Six Strategies for Effective Learning
www.learningscientists.org
In this series, we provide information so students can learn how to study using..
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All of these strategies have supporting evidence from cognitive psychology. For each strategy,
we explain how to do it, some points to consider, and where to find more information.
LEARN TO STUDY USING…
Dual Coding
COMBINE WORDS AND VISUALS
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Dual Coding
HOW TO DO IT
Look at your class materials and find visuals. Look
over the visuals and compare to the words.
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Dual Coding
HOW TO DO IT
Look at visuals, and explain in your own words
what they mean.
Dual Coding
HOW TO DO IT
Take information that you are trying to learn, and
draw visuals to go along with it.
Dual Coding
HOLD ON!
Try to come up with different ways to represent
the information visually, for example an
infographic, a timeline, a cartoon strip, or a
diagram of parts that work together.
INFOGRAPHIC
PROS
DIAGRAM
CARTOON STRIP
CONS
GRAPHIC ORGANIZER
TIMELINE
EVENT 1
EVENT 2
EVENT 3
EVENT 4
EVENT 5
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
Dual Coding
HOLD ON!
Try to come up with different ways to represent
the information visually, for example…
an infographic.
PROS
CONS
Dual Coding
HOLD ON!
Try to come up with different ways to represent
the information visually, for example…
a timeline.
EVENT 1
EVENT 2
EVENT 3
EVENT 4
EVENT 5
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
Dual Coding
HOLD ON!
Try to come up with different ways to represent
the information visually, for example…
a cartoon strip.
Dual Coding
HOLD ON!
Try to come up with different ways to represent
the information visually, for example…
a diagram of parts that work together.
Dual Coding
HOLD ON!
Try to come up with different ways to represent
the information visually, for example…
a graphic organizer.
Dual Coding
HOLD ON!
Work your way up to drawing what you know from
memory.
Dual Coding
RESEARCH
Read more about dual coding as a study strategy
Use dual coding
http://www.learningscientists.org/blog/2016/9/1-1
Use dual coding
http://www.learningscientists.org/blog/2016/5/12-1
Mayer, R. E., & Anderson, R. B. (1992). The instructive animation:
Helping students build connections between words and pictures in
multimedia learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 4, 444-452.
Six Strategies for Effective Learning
www.learningscientists.org
CREATOR
Yana Weinstein
University of Massachusetts Lowell
CREATOR
Megan Smith
Rhode Island College
ILLUSTRATOR
Oliver Caviglioli
www.teachinghow2s.com/cogsci
FUNDED BY
APS Fund for Teaching & Public Understanding of Psychological Science