structure of neurons ('brain cells') if we have pre-existing knowledge about the structure of other cells in the body. However, that information would take time to learn, and would likely be forgotten rapidly, when not supported by pre-existing knowledge. Cognitive psychology has revealed several post-encoding strategies and techniques to improve long-term retention of novel information. For example, repeated learning spaced out over time (the 'spacing effect'), as well as practicing retrieving the information ('retrieval practice'), have been shown in increase the retention of newly learnt information in the long-term. Ideally, we want to be able to learn new information without the need for pre-existing knowledge, or more effortful post-encoding techniques. We have recently shown that learning can be fast, and sustained over long periods, without the need for pre-existing knowledge, if learnt in a specific manner. This suggests we can learn completely novel information quickly, and retain that information for long time periods, under specific experimental conditions.Using experimental psychology, computational modelling and functional brain imaging, we will provide a theoretical basis for this rapid and sustained learning effect, and reveal the optimal conditions for it to occur. We will then assess whether this rapid, sustained, learning is seen in children to ensure it could be used at all educational levels. Finally, we will assess whether the effect can be used to learn real educational material - for example, the structure of neurons in the brain. By the end of the grant, we will have provided a theoretical basis for how we can learn novel information quickly, and retain that information in the long term. Further, we will have taken critical steps to using this technique in the real-world.