Powerful Mental Tools to Help You Master Tough Subjects

Are you tired of struggling to understand challenging subjects? Do you daydream about conquering those difficult equations or theories that seem to have a mind of their own? Well, fear not! In this blog post, we will equip you with some powerful mental tools that will make mastering tough subjects a breeze. So, buckle up and get ready to dive into the world of effective learning!

Embrace the Power of Curiosity

Curiosity may have killed the cat, but when it comes to learning, it’s a superpower. Embrace your inner Sherlock Holmes and let your curiosity guide you through the labyrinth of complex topics. Ask questions, be inquisitive, and explore every nook and cranny of the subject. In doing so, you’ll discover hidden gems that will unravel even the toughest concepts.

Break It Down, Baby!

Staring at a gigantic mountain of information can be overwhelming. But fear not, because breaking it down into bite-sized pieces is the secret source to successful studying. Take a deep breath and chunk the subject into manageable portions. Whether it’s conquering one chapter at a time or tackling one problem at a time, breaking it down will make the learning process much less daunting.

Embrace Your Inner Storyteller

Who said learning can’t be fun? Embrace your inner storyteller and turn those dry, complex concepts into engaging narratives. Imagine the subject is a thrilling adventure story, with you as the hero outsmarting every obstacle. Not only will this make the subject more relatable, but it will also help you retain information more effectively. Plus, it’s a lot more entertaining than staring at a boring textbook!

Connect the Dots

No concept exists in isolation. Everything is interconnected, just like the web of connections in your favorite crime-solving TV show. So, instead of treating each subject as a standalone entity, try to find connections between different topics. By understanding how concepts relate to one another, you’ll not only gain a deeper understanding but also strengthen your overall knowledge in the subject.

Set Breaks for Genius Brains

Studying for hours on end might sound heroic, but even geniuses need a break. Research shows that taking regular breaks improves productivity and enhances learning. So, listen to your brain’s demand for some downtime. Go for a walk, dance to your favorite song, or simply stare at the wall in glorious silence. Your brain will thank you, and you’ll be ready to conquer more tough subjects when you return.

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Learning How to Learn: Powerful mental tools to help you master tough subjects Quiz Answers

Learning How to Learn: Powerful mental tools to help you master tough subjects Quiz Answers

Quiz: Introductory Quiz (An easy, quick review of relevant information)

1. I need a reliable internet connection to submit my quizzes and assignments, and it’s a good idea to keep a backup copy of my work to prevent it from being lost

• True

2. I am invited to participate in the discussion forums, where I can ask questions and share my opinions, but I must not make abusive or spam-like posts.

• True

3. I must not post the questions or answers to the quizzes in the discussion forum or anywhere else. This would be a breach of Coursera’s Honor Code. 

• True

4. Learning How to Learn is also available in Portuguese, Spanish, and Chinese language versions. This means the web pages and quizzes are all translated, as well as captions on the videos.

If I would like to take quizzes and submit assignments in a language other than English, I should sign up for Learning How to Learn in one of the following languages:

Spanish – Aprendiendo a aprender: Poderosas herramientas mentales con las que podrás dominar temas difíciles

Chinese – 学会如何学习：帮助你掌握复杂学科的强大智力工具

Portuguese – Aprendendo a aprender: ferramentas mentais poderosas para ajudá-lo a dominar assuntos difíceis

French – Apprendre comment apprendre (ACA) : Des outils mentaux puissants qui vous aideront à maîtriser des sujets difficiles

• True

5. All quizzes, readings, and assignments for this version of the course are in English, but videos often have subtitles in many languages.

• True

6. I can turn subtitles on by using the little subtitle icon on any video. This is at the bottom left of the video if I’m using a desktop computer or the top right of the video if I’m using the Coursera app.

• True

7. I can complete this course using the Coursera website or a Coursera mobile app, both allow me to take in-video quizzes (these quizzes do not count towards my grade, they are just to help me learn).

