Diana Laufenberg: How to learn from mistakes
如何从错误中学习

难度级别：★★★

燕山大学 刘立军 宋葳 编写

◇INTRODUCTION

Diana Laufenberg shares three surprising things she has learned about teaching, including a key insight about learning from mistakes.

◇BEFORE VIEWING

TASK 1: VOCABULARY PREVIEW

1.transport v. to move sth. somewhere by means of a natural process （以自然方式）运输，输送，传播。例如：
○ The seeds are transported by the wind. 这些种子是由风传播的。
○ Blood transports oxygen around the body. 血把氧气输送到全身。

2. encyclopedia n. a book or set of books giving information about all areas of knowledge or about different areas of one particular subject, usually arranged in alphabetical order; a similar collection of information on a CD-ROM 百科全书；（某一学科的）专科全书；光盘版百科全书

3. tactic n. the particular method you use to achieve sth. 策略；手段；招数。例如：
○ They tried all kinds of tactics to get us to go. 他们施尽所有的招数想让我们去。
○ This was just the latest in a series of delaying tactics. 这只是一系列拖延战术中的一个新花招。
○ The manager discussed tactics with his team. 经理和他手下的一班人讨论了策略问题。
○ Confrontation is not always the best tactic. 对抗并非总是上策。
○ It's time to try a change of tactic. 现在是改弦易辙的时候了。

4. flyer n. a small sheet of paper that advertises a product or an event and is given to a large number of people 小（广告）传单

5. booklet n. a small thin book with a paper cover that contains information about a particular subject 小册子

6. robust adj. (of a system or an organization 体制或机构) strong and not likely to fail or become weak 强劲的；富有活力的。例如：robust economic growth强劲的经济增长

7. genocide n. the murder of a whole race or group of people 种族灭绝；大屠杀

8. validate v. to prove that sth. is true 证实；确认；确证。例如：to validate a theory证实理论

9. paradigm n. (technical 术语) a typical example or pattern of sth. 典范；范例；样式。例如：
○ a paradigm for students to copy供学生效法的榜样
○ The war was a paradigm of the destructive side of human nature. 那场战争尽显人性中具有破坏性的一面。

10. scarcity n. if there is a scarcity of sth., there is not enough of it and it is difficult to obtain it 缺乏；不足；稀少 shortage 例如：
○ a time of scarcity物资短缺时期
○ a scarcity of resources资源短缺

11. surplus adj. more than is needed or used 过剩的；剩余的；多余的。例如：
○ surplus cash剩余的现金
○ Surplus grain is being sold for export. 过剩的谷物正销往国外。
○ These items are surplus to requirements (= not needed). 这几项不需要。

12. landscape n. everything you can see when you look across a large area of land, especially in the country （陆上，尤指乡村的）风景，景色。例如：
○ the bleak/rugged/dramatic, etc. landscape of the area那个地区荒芜的景观、崎岖的地貌、引人入胜的风光等
○ the woods and fields that are typical features of the English landscape具有典型英国风景特征的森林与田野
○ an urban/industrial landscape都市 / 工业景观
○ (figurative) We can expect changes in the political landscape. 我们等着看政治舞台上的变化吧。

13. infatuation n. inflatuation (with/for sb./sth.) very strong feelings of love or attraction for sb./sth., especially when these are unreasonable and do not last long （尤指一时的）热恋，痴迷。例如：
○ It isn't love, it's just a passing infatuation. 那不是爱情，只不过是一时的痴迷。

14. bubble v. (of a feeling 感情) to be felt strongly by a person; to be present in a situation 强烈感受；充溢；存在。例如：
○ Laughter bubbled up inside him. 他忍不住心中窃笑。
○ the anger that bubbled beneath the surface内心潜涌着的愤怒

15. artifacts = artefact n. (technical 术语) an object that is made by a person, especially sth. of historical or cultural interest 人工制品，手工艺品（尤指有历史或文化价值的）

16. instructional adj. (formal) that teaches people sth. 教学的；教育的。例如：
instructional materials教材

17. poll n. ( also opinion poll) the process of questioning people who are representative of a larger group in order to get information about the general opinion 民意测验；民意调查。例如：
○ to carry out/conduct a poll进行民意测验
○ A recent poll suggests some surprising changes in public opinion. 最近的调查反映民意有了出人意料的变化。

TASK 2: TOPIC PREVIEW
Work in pairs and discuss the following topic.

The most effective way of learning

◇VIEWING

TASK 3:
Read the table. Then watch the video and complete the table with the words you hear.

