Students who have problems learning in school frequently have not discovered that they need a set of special skills.

In day-to-day life, children and adults naturally use "trial and error" as the main skill for learning. It works well in situations where the results are clear and errors can be quickly corrected by obvious action. Learning in school rarely meets these conditions. In school, there is an emphasis on speed, abstractness, and a 'single best' solution or answer.

Without academic learning skills, children can face failure or mediocre performance. They are like carpenters without the necessary tools to do a job.

The tools for academic learning and thinking are specific mental actions used to consider, remember, and recall academic information, explains Thomas M. Sherman, professor in the School of Education at Virginia Tech.

Some people find it difficult to identify and specify learning skills because:

They are not observable. The skills of an excellent student, unlike those of a good baseball player, cannot be seen and imitated by other students. Besides, academic learning is usually done in private. A poor student is not able to get feedback on whether they are using the most effective skills or using them properly.

Mental skills are difficult to describe. When asked, good students often say they "read" or "study" rather than describe specific mental actions they use while learning.

Academic skills are not available to everyone "naturally." They must be learned the same way it is necessary to learn to operate a car or swing a golf club.

Most children who are high achievers learn these skills early. Those who do not master these skills sometimes get caught in a cycle of failure. They are often told to "try harder" or "study more." However, they do not have the means to learn more by trying harder. In fact, they often are trying or have tried hard. Rather than trying harder, many of these students need to try differently.

When identified and described, cognitive skills are no more difficult to learn than easily observed skills, such as riding a bicycle. The keys to teaching academic learning skills are to: 1) make learners aware that they can take action to increase their learning; and 2) demonstrate these skills in a way that they may be learned.

Here are three examples of academic learning skills Sherman and colleagues identified for a project on teaching thinking skills:

Active Reading. Active reading consists of frequent pauses during reading to examine and question the material being read. The purpose of the pauses is to ensure comprehension and to speculate about other ideas, purposes, or issues the author will present. The reader purposefully asks questions and restates the material read.

Survey. Survey is a process of using cognitive actions to prepare the mind to receive, store, and recall information to be learned. Good learners appear to attempt to answer six questions:

– How much of this do I already know?

– What do I need to learn?

– What does the author want me to know?

– How interesting is this material?

– How difficult is this material?

– How can I best learn this material?

The main purpose of the survey is to answer these questions by either reading topic headings, reading introductory and summary paragraphs, or reading large portions of the material. The cognitive actions of surveying help the learner recall already known information, raise questions, and set an agenda for learning more.

Acronyms. An acronym is a memory skill used to reduce memory load by associating parts of a message with a smaller, more easily remembered form of the message. For example, to remember the Great Lakes, the acronym "HOMES" could be used. The H stands for Huron; the O for Ontario, and so on.

Academic learning skills can be taught. The most successful approach appears to be through modeling and encouraging students to imitate. For example, a parent can "think" out loud when reading and include pauses to reflect on main points, or reread to improve understanding of a point missed. With older students, a parent or mentor can describe the thinking process used to solve problems. This description should include the information considered and the criteria used to evaluate options. A primary goal is to make clear that thinking and learning are the consequences of specific actions and not magic or luck. This helps children recognize that they can control their successes by the skills they use. It is a good way to build self confidence as a learner and a positive perspective on personal achievement. 

Thomas Sherman, professor of Teaching and Learning, can be reached at sherman@vt.edu or 540-231-5347. He is the author of several learning improvement programs for computers, and books on study skills. He also conducts workshops for teachers and parents on motivating students to study and improving study skills.