High-powered panel provides insight into science of learning

Contact: James Carskadon

STARKVILLE, Miss.—Leading U.S. researchers in psychology and neuroscience discussed ways to use cutting-edge research to improve learning during a Friday [Sept. 30] symposium at Mississippi State University.

The “Symposium on the Optimization of Learning and Teaching” featured talks from six speakers on ways to study how the mind processes information. The symposium was sponsored by the MSU Psychology Department, College of Arts and Sciences and the MSU Foundation.

“It’s exciting to have all of the science that we know helps student learning together in one place,” MSU Associate Psychology Professor Deb Eakin said. “The first lecture in any of my classes is on how to learn, based on what we know from this science. A lot of my students were in the audience, so it was fun for them to hear the same thing from the actual experts that I refer to when I teach.”

The symposium featured presentations by Robert A. Bjork of the University of California, Los Angeles; David J. Francis of the University of Houston; Mark Guadagnoli of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas; Thad Polk of the University of Michigan; Daniel Schacter of Harvard University; and David E. Sherwood of the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Speakers highlighted their research areas and the trade-offs of different learning styles. For example, Bjork showed how studying in back-to-back blocks (commonly referred to as “cramming”) can lead to lower long-term retention rates among students. Despite research that shows otherwise, many students indicate a preference for cramming material, Bjork said. He also demonstrated that students have a much higher learning retention if they are tested on the material.

Guadagnoli is using similar research as he works to develop a learning program for UNLV’s new medical school. He sought ways to find the “optimal challenge point” for learning a task, which can vary from person to person. If a task is too challenging, Guadagnoli said, the person does not learn from it, which is also the case if it is too easy. He also cautioned that some training techniques only enhance short-term results.

“What was enhancing short-term practice can undermine long-term retention,” Guadagnoli said.

Other speakers focused on how an internal or external focus can affect the brain, the importance of early interventions when learning to read, the impact of mind wandering on information retention and how different types of neural processing change with age.

“The College of Arts and Sciences at MSU is dedicated to improving the human condition through research and a variety of other endeavors,” College of Arts and Sciences Interim Dean Rick Travis said. “This program surely helps us in pursuit of this goal.”

For complete information about the College of Arts and Sciences, visit www.cas.msstate.edu; the psychology department at www.psychology.msstate.edu; and the MSU Foundation at www.msufoundation.com.

MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.