Topic		How to learn from mistakes
Introduction	Statement	I have been teaching for a long time, and in doing so have acquired a body of knowledge about  ______________ that I really wish more people would understand about  ______________________.
	Example 1	In 1931, my  ___________________ graduated from the eighth grade. She went to school to get the information because that’s where the information lived. It was ______________________; it was _____________________; and she needed to go there to get the information, because that’s how you learned.
	Example 2	My  ________ went to a one-room schoolhouse. And he again had to travel to the school to get the information from the teacher, stored it in the only portable memory he has, which is inside his own head, and take it with him, because that is how information was being transported from  _____________ and then used in the world.
	Example 3	When I was a kid, we had a set of encyclopedias at my house. It was purchased the year I was born, and it was extraordinary, because I did not have to wait to  _________________________________. The information was inside my house and it was awesome. This was different than either generation had experienced before, and it changed the way I interacted with information even at just a small level. But the information was closer to me. I could get access to it.
Body		In the time that passes between when I was a kid in high school and when I started teaching, we really see the advent of the Internet.
	Example 1	I take off from Wisconsin and move to Kansas, small town Kansas, where I had an opportunity to teach in a lovely, small-town, rural Kansas school district, where I was teaching my favorite subject,  __________________________________.
		I put in front of them an authentic experience that allowed them to  _________________________. I didn’t tell them what to do or how to do it. I posed a problem in front of them, which was to put on an election forum for their own community.
	Example 2	From Kansas, I moved on to lovely Arizona, where I taught in Flagstaff for a number of years, this time with middle school students. Luckily, I didn’t have to teach them American government. Could teach them the more exciting topic of  _______________.
		I asked them to put their own voice over it. It was the most awesome moment of revelation that when you ask kids to use their own voice and ask them to  ____________________, what they’re willing to share. The last question of the assignment is: how do you plan to use your life to positively impact other people? The things that kids will say when you ask them and take the time to listen is extraordinary.
	Example 3	Fast-forward to Pennsylvania, where I find myself today. I teach at the Science Leadership Academy, which is a partnership school between the Franklin Institute and the school district of Philadelphia.
		We are a nine through 12 public school, but we do school quite differently. I moved there primarily to be part of a learning environment that validated the way that I knew that kids learned, and that really wanted to investigate what was possible when you are willing to let go of some of the paradigms of the past, of information scarcity when my grandmother was in school and when my father was in school and even when I was in school, and to a moment when we have information surplus. So what do you do when the information is all around you? Why do you have kids come to school if they no longer have to come there to  ___________________?
		In Philadelphia we have a one-to-one laptop program, so the kids are bringing in laptops with them every day, taking them home, getting access to information. And here’s the thing that you need to get comfortable with when you’ve given the tool to acquire information to students, is that you have to be comfortable with this idea of allowing kids to  ______________________. We deal right now in the educational landscape with an infatuation with the culture of one right answer that can be properly bubbled on the average multiple choice test, and I am here to share with you: it is not learning. That is the absolute wrong thing to ask, to tell kids to never be wrong. To ask them to always have the right answer doesn’t allow them to learn. So we did this project, and this is one of the artifacts of the project. I almost never show them off because of the issue of the idea of failure.
		It asked them to create for themselves, and it allowed them to fail, process, learn from. And when we do another round of this in my class this year, they will do better this time, because learning has to ______________________, because failure is  __________ in the process.
		Ask them really interesting questions. They will not disappoint. Ask them to go to places, to see things for themselves, to actually  _____________________, to  _________, to  __________.
Conclusion		l The main point is that, if we continue to look at education as if it’s about coming to school to get the information and not about  ____________________,  __________________ and  ____________________, we’re missing the mark. l And everything that everybody is talking about today isn’t possible if we keep having an educational system that does not value these qualities, because we won’t get there with a  _________________________, and we won’t get there with a culture of  ______________________. l We know how to do this better, and it’s time to  _________.

AFTER VIEWING

TASK 4: DISCUSSION
Work in group and discuss the following topic.

How to accept mistakes and learn from them?

SUGGESTED ANSWERS

◇BEFORE VIEWING

TASK 2:

Do you have problems learning? Can't pass those tests? It may be that you (and your teachers) aren't tuning into the most effective way of learning for you. Here are some ideas and tricks you can play on your brain that will help. For more information about how to learn effectively, please see the attachment 2.

◇VIEWING

TASK 3:

1. kids and learning
2. the potential of students
3. grandmother
4. in the books
5. inside the teacher’s head
6. father
7. teacher to student
8. go to the library to get to the information
9. American government
10. learn for themselves
11. geography
12. speak for themselves
13. get the information
14. fail as part of the learning process
15. include an amount of failure
16. instructional
17. experience the learning
18. play
19. inquire
20. experiential learning
21. empowering student voice
22. embracing failure
23. standardized test
24. one right answer
25. do better

◇AFTER VIEWING

TASK 4: DISCUSSION

Do you have trouble accepting yourself when you make mistakes? Do you find it hard to learn from your mistakes, so that you keep falling into the same old habits? It can be challenging to accept that we've made mistakes, especially if we're coming from a perfectionistic background where "excellence" is confused with "never making a mistake." Making a mistake is also sometimes different from failure; failure is a result of not succeeding at a conscious effort, but mistakes can be unconscious. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to be more accepting of your mistakes, and there are also techniques you can use to make the most of your mistakes. Refer to attachment 3 for more information about how to accept mistakes and learn from them.