• True

8. I can usually resolve video playback problems myself, because problems are most often caused by an internet connection issue, using an unsupported browser or mobile device, or forgetting to update the Coursera app on my mobile device.

I should check these problems myself before reporting a problem on the course forum. Coursera’s Learner Help Center has articles to help me with video playback issues.

• True

9. Learning How to Learn is a free course. However, I may choose to purchase a “Course Certificate”, which verifies my identity. If I am unable to pay for a Course Certificate, I can apply to Coursera for Financial Aid.

• True

10. In order to be eligible for a Course Certificate, I must have had my identity verified on the Coursera platform. This entails submitting a photo and government-issued photo ID so that Coursera can verify my legal name, country, and date of birth. This identity verification on the platform only needs to be done once.

I can learn more about identity verification at the Learner Help Center, at ID Verification.

• True

11. Before I can submit each graded assignment, I must acknowledge a clear warning that explains the consequences of violating Coursera’s Honor Code. I will learn more at the Coursera Honor Code.

(The blue text box below is shown only to provide clarity here, you won’t see it in your quiz).

• True

12. Quiz questions with square check buttons (also known as “check boxes”) allow me to select one or more answers, while quiz questions with round check buttons (also known as “radio buttons”) allow me to select only one answer. These are two examples

• True

13. Some quiz questions – the ones with square check buttons – such as the one below allow me to select more than one answer.

I must select all correct answers – and no incorrect answers – to get ALL the points for the question. After I make my submission I will be awarded all the points, zero points, or partial points for the question, as shown below.

Note: The blue text boxes below are there only to show you how grading works, you won’t see them in your quiz results.

• True

14. There are no penalties for missing quiz deadlines, you can complete quizzes any time before your session of Learning How to Learn ends (quiz deadlines have been created simply to help you pace yourself through the course).

• True

15. If you do not complete all quizzes before the end of the course, you can switch to the next session of the course, and your completed quizzes will be moved into the new session.

• True

16. Peer-reviewed assignments in this course are optional unless I am trying for a certificate with honors. If I choose to submit a peer-reviewed assignment, I should also review the assignments of three or more of my classmates.

• True

17. If I choose to submit the optional peer-assessed assignment and review the work of my classmates, I will do so thoughtfully, offering helpful suggestions and compliments in the feedback I give my peers.

• True

18. Dr. Barbara Oakley enjoys eating guinea pigs.

• False

19. Dr. Terrence Sejnowski ran the 400-meter dash in the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

• False

20. There is no free certificate or Statement of Accomplishment offered in this course, but my final grade will be shown on my Coursera Accomplishments page.

• True

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Quiz: What is Learning?

1. Select which methods can help when trying to learn something new.

• Analogy
• Metaphor

2. Select any true statements regarding the Pomodoro technique.

• The Pomodoro technique involves setting a timer and working intently, without interruption, often for a period of 25 minutes.

3. In the __________ mode, the brain makes random connections in a relaxed fashion.

• diffuse

4. Select the following true statements regarding procrastination.

• When you feel neural discomfort about something you don’t want to do, switching your attention to something more pleasant can help you feel better–temporarily.
• Procrastination seems to involve an attempt to switch your mental attention away from something that you find slightly painful.
• The Pomodoro technique is an effective way to tackle procrastination

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• Everybody has some issues with procrastination.
• When you don’t want to work on something, a sense of neural discomfort arises. However, researchers have found that not long after you start working on something that you find unpleasant, neural discomfort disappears. So an important aspect of tackling procrastination is to just get yourself through that initial period of discomfort. The Pomodoro technique helps you do that.

5. One of the first videos described the difference between the focused mode and the diffuse mode. According to this video, the focused mode is affiliated with (check all that apply to the concept of focused mode only):

• Ideas, concepts, and problem-solving techniques that are at least somewhat familiar to you–your previous knowledge lay a sort of underlying neural pathway that you tend to follow.
• A pinball machine that has bumpers that are very tightly grouped together, so the pinball (the thought) can’t go very far without bumping into a bumper.

