Contextual Learning: Breaking Free From the Classroom
by Alan Pritt
Recently I experienced a pronounced example of how context affects our ability to use what we learn...
I can already touch type using the standard QWERTY keyboard configuration, but I'm currently learning the Dvorak keyboard layout. The Dvorak layout was designed so that the most common keys are more easily available to your fingers, meaning you can type faster.
To develop this skill I'm using a computer program that presents me with lines of text to practice with and records my speed and accuracy. I was a little worried that I would forget the QWERTY layout once I started learning Dvorak, but to my relief I've found that there has been absolutely no interference. In the training program I can practice Dvorak, and then come straight out of it again and continue to type QWERTY in my word processor.
However, a few days ago, I decided to test my speed with QWERTY and for that I needed the stats from the training software. To my bewilderment I struggled for the first 10 minutes. I found I couldn't help but type with the new Dvorak layout. I'd completely forgotten how to type QWERTY in this program because there was interference from the new learning.
I went back to the word processor and typed without problem. Then I returned immediately back to the training program and I suddenly couldn't do it again.
I could touch type QWERTY in every single program, but one: the program I originally learnt it in!
Contextual Habits
I've experienced this phenomenon before, but this was the first time it was so pronounced. I'd associated the learning with my environment. The context in which I learnt it had become the key that allowed me to use what I'd learnt. But without that key, the learning remained locked up tight.
When I was away at university I had a similar experience. I basically had two homes: one was the house I grew up in and the other was my flat at university. When I was at university I would get up early, head straight into the shower and have breakfast. But as soon as the holidays arrived and I headed back to my family home, I would go straight back into my old routine. I'd get up late, lounge around for a while and miss breakfast.
There was nothing really causing me to act differently. No one forced me to lie in bed for an hour or two every morning. No one was using the shower as soon as I got up. No one was stopping me going to the kitchen and grabbing so breakfast.
I could have acted in the same way I did at university. But I didn't because I associated one place with acting one way, and another place with acting another way. I tried to change, but I couldn't. My habits were attached to the environment.
Contextual Learning
Imagine this problem in, say, an exam situation. Just because you learnt something in class, doesn't mean you can always recall it in exam conditions.
With persistence you will eventually make the connection, but this can take time.
One of my favourite stories is of a man who worked as a pharmacist. Every morning he would put on his lab coat and begin expertly mixing medicines. He was totally absorbed in his work, enjoyed it thoroughly, and so the time would go very quickly. Before he knew it, the day had come to an end and he'd take take off his lab coat and head home.
But when he finished work he found he couldn't remember anything about his day, or even about his profession. He couldn't answer basic questions about his work. His mind went blank.
But then he'd put his lab coat back on and everything would come flooding back to him.
Solutions
With a bit of perseverance the pharmacist would have made the connection, but we often don't have the time to put in that perseverance. Sometimes we need to know we can perform when we need to perform.
Here's how:
1. Think back to where you learnt it
Imagine you are in an exam, trying to remember some facts that you should know well. Your memory and flow of ideas will often be helped by imagining you are back in that original environment. Try to picture the scene you were in when you learnt the material. Were you at work, at school, at home? Where exactly in this place were you? Was there any music playing? Were there any other noises? How did you feel? Were you relaxed? Fully imagine you are back in that place.
By doing this you prime your brain to look in places where you stored your memories. Not only will this help with facts, but it will also help with placing you into the right state-of-mind to work efficiently.
2. Imagine yourself learning in different environments
While you are learning, imagine you are in the place where you will eventually have to use what you are learning. This will help you to automatically associate your learning with different contexts. Teachers will often do this by explaining how you can use what you are learning in different situations.
This has the added bonus of giving you more purpose for learning, and so increases your motivation. If I associate learning a language with speaking to someone in the future, it helps me learn. If I read a psychology paper with the intention of experimenting and writing an article, I'll absorb the information more readily. If I need to create a poster, I'll find it much easier to learn to use a DTP software package.
It's a good idea to start with a reason for learning something, but sometimes we are told what to learn without being given a reason. Whatever the case, it is a good idea to frequently pause and ask yourself how what you are learning could be used.
3. Actually practice in different contexts
It's not always possible, but it is a good idea to visit the location where you will be using your learning, and preferably use the place to have a 'dress rehearsal'.
If you can't do that, it is still a good idea to practice in different locations. Study at home, study in the library, study in the park. This will help disassociate what you learn from the place you learn it in; allowing you to use the learning in more situations.
The association doesn't just have to be with the location, though. If you are a musician you should be comfortable playing with a variety of instruments. You should be comfortable using any pen. You be used to content writing about different subjects. You should be able to draw any object. Talk to any person. Sell any product. Use you maths skills in many situations.
The more you abstract the learning from context, the more flexible you will become.