__________________________________________________________
Attachments

Attachment 1: How to learn from mistakes
Attachment 2: How to Learn
Attachment 3: How to Accept Mistakes and Learn from Them




Attachment 1: How to learn from mistakes

0:15
I have been teaching for a long time, and in doing so have acquired a body of knowledge about kids and learning that I really wish more people would understand about the potential of students. In 1931, my grandmother - bottom left for you guys over here - graduated from the eighth grade. She went to school to get the information because that's where the information lived. It was in the books; it was inside the teacher's head; and she needed to go there to get the information, because that's how you learned. Fast-forward a generation: this is the one-room schoolhouse, Oak Grove, where my father went to a one-room schoolhouse. And he again had to travel to the school to get the information from the teacher, stored it in the only portable memory he has, which is inside his own head, and take it with him, because that is how information was being transported from teacher to student and then used in the world. When I was a kid, we had a set of encyclopedias at my house. It was purchased the year I was born, and it was extraordinary, because I did not have to wait to go to the library to get to the information. The information was inside my house and it was awesome. This was different than either generation had experienced before, and it changed the way I interacted with information even at just a small level. But the information was closer to me. I could get access to it.
1:34
In the time that passes between when I was a kid in high school and when I started teaching, we really see the advent of the Internet. Right about the time that the Internet gets going as an educational tool, I take off from Wisconsin and move to Kansas, small town Kansas, where I had an opportunity to teach in a lovely, small-town, rural Kansas school district, where I was teaching my favorite subject, American government. My first year - super gung-ho - going to teach American government, loved the political system. Kids in the 12th grade: not exactly all that enthusiastic about the American government system. Year two: learned a few things - had to change my tactic. And I put in front of them an authentic experience that allowed them to learn for themselves. I didn’t tell them what to do or how to do it. I posed a problem in front of them, which was to put on an election forum for their own community.
2:27
They produced flyers. They called offices. They checked schedules. They were meeting with secretaries. They produced an election forum booklet for the entire town to learn more about their candidates. They invited everyone into the school for an evening of conversation about government and politics and whether or not the streets were done well, and really had this robust experiential learning. The older teachers - more experienced - looked at me and went, “Oh, there she is. That’s so cute. She’s trying to get that done.” (Laughter) “She doesn’t know what she’s in for.” But I knew that the kids would show up, and I believed it, and I told them every week what I expected out of them. And that night, all 90 kids - dressed appropriately, doing their job, owning it. I had to just sit and watch. It was theirs. It was experiential. It was authentic. It meant something to them. And they will step up.
3:17
From Kansas, I moved on to lovely Arizona, where I taught in Flagstaff for a number of years, this time with middle school students. Luckily, I didn’t have to teach them American government. Could teach them the more exciting topic of geography. Again, “thrilled” to learn. But what was interesting about this position I found myself in in Arizona, was I had this really extraordinarily eclectic group of kids to work with in a truly public school, and we got to have these moments where we would get these opportunities. And one opportunity was we got to go and meet Paul Rusesabagina, which is the gentleman that the movie “Hotel Rwanda” is based after. And he was going to speak at the high school next door to us. We could walk there. We didn't even have to pay for the buses. There was no expense cost. Perfect field trip.
4:04
The problem then becomes how do you take seventh- and eighth-graders to a talk about genocide and deal with the subject in a way that is responsible and respectful, and they know what to do with it. And so we chose to look at Paul Rusesabagina as an example of a gentleman who singularly used his life to do something positive. I then challenged the kids to identify someone in their own life, or in their own story, or in their own world, that they could identify that had done a similar thing. I asked them to produce a little movie about it. It's the first time we’d done this. Nobody really knew how to make these little movies on the computer, but they were into it. And I asked them to put their own voice over it. It was the most awesome moment of revelation that when you ask kids to use their own voice and ask them to speak for themselves, what they’re willing to share. The last question of the assignment is: how do you plan to use your life to positively impact other people? The things that kids will say when you ask them and take the time to listen is extraordinary.
5:05
Fast-forward to Pennsylvania, where I find myself today. I teach at the Science Leadership Academy, which is a partnership school between the Franklin Institute and the school district of Philadelphia. We are a nine through 12 public school, but we do school quite differently. I moved there primarily to be part of a learning environment that validated the way that I knew that kids learned, and that really wanted to investigate what was possible when you are willing to let go of some of the paradigms of the past, of information scarcity when my grandmother was in school and when my father was in school and even when I was in school, and to a moment when we have information surplus. So what do you do when the information is all around you? Why do you have kids come to school if they no longer have to come there to get the information?
5:51
In Philadelphia we have a one-to-one laptop program, so the kids are bringing in laptops with them everyday, taking them home, getting access to information. And here’s the thing that you need to get comfortable with when you’ve given the tool to acquire information to students, is that you have to be comfortable with this idea of allowing kids to fail as part of the learning process. We deal right now in the educational landscape with an infatuation with the culture of one right answer that can be properly bubbled on the average multiple choice test, and I am here to share with you: it is not learning. That is the absolute wrong thing to ask, to tell kids to never be wrong. To ask them to always have the right answer doesn’t allow them to learn. So we did this project, and this is one of the artifacts of the project. I almost never show them off because of the issue of the idea of failure.
6:45
My students produced these info-graphics as a result of a unit that we decided to do at the end of the year responding to the oil spill. I asked them to take the examples that we were seeing of the info-graphics that existed in a lot of mass media, and take a look at what were the interesting components of it, and produce one for themselves of a different man-made disaster from American history. And they had certain criteria to do it. They were a little uncomfortable with it, because we'd never done this before, and they didn’t know exactly how to do it. They can talk - they’re very smooth, and they can write very, very well, but asking them to communicate ideas in a different way was a little uncomfortable for them. But I gave them the room to just do the thing. Go create. Go figure it out. Let’s see what we can do. And the student that persistently turns out the best visual product did not disappoint. This was done in like two or three days. And this is the work of the student that consistently did it.
7:39
And when I sat the students down, I said, “Who’s got the best one?” And they immediately went, “There it is.” Didn’t read anything. “There it is.” And I said, “Well what makes it great?” And they’re like, “Oh, the design’s good, and he’s using good color. And there’s some ...” And they went through all that we processed out loud. And I said, “Go read it.” And they’re like, “Oh, that one wasn’t so awesome.” And then we went to another one - it didn’t have great visuals, but it had great information - and spent an hour talking about the learning process, because it wasn’t about whether or not it was perfect, or whether or not it was what I could create. It asked them to create for themselves, and it allowed them to fail, process, learn from. And when we do another round of this in my class this year, they will do better this time, because learning has to include an amount of failure, because failure is instructional in the process.
8:29
There are a million pictures that I could click through here, and had to choose carefully - this is one of my favorites - of students learning, of what learning can look like in a landscape where we let go of the idea that kids have to come to school to get the information, but instead, ask them what they can do with it. Ask them really interesting questions. They will not disappoint. Ask them to go to places, to see things for themselves, to actually experience the learning, to play, to inquire. This is one of my favorite photos, because this was taken on Tuesday, when I asked the students to go to the polls. This is Robbie, and this was his first day of voting, and he wanted to share that with everybody and do that. But this is learning too, because we asked them to go out into real spaces.
9:20
The main point is that, if we continue to look at education as if it’s about coming to school to get the information and not about experiential learning, empowering student voice and embracing failure, we’re missing the mark. And everything that everybody is talking about today isn’t possible if we keep having an educational system that does not value these qualities, because we won’t get there with a standardized test, and we won’t get there with a culture of one right answer. We know how to do this better, and it's time to do better.
9:53
(Applause)