• A direct approach to solving problems that you are rather familiar with.
• The type of intense concentration you need to work through a problem, step-by-step.

6. Select the following true statements about sleep, according to this module’s videos.

• When you sleep, your brain cells shrink, which allows toxins to be more easily washed away.
• Taking a test without getting enough sleep means you are operating with a brain that’s got metabolic toxins floating around in it—poisons that make it so you can’t think very clearly.
• Sleep has been shown to make a remarkable difference in your ability to figure out difficult problems and understand what you are trying to learn.

7. Select the following true statements about memory, in accordance with the information in this module’s videos.

• Research has shown that if you try to glue things into your memory by repeating something twenty times in one evening, for example, it won’t stick nearly as well as if you practice it the same number of times over several days.
• Repetition is needed so your metabolic vampires—natural dissipating processes—don’t suck the memories away.
• Long-term memory is like a storage warehouse.

8. Select the following true statements about practice, according to this module’s videos.

• Practice is important for any area in which you want to acquire expertise.
• Practice helps make memories more permanent.
• Neurons become linked together through repeated use. The more abstract something is, the more important it is to PRACTICE in order to bring these ideas into reality for you.

9. Check the activities below that would be more apt to arouse the diffuse (rather than focused) mode:

• Take a shower.
• Getting some form of exercise while not concentrating on anything in particular.
• Go for a walk.

10. Exercise (check all that are true):

• Research is showing that exercise seems to be just as important as an enriched environment in allowing the brain to grow new neurons and remain healthy.
• Helps improve your ability to learn and remember.

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• Allows you to disconnect from what you have been concentrating on previously–this can allow your diffuse mode to kick in.
• Helps spark new and creative approaches to problems you are working on.

11. This module’s videos have tried to make some important points about your ability to learn. Which of the following points do you think were among those being made?

• Stepping back and learning how to learn can help you maintain a flexibility and openness that can help you in many areas of your life.
• We ordinarily think of learning as something we do when we sit down to study a book. But actually, being able to learn more easily and deeply involves many important facets–including not only periods of focused concentration, but also periods of relaxation, and even times when the body is simply out getting exercise. Your brain can be busy figuring things out during times when you have absolutely no conscious awareness of it.
• Don’t just blindly follow your passions–also work to broaden your passions by keeping yourself open to learning new things, even if you feel you don’t have a talent for them.

12. The __________ mode involves a direct approach to solving problems using rational, sequential, analytical approaches. It is associated with the concentrating abilities of the brain’s prefrontal cortex, located right behind your forehead.

• focused

13. Which of the following statements is true about our current scientific understanding of the brain?

• An enriched environment (surrounding ourselves with creative, supportive people) supports neural health.
• Our brains do not stay the same as we grow older. New synapses are constantly being created whilst others actually disappear.
• Even if we don’t have an enriched environment, our brains will also continue to grow new neurons if we exercise.

14. According to Dr. Sejnowski’s video, what happens in your brain during sleep that helps you remember new experiences

• Your brain forms new synapses (connections)
• Learning changes the structure of the brain.
• Sleep makes it easier to learn new things and solve problems.

15. Select the true statements about the human brain.

• Sleep makes it easier to learn new things and solve problems.

16. It’s quite common to get stuck on a problem–often because you have initial ideas about what the solution should be that block your ability to see the real solution.

Which of the following is a good next best step to take when you’ve already spent time reanalyzing the problem by focusing intently, and you find that you are simply stuck? (Check all that apply)

• Take a little break. You can focus on something different, or even just relax and not focus on anything at all, perhaps going out for a walk.

17. Select the statements that explain why math and science might sometimes be more challenging.

• Math is not so directly related to emotions that we can feel.
• In math and science, it’s sometimes difficult to find analogous real-world concepts to point to—the abstract nature of a “+” symbol, for example, isn’t like the word cow, which involves an animal you can directly point to.
• Math and science often involve more abstract, rather than concrete, ideas.

