A review by piabo
How We Learn: The Surprising Truth About When, Where, and Why It Happens by Benedict Carey

4.0

I was looking for more neuroscience background and this book was not really it. But it was still very great for learning strategies and explaining what actually works. While I am already familiar with the field, my biggest takeaway was the power of applying knowledge and how it is much more effective than just taking in things. The sweet spot is apparently to take 40% of the time you have to study something, and then take 60% of the time to apply this to practice questions or other applied areas. We all know this, but it was just especially well-illustrated here, and I felt called out for passively reading books this whole time and not using my knowledge much. I am now actively thinking about ways to make it happen more.