Attachment 2: How to Learn

Do you have problems learning? Can't pass those tests? It may be that you (and your teachers) aren't tuning into the most effective way of learning for you. Here are some ideas and tricks you can play on your brain that will help.

Method 1: Know Your Style

1.Figure out your learning style.

In order to start learning effectively, it's imperative that you know how you learn. There are three types of learning styles and most people fall clearly into one category. Even if you are about evenly split between two, it's advantageous to know what doesn't work as well.

○ Visual learners learn primarily by seeing and watching. They tend to sit in front of the class, are neat and clean, and often close their eyes to remember or visualize something. They benefit from images, illustrations, videos, colors, and prefer to see the content they are learning.

○Aural learners are more successful in learning by hearing and listening. They often sit where they can hear, but not necessarily where they can see, hum or talk to themselves when bored, find themselves reading aloud and remembering by verbalizing lessons or information. They'd rather talk than write and relish the opportunity to discuss what they've learned.

○Kinesthetic learners learn best by touching and doing. They need to be active, take frequent breaks, and are often caught using their hands and gesturing while talking. They enjoy activities that manipulate materials, like cooking, construction, and engineering and will tinker or move around when bored.

Which of these describes you? If you can't tell, do some research online, consult your professors, or read up on learning styles.

2.Understand the differences.

Each learner needs different things to adequately conceptualize and retain the information they are given. If a visual learner is told to remember something, they most likely won't. If a kinesthetic learner watches a movie on how to do something, they might not be able to do it. Neither is less intelligent than the other - they just aren't tuned into their optimal learning style.

○Learning abilities don't stop in the classroom. Styles even invade the way we talk! Look for key examples found in dialogue: A visual learner might say, "This looks good." His or her aural counterpart would say, "This sounds good." "I hear you," versus "I see what you're saying." If you are conflicted as to what your style is, tune into your words - or ask others to keep an ear (an eye?) out for you!

Method 2: Visual Learners

1.Use written materials and exercises.
Now that you know you learn by seeing and watching, utilize this knowledge. Write down what you hear, translating the aural into the visual.

○If your teacher shows you a movie or is talking about specific points on a test, write it down. After you write it down, look over it twice. Start speaking your brain's preferred language.

○If your teacher uses slides while lecturing, it's important to concentrate on the slides. You'll be less likely to remember what he/she said, but you will remember what you saw on the screen.

2.Use boards, models, and flip charts.

Take what you're trying to learn and let your eyes use it. This may involve an extra step, but your test scores will certainly lap it up.

○Did your professor just say English was 30% French, 30% Latin, 25% Germanic, and 15% other? Great! Pie chart it is! Now, what color do you associate with each?

○Hone your artsy side. Need to know when the Model T was introduced? Draw a license plate on the back of a car. The number reads 1011908, for October 1st, 1908. Get creative.

3.Take good notes.

Every teacher will stress, "Don't write down everything I say! You'll get so far behind!" Well, you're not an aural learner anyway, so why would you remember what they said?

○If your teacher goes much too fast for you to write anything legible, ask them for notes or an outline on their materials. They will love your enthusiasm.

○You could always write what you learned on wikiHow!

Method 3: Aural Learners

1.Tape record lectures.

Fortunately for you, this does not mean carrying around a large dark box anymore. Whip out your smart phone, press a few buttons, and voila. It's aural history whenever you need it.
?It may be best to warn your teachers or professors of the methods you're employing. Otherwise you risk your phone (or other device) being taken away. Explain that this is the best way you learn and they will be highly unlikely to say no.

