How Students Actually Learn: Memory & Attention
How do students actually learn? AP Psychology teacher Blake Harvard — The Effortful Educator — shares the cognitive science of attention and memory that every K-12 teacher can use tomorrow.
In this episode of the 10 Minute Teacher Podcast, Vicki Davis talks with Blake Harvard about why attention is a necessary component of learning, the simple pre-test that primes the brain, and the mistake of making hard content even harder. Blake breaks down the two strategies with more than a century of research behind them — retrieval practice and spaced practice — and why rereading notes just doesn't work.
In this episode, you'll learn:
- Why attention is where we lose students the most — and how to win it back
- The power of a quick pre-test to prime the brain for new content
- How limited working memory means complex material needs simpler activities
- Why retrieval practice (not rereading) builds lasting memory
- How spaced practice beats cramming — in less total study time
Listen, then share this with a teacher friend, and leave a review wherever you're listening — it helps more educators find the show.
Full show notes: https://www.coolcatteacher.com/e943
Sponsored. This episode is sponsored by EF Educational Tours and their Career Readiness Tours. Lead your students on an international EF Career Readiness tour and show them what a career in fields like agriculture, hospitality, or automotive engineering could look like.
Imagine your students connecting with entrepreneurs at the London School of Economics, getting a behind-the-scenes look at Toyota's manufacturing in Japan, or touring a French culinary school to see future chefs in action. If you've been trying to break through to your students and show them how to turn their career dreams into reality, browse EF's collection of Career Readiness tours at eftours.com/ready.
