How Do You Learn Best?
Upper Intermediate (B2)
Campus life
American Accent
63s
A researcher doing a quick survey asks a student whether he learns best from lectures, discussions or hands-on projects, and what his ideal class would look like.
Vocabulary Highlights
- hands-on /ˌhændzˈɑn/
- Learning or doing something by actually trying it yourself.
- "The museum has lots of hands-on activities for kids." — learning by doing
- "She's a very hands-on manager who helps her team every day." — closely involved
- "The course gives you hands-on experience with real machines." — practical, not theoretical
Dialogue Transcript
Speaker 1:
Hi, I'm with the education research team. Could I ask you a few quick questions about how you learn?
Speaker 2:
Sure, that sounds interesting. Go ahead.
Speaker 1:
Thanks. First, do you learn better from lectures, discussions, or hands-on projects?
Speaker 2:
Definitely hands-on projects. I remember things much better when I actually build or try something myself.
Speaker 1:
Can you give me an example?
Speaker 2:
Sure. In my engineering class, we designed a small bridge out of wood, and I learned more from that than from weeks of slides.
Speaker 1:
So do lectures not work for you at all?
Speaker 2:
They're fine for getting the big picture, but if a lecture runs over an hour, I start to zone out.
Speaker 1:
What about group discussions?
Speaker 2:
I like them when everyone's done the reading. Otherwise, one or two people end up doing all the talking.
Speaker 1:
Last question. If you could design your ideal class, what would it look like?
Speaker 2:
A short lecture to set things up, then the rest of the time working on a real problem with a small team.
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