2.Ask questions.

As you listen to your teacher discuss the topic at hand, engage. Listening to them speak is one thing, but listening to yourself speak is another. You know how it's always so easy to remember the dumb things we've said? Well, it's easier to remember the questions we asked in Biology class, too.

○If you're a little crowd shy, do this after class! Your teacher will love the 5 minutes you took out of your day to express interest in their topic of expertise. The one-on-one time may even be more in-depth and interesting to boot.

3.Participate in small groups.

Whatever it takes, get yourself (and others) talking. Small groups force the topic at hand to be discussed instead of seen or written down and ignored.

○If your teachers aren't keen on pair or group work, join a study group. There are always students looking to improve their grades and get the information down pat. Not only will you get a chance to talk about the material, you'll be able to bounce ideas off of each other and meet new people as well.

○If the two options above don't seem feasible, talk about your schoolwork at home. Grab your mom and teach her about exothermic reactions or grab your roommate and see how much they actually know about WWII. When it's test time, you won't wonder what Professor Feeny said about The Catcher in the Rye, you'll remember your little sister asking you how the book was about baseball and how her soon-to-come loss of innocence reminded you of Phoebe and... there it is. You knew it all along! Just had to jog your memory.

Method 4: Kinesthetic Learners

1.Demonstrate a concept.

Take to using your hands. Whether it's at home or in the classroom, get involved. Be the first to light the Bunsen burner and volunteer to dissect that cow's eyeball.

○Take any concept and make it concrete and malleable. Learning about DNA? Grab your legos and make a replica of the double helix.

○It doesn't have to stop at math and science. Take an excerpt from any book and act it out. Don't necessarily don a scarlet "A" to school, but do make the book come alive. Heck, grab your conch shell and vote someone off the school lunch table - everyone will remember that.

2.Underline and highlight.

A lot of teachers love to see their students take notes. While this isn't the best way for you to learn, make it work with underlining and highlighting.

○Work with different colors. Keep a code that means something to you. For dates, purple. For beliefs, green. For theories, yellow. Get a system to make your notes more memorable.

3.Get involved physically.

Join an after school science club or develop your own learning habits. You don't have to wait to do it in class, disassemble and reassemble that computer on your own time!

○Take your own field trips. Some schools don't utilize the resources of their community. If yours doesn't, visit your local art, history, or science museums, live theatres, and display exhibits. Educational tools are often free or offered at a reduced price for students. Most things will be hands-on and more kinesthetic than your average classroom.

Method 5: For All Learners

1.Study in the testing room.

Though it may seem far-fetched, students often do better on a test when a test is taken in the room they received the information. This is called context-dependent memory.

○A study at Iowa State University (one of many) garnered results that matched this theory across the board. And get this: their conditions were silent and noisy. Those who received the information in a silent context recalled the information quicker and more accurately in a silent context; those who received the information in a noisy context recalled easier in a noisy context 1.. No matter what your conditions, keep them constant. Study in the testing room to get the closest context possible.

2.Keep your physiological states constant.

Now that we've covered context-dependent learning, let's venture to state-dependent learning. You guessed it, you'll recall better if you're in the same state (of mind, body, etc.) than if you're not. Take a look:

○A recent study at Bonaventure University found that congruent (the same) states heightened recall and incongruent states heightened false memories 2.. That is, in the same state, you're likely to recall things that are more accurate. In different states, you're more likely to recall things that are just plain not true

○Funnily enough, alcohol works the same way. In an old issue of Science Magazine, an article studied sobriety and recall. Those (men) who were drunk during the learning session performed better at the recall session if they ingested similar levels of alcohol 3..

○It is not advocated to go drunk to class. What is advocated is to develop a routine and stick to it. If you learned the information while wearing purple and on a coffee high, take the test while wearing purple and on a coffee high.

3.Be patient.

Changing how you learn doesn't come overnight. What's more, certain topics are going to come easier to you than others. Keeping an open mind will make it easier to persevere in the face of difficulty.

○Don't be ashamed to ask for help. If you know someone who's an expert on a topic you're studying, hit them up! They'd love to bestow their knowledge on someone else. Whether it's friends, family, or mentors, tap into the resources you have around you.

4.Find what you enjoy.

No one is good at absolutely everything. Finding what you enjoy and sticking to that will make your academic outlook more positive.

○Take what you love and make it applicable to what you're studying. Super into billiards and film but not so into geometry? For a school project, shoot a video using the diamonds on the table and sink shots from ridiculous angles. Love music but can't stand Shakespeare? Take the opening monologue from Romeo and Juliet and put it to Beyoncé's Bootylicious. Do whatever you have to do to make it memorable and fun.

5.Watch TV.

That's right, TV. There are tons of channels that are educational "edutainment." Discovery, National Geographic, and the History Channel (just to name a few) are great resources to tap into.

○Do you have Netflix? Ever taken time to scroll down that main page just a bit? Documentaries abound! And if you don't have Netflix, there are many websites that offer high-quality documentaries for free. All you have to do is surf the internet to find them.

6.Go online.

Just because your professor speaks in a monotone, coughs, or adjusts his mustache every 7th word doesn't necessarily mean the material is boring. Go online to find the same information put in a way you can understand and appreciate.