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Week 2 Quiz: Retrieval Practice

1. As discussed in this week’s videos, which TWO of the following four options have been shown by research to be generally NOT as effective a method for studying–that is, which two methods are more likely to produce illusions of competence in learning?

• rereading
• highlighting more than one or so sentences in a paragraph

2. Which of the following statements are true about chunks and/or chunking?

• Chunks can help you understand new concepts. This is because when you grasp one chunk, you will find that that chunk can be related in surprising ways to similar chunks not only in that field but also in very different fields.
• One of the first steps toward gaining expertise in academic topics is to create conceptual chunks—mental leaps that unite scattered bits of information through meaning.
• Improvising a new sentence in a new language you are learning involves the ability to creatively mix together various complex mini chunks and chunks (sounds and words) that you have mastered in the new language.

3. The videos used the analogy of an octopus to help you understand how the focused mode reaches through the slots of working memory to make connections in various parts of the brain. Which of the following observations related to the “octopus of attention” analogy are true?

• When you are stressed, your “attentional octopus” begins to lose the ability to make connections. This is why your brain doesn’t seem to work right when you’re angry, stressed, or afraid.
• Focusing your “octopus of attention” to connect parts of the brain to tie together ideas is an important part of the focused mode of learning. It is also often what helps get you started in creating a chunk.

4. Select the following true statements regarding the concept of “understanding.”

• Understanding is like a super glue that helps hold the underlying memory traces together.
• Can you create a chunk if you don’t understand? Yes, but it’s often a useless chunk that won’t fit in with or relate to other material you are learning.

5. Select which methods can help when trying to learn something new.

• Metaphor
• Analogy

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Week2- Retrieval Practice

1. [Select the word that belongs in the blank space.] “_________” is the idea that a chunk you’ve mastered in one area can often help you much more easily learn chunks of information in different areas that can share surprising commonalities.

• Transfer

2. Three steps were mentioned as being vitally important in making a chunk. Pick those three things out from the list below.

• Practice to help you gain mastery and a sense of the big-picture context
• Focused attention
• Understanding of the basic idea

3. Which statement best describes “deliberate practice”?

• Focusing intently on the parts of the problem that are more difficult for you.

4. Select which of the following statements are true about chunking:

• Concepts and problem-solving methods you might learn for physics can be very similar to chunked concepts in business.
• When you are trying to figure something out, if you have a good library of chunks, you can more easily skip to the right solution by—metaphorically speaking—“listening” to whispers from your diffuse mode. Your diffuse mode can help you connect two or more chunks together in new ways to solve novel problems.
• As you gain more experience in chunking in any particular subject, you will see that the chunks you are able to create are bigger—in some sense, the ribbons are longer.
• “Chunking” involves compressing information more compactly–this is part of why it is easier to draw a “chunked” idea or concept into mind.

5. Select the following true statements about learning, as discussed on this module’s videos.

• Interleaving your studies—making a point to review for a test, for example, by skipping around through problems in the different chapters and materials—can sometimes seem to make your learning more difficult. But in reality, it helps you learn more deeply.
• Although practice and repetition are important in helping build solid neural patterns to draw on, it’s interleaving that starts building flexibility and creativity. It’s where you leave the world of practice and repetition and begin thinking more independently.
• Once you’ve got the basic idea down during a session, continuing to hammer away at it during the same session doesn’t strengthen the kinds of long-term memory connections you want to have. Worse yet, focusing on one technique is a little like learning carpentry by only practicing with a hammer. After a while, you think you can fix anything by just bashing it.
• One significant mistake students sometimes make in learning is jumping into the water before they learn to swim. In other words, they blindly start working on homework without reading the textbook, attending lectures, viewing online lessons, or speaking with someone knowledgeable. It’s like randomly allowing a thought to pop off in the focused-mode pinball machine without paying any real attention to where the solution truly lies.

