Study through deliberate practice! this was one of the key messages in a book I read over the holidays Visible Learning and the Science of how we Learn. In this book the authors spoke repeatedly about the need for students to study through deliberate practice. They said that it was one of the fundamental keys to learning information.
You have heard the saying “practice makes perfect”, well this is only partially true. Because if you keep practicing something that you actually have wrong, you will never improve, especially if you have no idea you have it wrong. That is why athletes have coaching and you have teachers.
Deliberate practice is not just practice for practice sake. Deliberate practice is purposefully setting aside time to focus on learning a particular concept, topic or skill. Often this practice is termed focused practice, where the individual is focused on using the knowledge or skill in particular situations.
Deliberate practice usually involves some kind of feedback about the execution of the skill or the quality of the content or application. For study through deliberate practice, this would usually be your teacher or tutor. In sport deliberate practice often takes the form of personal coaching or training, where the coach provides feedback and corrects technique. In study, the teacher looks at what you are producing and provides you with feedback on what is good, what needs improving and possibly correcting misunderstood concepts, or helping you learn to write in a more formal manner.
One of the main methods for you to study through deliberate practice would be in the form of completing past papers or practice exam questions. These force you to apply and/or check your knowledge. Even better is that actual past questions often come with sample answers and marking criteria making it faster and easier for you to check your knowledge.
Another method could include flashcards. Although often used simply to check recall and develop recall pathways, flashcards also check that you have connected the knowledge to the dot points and hopefully also to examples. Such connections are vital in helping you to understand and be able to apply your knowledge.
So, not better time than the present. Set aside some time and study through deliberate practice. And remember deliberate practice makes perfect.