○KhanAcademy 4., Memrise 5., and AcademicEarth 6. are all great starting points.
○Let's not forget YouTube and wikiHow! Cough, cough...

7.Go above and beyond.

Learning doesn't have to stop at 3 pm on Friday. If you find something that ignites a fire in you, keep with it! With technology nowadays, you don't even have to pay for it.
○iTunesU 7., Coursera 8., and many university websites offer audio and/or video lectures. With Coursera, you even get a certificate upon completion! And it's all free!

8.Take time to internalize what you learn.

Taking gaps while learning a new thing or skill helps one have a deeper grasp over it9.. Its cause mind(sub-conscious) and body(muscle memory) have enough time to absorb or adapt or align to the new skill you are trying to learn.
○Try this experiment. To learn a new habit or skill quickly and efficiently, consciously practice it and then follow up with a gap or break, before consciously practicing it again. Follow this cycle and see for yourself how it improves your learning curve. For example: To learn how to drive a car, practice on the wheel for some time (let's say an hour) and then take a gap (let's say, 1-24 hours) before coming back to practice again. The gaps like this could be called as micro gaps as they are being used in shorter scheme of events.
○Since some skills like martial arts, programming, movie making etc., require years of practice so in longer scheme of events taking 'macro gaps' can be quite fruitful. Suppose you want to learn a particular style of martial arts so take advantage of macro gaps for better learning. For example: Go to class for few days a week followed by a gap of 2-3 days (to internalize), and follow the same cycle again. Of course you can take micro gaps in these macro gaps, like taking breaks during the class, time between two classes etc. You can use Macro gaps for even longer scheme of events. For example: going to classes for 3 weeks in a row and then taking a week off from the practice. Again, of course, you can take micro gaps in between these macro gaps.
○The numbers above are just to give an idea and could vary for different people. Its cause of everyone's different, have different learning curves, personalities, openness to new things and so on. So don't compare yourself with anyone and accept your personality, learning curve etc. Also the usage of the terms 'macro gaps' and 'micro gaps' is just for explanation purposes, so don't get stuck on them and make it a structure. Instead look beyond them as true intelligence is structure-less. Read Become Mentally Flexible for more depth.
○Keep a balance. Don't make the gaps too small or too long. As small gaps wouldn't give body and mind enough time to internalize while too long gaps could lead you to forget about the concepts of new skill. So calibrate and iterate to get a better idea of personality and learning curve.

Sources and Citations

1.http://www.as.wvu.edu/psyc101/contents/extra_credit/Ch07ec.pdf
2.http://web.sbu.edu/psychology/lavin/david.htm
3.http://www.sciencemag.org/content/163/3873/1358.short
4.https://www.khanacademy.org/
5.http://www.memrise.com
6.http://www.academicearth.org
7.http://www.apple.com/education/itunes-u/
8.https://www.coursera.org/
9.http://www.npr.org/2012/02/27/147296743/how-you-can-harness-the-power-of-habit

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Attachment 3: How to Accept Mistakes and Learn from Them

Do you have trouble accepting yourself when you make mistakes? Do you find it hard to learn from your mistakes, so that you keep falling into the same old habits? It can be challenging to accept that we've made mistakes, especially if we're coming from a perfectionistic background where "excellence" is confused with "never making a mistake." Making a mistake is also sometimes different from failure; failure is a result of not succeeding at a conscious effort, but mistakes can be unconscious. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to be more accepting of your mistakes, and there are also techniques you can use to make the most of your mistakes.

Part 1: Accepting Your Mistakes

1.Give yourself permission to mess up.

There are many reasons you should give yourself permission to make mistakes. Making mistakes is inevitable and part of being human. It's also a valuable source of instruction and will enrich your life. It can teach you to try new things and expand your horizons.1.

○For example, you may want to learn how to cook. Starting out, say to yourself “I'm new at this cooking stuff and I'll probably make mistakes. That's okay. It's all part of the process.”
○Sometimes, the fear of making mistakes – perfectionism - can keep you from trying new things or completing projects because you're so afraid of not doing well that you can't bring yourself to act. Don't let this happen to you.

2.Acknowledge the force of habit.

Sometimes, mistakes are not caused by an effort on our part, but the lack of it. We can't exert maximum effort every single day in every element of our lives. Things that we do frequently, such as driving to work or making breakfast, can become so habitual that we don't focus on them. This is actually helpful, because it allows us to spend energy on other things that require more attention. However, sometimes this force of habit can lead us ○nto making mistakes. Acknowledge that this is part of being a human with finite energy and attention resources.

○For example, perhaps you drive the same way to work every day, 5 days a week. On the weekend, you are supposed to drive your kid to soccer practice, but you realize you've gone on “autopilot” and have started driving to work instead. This is a natural mistake, the result of habit. Beating yourself up for this mistake is unhelpful. Instead, acknowledge your slip-up and move on.
○Studies suggest that you may be able to compensate for mistakes made on autopilot, even when you aren't aware of them consciously. Studies conducted with skilled typists suggest that you slow down when you make a mistake typing, even if you are not consciously aware of doing so2..
○Studies also suggest that about 47% of the time, people are “checked out”, or allowing their minds to wander from the task at hand. This is often when mistakes happen. If you find that you're frequently making mistakes due to “mind wandering,” consider trying some mindfulness exercises to bring your attention back to the present moment.3.