6. The neuromodulators acetylcholine, dopamine, and serotonin were mentioned as affecting specific areas in Dr. Sejnowski’s video. Select the three true statements below, based on Dr. Sejnowski’s video, about which areas these neurotransmitters affect.

• Acetylcholine affects focused learning and attention
• Serotonin affects social life and risk-taking behavior
• Dopamine signals in relation to unexpected reward

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Quiz: Chunking

1. As discussed in this module’s videos, which THREE of the following six options have been shown by research to be generally NOT as effective a method for studying–that is, which three methods are more likely to produce illusions of competence in learning?

• rereading the text
• highlighting more than one or so sentences in a paragraph

2. [Select the word that belongs in the blank space.] “_________” is the idea that a chunk you’ve mastered in one area can often help you much more easily learn chunks of information in different areas that can share surprising commonalities.

• transfer

3. Which of the following statements are true about chunks and/or chunking?

• Chunking helps your brain run more efficiently. Once you chunk an idea, concept, or action, you don’t need to remember all the little underlying details; you’ve got the main idea—the chunk—and that’s enough.
• The best chunks are ones that are so well-ingrained that you don’t have to consciously think about connecting the neural pattern together. That, actually, is the point of making complex ideas, movements, or reactions into a single chunk.
• When we retrieve knowledge, we’re not mindless robots—the retrieval process itself enhances deep learning and helps us begin forming chunks.

4. The videos used the analogy of an octopus to help you understand how the focused mode reaches through the slots of working memory to make connections in various parts of the brain. Which of the following observations related to the “octopus of attention” analogy are true?

• When you are focusing your attention on something, it’s almost as if you have an octopus—the “octopus of attention”—that slips its tentacles through those four slots of working memory when necessary, to help you make connections to the information you might have in various parts of your brain.
• The intentional, focused mode connections of the “octopus of attention” analogy are quite different from the random connections of the diffuse mode.

5. Three steps were mentioned as being vitally important in making a chunk. Pick those three things out from the list below.

• Practice to help you gain mastery and a sense of the big-picture context.
• Understanding of the basic idea.
• Focused attention.

6. [Select the word that belongs in the blank space.] “_______ practice” is when you apply special extra attention in practicing the material that you find to be the most difficult. This is the type of practice that experts use to speed up their knowledge gain.

• Overlearning

7. Select the following true statements regarding the concept of “understanding.”

• Just understanding how a problem was solved does NOT necessarily create a chunk that you can easily call to mind later. (That’s part of why you can grasp an idea when a teacher presents it in class, but if you don’t review it fairly soon after you’ve first learned it, it can seem incomprehensible when it comes time to prepare for a test.)
• You often realize the first time you truly understand something is when you can actually do it yourself.

8. Select which of the following statements are true about chunking:

• Concepts and problem-solving methods you might learn for physics can be very similar to chunked concepts in business.
• As you gain more experience in chunking in any particular subject, you will see that the chunks you are able to create are bigger—in some sense, the ribbons are longer.
• When you are trying to figure something out, if you have a good library of chunks, you can more easily skip to the right solution by—metaphorically speaking—“listening” to whispers from your diffuse mode. Your diffuse mode can help you connect two or more chunks together in new ways to solve novel problems.
• “Chunking” involves compressing information more compactly–this is part of why it is easier to draw a “chunked” idea or concept into mind.

