THINKER'S ALMANAC - May 21

Why is it better to learn a subject by teaching it rather than being tested on it?

Subject:  Learning - Protege Effect

Event:  Study published on the protege effect, 2014; Plato’s birthday

People learn the most when teaching others. -Peter Drucker

What is the best way to learn a subject?  One ancient yet counterintuitive strategy is to teach the subject.  It was the Roman philosopher Seneca the Younger who gave us the pithy Latin motto: docendo discimus, which translates, “By teaching, we learn.”  The trick, then, to truly learning a subject is a paradox:  Don’t learn the subject like a student; instead, teach the subject.

Most people who have taught anything have experienced what researchers called the Protege Effect:  learning by teaching.  When we think about presenting a lesson to an audience, the content takes on more meaning and we take more ownership of it.  Furthermore, we become more focused, not just taking in knowledge but also analyzing it, organizing it, and synthesizing it so that we can present it clearly.  Metacognition also comes into play since we are not only thinking about our own thinking but also about the thinking of our students.  Finally, another key element of learning by teaching is that you benefit first by preparing the lesson, but then you benefit again by reciting the lesson out loud to your students. 

                                                                Image by Sasin Tipchai from Pixabay 

In a 1917 study of students in grades 3, 5, 6, and 8, children studied brief biographies.  Some students were directed to just read and reread the biographies, but others were directed to look up from the readings for varying lengths of time and to silently review the content of the biographies by silently reciting to themselves.  Based on recall tests that were given 3 or 4 hours after the reading, the student who did the silent recitation recalled more than those who did not recite.  In addition, the one group that spent 60 percent of its study time in silent recitation achieved the highest recall scores (1).

In one study by psychologist John Nestojko, which was published on this day in 2014, the Protege Effect was put to the test.  All students studied reading passages and were told either that they would be tested on the passages or that they would be teaching the passages.  At the end of the reading and study time, all participants were tested (none of the participants actually taught the content).  The results showed that students who expected to teach answered more questions correctly.  They also wrote more organized and complete answers (2).

Recall, Retrieve, Recite, Ruminate, Reflect, Reason:  What is the Protege Effect? Why is it more effective than just studying for a test?

Challenge - Happy Birthday Plato:  On this day in 427 BC perhaps the most important philosopher who ever lived was born.  Do some research on one important concept from Plato’s teachings.  Then, write a letter addressing a person younger than yourself, explaining and teaching the concept. 

Sources:

1-Brown, Peter C., Henry L. Roediger III, Mark A. McDaniel.  Make It Stick:  The Science of Successful Learning.  Cambridge, Mass.:  Harvard University Press, 2014: 30.

2-Boser, Ulrich. Learn Better. New York:  Rodale, 2017: 127.