3.Distinguish between errors of commission and errors of omission.

Mistakes aren't always the result of some effort you've made. Sometimes, you can make a mistake by not doing something, too. Laws generally distinguish between commission (doing something that shouldn't have been done) and omission (not doing something that should have been done), with commission usually being seen as more severe.4. Errors of omission are usually more common than errors of commission.5.

○Errors of omission can still have an effect on your life, however. For example, if your company does not keep up with the latest developments in technology, it could impact your financial future.6.
○It's important to acknowledge both types of mistakes, because you can learn from both of them. Some people try to avoid errors of commission by doing as little as possible and taking no responsibility, but this doesn't keep you from errors of omission, and it's also not a very helpful way to live or grow.7.

4.Distinguish between mistakes and bad decisions.

It's important to know the difference between mistakes and bad decisions. Mistakes are simple errors, like reading a map wrong and taking the wrong exit. Bad decisions are more intentional, like taking the scenic route to a meeting and inconveniencing the other person by being late. Mistakes are understandable and may require less focus on correcting. You should accept bad decisions just like mistakes, but it pays to pay more attention to them.8.

5.Focus on your strengths as well.

It's important to avoid getting bogged down in what you're doing wrong. Try to balance self-criticism with celebrating what you do well.9. This can be celebrating things you're already good at or celebrating areas where you're seeing improvement. There's no point trying to improve if you can't appreciate the result of your efforts.

○You may be new to cooking, but perhaps there's something that clicks instantly with you. Maybe you can tell just what spice a recipe needs simply by tasting. Give yourself credit for these strengths.

6.View mistakes as an opportunity.

There are mechanisms in the brain that help us detect when we do something wrong. The brain signals to us when we make an error. This can be really helpful during the learning process. Making mistakes can help us focus more closely on what we're doing and try to do our absolute best.10.

○Research even suggests that some experts, like doctors, can fail to correct mistakes because they trust their own judgment too much. There are benefits to being open to mistakes and viewing them as an opportunity, even after you’ve become really good at something.11.

7.Look at how long it takes to become an expert.

Research suggests that it can take ten years of experimenting with a skill and making mistakes to become truly good at it. This is true for everyone from the composer Mozart to the basketball player Kobe Bryant.12. Go easy on yourself if at first you don't succeed, because that's normal. It takes a lot of effort over a long period of time to achieve greatness at something.

8.Reframe decisions as experiments.

Part of the problem with not allowing yourself to make mistakes is thinking that you have to make the perfect decision every time. Instead of this unrealistic goal, try to reframe your decisions as experiments instead. An experiment may have good or bad consequences. You can still do your best to achieve good consequences, of course, but this will take some of the pressure off.13.

○For example, with cooking, approach recipes with an experimental attitude. Avoid expecting the perfect dish. Instead, see it as an opportunity to experiment and learn more about the whole cooking process. This will help you avoid judging yourself for messing up, which you undoubtedly will at some point.

9.Discover how the brain deals with mistakes.

The brain actually has specific nerve cells that help us watch our performance, detect mistakes, and then learn from what we did wrong.14. The brain also has difficulty accepting that it has made an error, however. The brain can reframe an experience into something positive in order to avoid accepting that it has made a mistake. If you have difficulty recognizing and accepting your mistakes, this is probably why. 15. Understanding how your brain deals with mistakes can help you be more aware of your own experience.

○Your brain has essentially two responses to mistakes: problem-solving mode (“Why did this happen? How can I make it not happen again?”) and shut-down mode (“I’m going to ignore this mistake”). The problem-solving mode, unsurprisingly, helps you learn from your mistakes and correct them in the future. It is commonly seen in people who believe intelligence is flexible, and that everyone is capable of development. The shut-down mode is often seen when you believe that your intelligence is “fixed”: you're either good or bad at something, and that's that. This type of thinking keeps you from learning and growing.16.

10.Understand how society views mistakes.

We live in a society that's afraid of making mistakes.17. We grow up being encouraged to make as few mistakes as possible.18. People who manage to get ahead are those who take this seriously. Do well in high school and you'll get scholarships to university. Do well in university and you'll graduate with a high GPA and honors. There's little room for messing up. So if you have a hard time accepting your mistakes at first, go easy on yourself, because it's not all your fault. You've probably been taught to be hard on yourself.

○Remind yourself that the belief that you must never make a mistake is flawed. Mistakes are the only way we learn; if you don't make (many) mistakes, it's because you already know something inside out and backwards. If you want to learn and grow, mistakes are part of the package.
○Remind yourself that perfectionism holds you and others to unreasonable standards. Making a mistake does not make you “a failure” or negate your efforts. Relax your standards to allow room for mistakes - it's a more helpful, more effective way to pursue excellence.

Part 2

1.Correct your mistakes.

Mistakes can help you learn, but only if you make sure they are corrected.20. For example, if you use the wrong ingredient while cooking, be sure to ask your mother or a knowledgeable person about the correct way to use the ingredient, so that you can revise the information in your memory.

2.Keep a journal of your mistakes and successes.

It can be helpful to write down when, where, and how you're making mistakes in your life. This will create additional awareness of your patterns, which may be difficult to notice in the heat of the moment. Carry a small pocket journal around with you and make note of times that you did something wrong. Review the entries later when you have free time, and explore options for what you could have done differently.21.