9. Select the following true statements about learning, as discussed on this module’s videos.

• One significant mistake students sometimes make in learning is jumping into the water before they learn to swim. In other words, they blindly start working on homework without reading the textbook, attending lectures, viewing online lessons, or speaking with someone knowledgeable. It’s like randomly allowing a thought to pop off in the focused-mode pinball machine without paying any real attention to where the solution truly lies.
• Once you’ve got the basic idea down during a session, continuing to hammer away at it during the same session doesn’t strengthen the kinds of long-term memory connections you want to have. Worse yet, focusing on one technique is a little like learning carpentry by only practicing with a hammer. After a while, you think you can fix anything by just bashing it.
• Although practice and repetition are important in helping build solid neural patterns to draw on, it’s interleaving that starts building flexibility and creativity. It’s where you leave the world of practice and repetition and begin thinking more independently.
• Interleaving your studies—making a point to review for a test, for example, by skipping around through problems in the different chapters and materials—can sometimes seem to make your learning more difficult. But in reality, it helps you learn more deeply.

10. “___________” is when your initial thought, an idea you already have in mind, or a neural pattern you’ve already developed and strengthened, prevents a better idea or solution from being found or keeps you from being flexible enough to accept new, better, or more appropriate solutions.

• Einstellung

11. In Dr. Sejnowski’s video, the neuromodulators acetylcholine, dopamine, and serotonin were mentioned as affecting specific areas. Select the three true statements below, based on Dr. Sejnowski’s video, about which areas these neurotransmitters affect.

• Serotonin affects social life and risk-taking behavior
• Dopamine signals in relation to unexpected reward

12. Select which methods can help when trying to learn something new.

• Metaphor
• Analogy

13. It’s quite common to get stuck on a problem–often because you have initial ideas about what the solution should be that block your ability to see the real solution. What is the next best step to take when you’ve already spent time reanalyzing the problem by focusing intently, and you find that you are simply stuck?

• Switch your attention to something completely different, or even better, go for a walk or take a shower–anything that allows your mind to relax and dart randomly around.

OR

• If it is toward the end of the day and you are already tired, go to sleep and try again in the morning.

14. Fill the blank in the following statement by choosing the right term from the options given below

——– is where bottom-up and top-down learning meet.

• Einstellung

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Week 3 – Retrieval Practice

1. The videos described habits as having four parts. Which are the four parts?

• The reward
• The cue
• The routine
• The belief

2. Select the following true statements about learning and procrastination, according to this week’s videos.

• To prevent procrastination, you want to avoid concentrating on product. Instead, your attention should be on building processes. Processes relate to simple habits—habits that coincidentally allow you to do the unpleasant tasks that need to be done.
• It is perfectly normal to start with a few negative feelings about beginning a learning session—even when it’s a subject you ordinarily like. It’s how you handle those feelings that matters.

3. Select the following true statements about task lists and planner journals, according to this week’s videos:

• It’s good to make notes in your planner/journal about what works and what doesn’t.
• Planning your quitting time is as important as planning your working time.

4. Choose all statements that are true of procrastination.

• Procrastination shares characteristics with addiction.
• Procrastination can be triggered by feelings of discomfort involving something you’d rather not be doing–discomfort that can actually show up in the brain as feelings of physical pain.
• As this week’s videos explained, it’s best to avoid procrastination by applying willpower at only one small point–your reaction to a procrastination cue. This is because willpower is actually a valuable mental resource and you don’t want to be using it up unnecessarily.

5. In the videos related to procrastination, a careful distinction was made between “process” and “product.” Select the following true statements related to “process” and “product.”

• As stated in one of the videos, to avoid procrastination you want to avoid focusing on a product, because thinking about completing a product is frequently what triggers the pain that causes you to procrastinate.
• Process means the flow of time and the habits and actions associated with that flow of time—as in, “I’m going to spend twenty minutes working.”

6. Select good examples of what you could do to reduce the effects of cues that can cause you to procrastinate.

• Distractions sometimes arise despite our best efforts. In that case, it’s best to not get annoyed by the distraction but to instead just let it drift by and get right back to your work.
• Use noise-muffling ear blockers to help reduce distracting sounds.

