The science of learning includes findings made in a wide variety of fields ranging from the relationship between information and our ability to perceive, process, organise and store it, to how knowledge can be systematically transmitted to maximise the possibility of students acquiring it.

Even though the science of learning matured decades ago, it's seldom leveraged in traditional schooling. Instead, we still rely on methods conceived many millennia ago -- the best example being the lecture.

Consider the meta-analysis of 225 unique studies that compared the lecture to active learning seminars.

One of the many findings was that the lecture model of education led to a 55% failure rate in student learning relative to the active learning seminar.

That said, let us introduce you to a simplified version of the science of learning principles, presented by the neuroscientist Stephen Kosslyn.

It’s important to keep in mind  that these are general principles. In practice, the principle used must be appropriate to what is being taught.

References:

Freeman, S., Eddy, S. L., McDonough, M., Smith, M. K., Okoroafor, N., Jordt, H., et al (2014). Active learning increases student performance in science, engineering, and mathematics. ​Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States ofAmerica,​ 111(23), 8410-8415.

Kosslyn, Stephen M., et al. “Higher Education in the Twenty-First Century.” Minerva and the Future of Higher Education, The MIT Press, 2018.