○For example, if you're working on a new recipe and things keep going poorly, make a note of where you're messing up. Think about it later that evening and see if you can come up with ways to prepare the dish differently.
○You should also keep track of your successes. You will be more motivated to continue learning despite making mistakes if you can track your progress over time and celebrate what you're good at. A solely negative focus is unhelpful.

3.Focus on “get-better” goals rather than “be-good” goals.

“Be-good” goals set unrealistic expectations for yourself, especially if you're just starting out with an activity. If you set “be-good” goals, you are raising the stakes and telling yourself that you need to succeed in order to be a good person. “Get-better” goals, on the other hand, are all about improvement. With these goals, you don't need ridiculously high achievements in order to feel good about yourself. You're aiming for improvement, not perfection.22.

○For example, focus on the “get-better” goal of learning how different spices affect the taste of food, rather than the “be-good” goal of being a master chef right off the bat.

4.Engage in deliberate practice.

Time isn't the only ingredient necessary to learn from your mistakes. You will also benefit from going forward with a specific purpose. This is why it's important that you locate your mistakes and the reasons behind them. Being aware of what you're doing wrong, and why, will help you create a plan to practice and increase your competence.23.

○For example, if you're trying to perfect a basic cooking skill like boiling pasta, do it over and over until you get the timing right. It may take a while to get the desired softness of the pasta, but the more you practice, the closer you will get.

5.Ask for help.

There's no shame in asking for help with something you haven't gotten the hang of yet. Putting your ego aside and learning from someone who has more experience than you is a great way to improve, especially if you find yourself in a rut and don't know how to proceed.24.

○For example, ask a chef at your favorite restaurant or a family member with a lot of cooking experience if you are having trouble with a cooking basic.

6.Believe in your abilities.

Research suggests that people who believe they can learn from mistakes are actually more likely to learn from mistakes. Knowing that it's possible for you to learn from mistakes is a good step toward actually doing it.25.

○After a mistake such as burning a dish, tell yourself “I can learn from this. It's possible to use this experience. Now I know to use a lower oven temperature.”

7.Know that reasons are not the same as excuses.

We're told not to make excuses for our mistakes, but that's different from knowing about the reasons for our mistakes.26. If a meal you are cooking doesn't come out right, it's okay to recognize the fact that you made a mistake such as not following the recipe closely enough or reaching for the salt instead of sugar. That's a reason, not an excuse. Searching for the reasons behind your mistakes can help you do better in the future, because it will show you where you went wrong. Some more reasons to look out for:

○Being late to events because of not getting up early enough.
○Getting written up for messing up a project because you didn't ask for clarification.
○Failing a test because you neglected to study, or didn't prioritize your studying well.

8.Give yourself time.

Sometimes all it takes to learn from a mistake is one pass. This isn't always the case, however. Many times, in order to learn from a mistake, we have to make it several times over. It can be difficult to catch on at first, so give yourself leeway to make the same mistake a few times before getting frustrated.27.

Sources and Citations

1.https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-science-willpower/201112/how-mistakes-can-make-you-smarter
2.http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/11/01/how-we-catch-errors-when-brain-is-on-autopilot/20392.html
3.https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/your-brain-work/201011/new-study-shows-humans-are-autopilot-nearly-half-the-time
4.https://www.sas.upenn.edu/~baron/papers.htm/oc.html
5.http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/error-of-omission
6.http://www.acasa.upenn.edu/A_MAJOR_MISTAKE.pdf
7.http://www.acasa.upenn.edu/A_MAJOR_MISTAKE.pdf
8.http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2015/05/01/3-tips-for-understanding-and-correcting-mistakes/
9.http://psychcentral.com/lib/therapists-spill-12-ways-to-accept-yourself/
10.http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070702084247.html
11.https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-science-willpower/201112/how-mistakes-can-make-you-smarter
12.https://blog.bufferapp.com/lessons-on-success-and-deliberate-practice-from-mozart-picasso-and-kobe-bryant
13.https://blog.bufferapp.com/why-highly-successful-people-crave-failure-and-mistakes
14.http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/minding-mistakes/
15.http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12125926
16.https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-science-willpower/201112/how-mistakes-can-make-you-smarter
17.http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/12/26/rethinking-mistakes-learning-from-your-missteps/
18.http://www.acasa.upenn.edu/A_MAJOR_MISTAKE.pdf
19.http://www.anxietybc.com/sites/default/files/Perfectionism.pdf
20.http://www.cjr.org/behind_the_news/learning_from_our_mistakes.php
21.https://blog.bufferapp.com/why-highly-successful-people-crave-failure-and-mistakes
22.http://www.anxietybc.com/sites/default/files/Perfectionism.pdf
23.https://blog.bufferapp.com/lessons-on-success-and-deliberate-practice-from-mozart-picasso-and-kobe-bryant
24.https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-science-success/201102/why-letting-yourself-make-mistakes-means-making-fewer-them
25.https://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/news/releases/how-the-brain-reacts-to-mistakes.html
26.http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/12/26/rethinking-mistakes-learning-from-your-missteps/
27.http://www.cjr.org/behind_the_news/learning_from_our_mistakes.php

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