Teaching the Skill of Learning to Learn

Tiffany Taliaferro, PharmD

Albertson's Community Pharmacy Resident

In a recent article published in American Educator, Dr. John Dunlosky wrote, “teaching students how to learn is as important as teaching them content, because acquiring both the right learning strategies and back knowledge is important, if not essential, for promoting life-long learning 1.” Professors teaching students how to learn in the classroom can expand the student’s mind to gain more knowledge and lead to student’s adaptability acquiring new knowledge 1.

The article “Teaching the skill of learning to learn” discussed different active learning techniques professors at colleges and universities could utilize in order to teach students good learning strategies. At Minnesota State University students are gaining this skill by working on projects that reflect real-world examples instead of just taking exams 2. Likewise, professors at Minnesota State University encourage students to engage in self-quizzing 2. Self-quizzing is when students ask each other questions instead of just reading over their notes together 2. Studies on the skill of learning found approaches like self-quizzing are more effective than more traditional methods like highlighting or re-reading 2.

Another method that was recommended in the article was professors pausing their lectures and asking students to write or text in everything they can remember. After a few minutes, the professor continues with the lecture. This free-recall activity can be given with specific guidelines such as writing three important take-aways and could count toward the students’ final grade. This exercise encourages students to participate in their learning actively and challenges them to remember points from the lecture.

The most important aspect of teaching the skill of learning is for professors to understand that forgetting is inevitable. To assist with this well-known fact, professors can spread student’s learning over time. For instance, in pharmacy school, cumulative assessments encourage students to space out their learning and not just cram and dump information after. Cumulative exams push students to study over more extended periods and helps students to retain what is being taught. This method is preferred over non-cumulative because it has been shown to be a more effective way of increasing knowledge over a more extended time. Some other activities include professors placing students in study groups that require students to discuss previous lectures and material. Professors can also revisit critical topics throughout the semester.

Pharmacy school professors utilize many of the examples of teaching students to learn; however, they may not be aware of teaching students in this way. Traditional methods of lecturing and study habits have been discovered as passive ways of learning in pharmacy school 2. With a growing digital and interactive era, passive learning has become a less effective way to teach students. Pharmacy educators approach teaching pharmacy students more actively. The key to teaching students how to learn and to continue to develop critical thinking skills necessary in pharmacy school is to use cognitive learning strategies.

A method that is commonly used in pharmacy school to promote this kind of learning is think-pair-share. In this method, the professor asks a question or presents a case, gives the students a few minutes to think about the topic, and then discusses answers in a pair or small group.

Another example is reinforcing the lectures, and students' knowledge through stimulations that resemble real-world situations. In many lectures, pharmacy professors reinforce topics learned in previous lectures by creating quizlet online and polls.

Teachers need to teach learning to establish a strong educational foundation for students and build good study and learning habits to enhance the student’s ability for information retention. If you teach a student how to learn and study early in their pharmacy school experience properly, the better off the student will be in the classroom. Teaching a student how to learn in a classroom setting properly will pay dividends for their confidence and overall ability to process and retain information as it is presented to them. Knowing how to approach and dissect course material properly is an essential skill for all students to master throughout their educational matriculation.


1. Boser, Ulrich. “Inside Higher Ed.” Advice for Faculty Members on How to Teach Students How to Learn (Opinion), 19 Feb. 2019, https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2019/02/19/advice-faculty-members-how-teach-students-how-learn-opinion.

2. Murphy, Annie. “KQED Public Media for Northern CA.” KQED, 3 Oct. 2013, https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/31942/smart-strategies-that-help-students-learn-how-to-learn.