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Quiz: Procrastination and Memory

1. The videos described habits as having four parts. Which are the four parts?

• The routine
• The belief
• The reward
• The cue

2. Select the following true statements about learning and procrastination, according to this week’s videos.

• It is perfectly normal to start with a few negative feelings about beginning a learning session—even when it’s a subject you ordinarily like. It’s how you handle those feelings that matters.
• To prevent procrastination, you want to avoid concentrating on product. Instead, your attention should be on building processes. Processes relate to simple habits—habits that coincidentally allow you to do the unpleasant tasks that need to be done.

3. Select the following true statements about task lists and planner journals, according to this week’s videos:

• Writing the next day’s task list before you go to sleep enlists your “zombies” to help you accomplish the items on the list the next day.
• Planning your quitting time is as important as planning your working time.

4. Which of the following are good study habits to develop?

• Space out study sessions with smaller bits of information to be mastered in each session.
• Interleave your learning by alternating your practice with different types of problems–don’t waste study time by simply repeating the same technique over and over again.

5. Choose all statements that are true of procrastination.

• As this week’s videos explained, it’s best to avoid procrastination by applying willpower at only one small point–your reaction to a procrastination cue. This is because willpower is actually a valuable mental resource and you don’t want to be using it up unnecessarily.
• Procrastination shares characteristics with addiction.
• Procrastination can be triggered by feelings of discomfort involving something you’d rather not be doing–discomfort that can actually show up in the brain as feelings of physical pain.

6. In this week’s videos, what was the term “zombie mode” used to refer to?

• It refers to the relaxed state your mind enters when you are performing common and habitual tasks. Examples of zombie states and habitual behavior include riding a bike, getting dressed in the morning, and being able to back your car out of a driveway (if you are familiar and comfortable with driving).

7. In the videos related to procrastination, a careful distinction was made between “process” and “product.” Select the following true statements related to “process” and “product.”

• As stated in one of the videos, to avoid procrastination you want to avoid focusing on a product, because thinking about completing a product is frequently what triggers the pain that causes you to procrastinate.
• Process means the flow of time and the habits and actions associated with that flow of time—as in, “I’m going to spend twenty minutes working.”

OR

• The Pomodoro technique is effective because it helps you get into the flow of the process.
• “Product” refers to the outcome of a task. Examples of “product” include finishing a homework set or completing the writing of a report.

8. Choose all of the true statements about good working/studying methods, procrastination, and how to overcome procrastination.

• List-making and planning can work for any age group and any subject.
• It’s best to try to work on an unpleasant task first thing in the morning–at least just for a little while. This was referred to in the videos as “eating your frogs first.”
• Split up your time into tackling small challenges. At the end of completing each small challenge, give yourself a little reward.

9. Select good examples of what you could do to reduce the effects of cues that can cause you to procrastinate.

• Remove distractions by turning off your cell phone or disconnecting the internet.
• Set yourself up in an area that is helpful for studying, like a quiet corner in the library or your favorite comfortable chair at home. (Keep in mind, though, that it can also be good to sometimes change the place where you study, so you become used to different environmental cues.)

10. Select the following true statements, in accordance with what you’ve learned from the videos, about memory.

• Creating flashcards is a useful technique to help you remember. By increasing your spacing as you become more certain of mastery, you will lock the material more firmly into place
• Handwriting appears to help you to more deeply encode (that is, convert into neural memory structures) what you are trying to learn.
• To begin tapping into your visual memory system, try making a very memorable visual image representing one key item you want to remember.

11. When remembering a list, which of the techniques below were mentioned in the videos as being beneficial in helping you to remember?

• Use the memory palace technique–imagine a place you are very familiar with (your “palace”) and then deposit memorable versions of the item on your list in various locations in your palace.
• Use the first letter from each item on the list to create an easy-to-remember sentence, such as “Old People From Texas Eat Spiders” (for the cranial bones)

12. Long term memories for facts and events:

• Are living parts of your brain that change each time you access them
• Are subject to modification by a process called “reconsolidation.”

13. Remembering back to week 1, those videos emphasized some important points about your ability to learn. