Friday, June 10, 2011


Learning by Writing

Writing has many different uses for many people.  Some people write just for the fun of it.  Others write to express themselves, to show others how they see the world. Others write to persuade, to urge the readers to take stand or to make decisions.  Others also write to teach, to explain how things work so that the readers get to have a better understanding on a particular subject.  One other practical use of writing is by using writing as a learning tool.  Learning by writing has been discussed in  Writers Inc as one of the ways that can help improve a student's study skills.

The following steps have been discussed in Writer's Inc as useful guides when one is using writing as a tool for learning:

1. State the learning in your own words.  After reading something, or hearing a lecture or taking part in a discussion, state your conclusion.  Write the information that you found useful or interesting.  Also state if there were opinions that you agreed with, or disagreed with, and the reason for your decision.

2. Personalize new ideas or concepts.  One way to learn is by fitting in the new knowledge with what you already know. When you learn about Taichi, how is the new knowledge different or similar from another martial arts discipline that you are already familiar with.

3. Ask yourself why this particular learning is important.   When you learn about the Law of Inertia for example, you may try to observe how this applies in your everyday life such as understanding why it is necessary for you to fasten your seat belts always.

4. Identify the people who will need to know about the learning. Who will benefit from this knowledge? Is the learning accessible to the people who need them?

4. Add pictures to your writing. Adding pictures, especially colored ones help you better remember the new learning. After all, the phrase "to get a better picture" may have originated from this idea.  Doodle in the pages or cut out pictures.  You can also try making charts or maps.

5. Keep a New Words List.  Some disciplines have their own unique way of referring at things. List down the words that are peculiar to the particular subject and try to use them frequently in your conversations.  

Learning by writing allows the student to analyze the newly-acquired knowledge. It helps the student become an effective learner.

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