×
Explaining how performance differs from learning.

Doing Well Today Is Not Learning

I remember sitting in a windowless training room back in 2012, listening to a consultant in a slim-fit suit explain why our...

Read out all
Explaining how desirable difficulties work.

When Struggling Is the Point

I remember sitting in a department meeting ten years ago, nodding politely while a consultant in a slim-fit suit explained how “desirable...

Read out all
Diagram explaining how transfer of learning works.

Transfer Is Harder Than Anyone Assumes

I remember sitting in a windowless training room during a Tuesday afternoon INSET, watching a consultant in a slim-fit suit explain the...

Read out all
How concrete examples help abstraction.

Two Examples Before the Rule

I remember standing in front of a Year 9 group during a particularly bleak Tuesday afternoon, staring at thirty faces that looked...

Read out all
Diagram showing how dual coding works.

Words and Pictures Together, Not Decoration

I’ve sat through enough CPD sessions to know that when someone starts talking about “multimodal cognitive load theory,” they’re usually about to...

Read out all
How elaboration strengthens memory by asking why.

Asking Why It Is True

I spent twenty minutes yesterday watching a CPD presenter explain “elaboration” using a slick, multi-coloured slide deck and terms like cognitive scaffolding...

Read out all
How self explanation aids understanding through speech.

Explaining It to Yourself Out Loud

I remember standing at the front of a Year 9 classroom on a Tuesday afternoon, watching twenty-eight teenagers nod in unison while...

Read out all
Infographic showing how spacing improves retention.

Same Hours, Spread Out, Better Results

I was sitting in a middle leadership meeting three years ago, staring at a shiny new “Learning Science” toolkit that promised to...

Read out all
Diagram explaining how the testing effect works.

Testing Yourself Beats Rereading Every Time

I remember sitting in a windowless professional development suite five years ago, nodding politely while a consultant in a slim-fit suit explained...

Read out all
Diagram explaining how forgetting works.

Forgetting Is Retrieval Failure, Not Erasure

I remember sitting in a windowless training room back in 2012, staring at a PowerPoint slide that promised a “revolutionary breakthrough” in...

Read out all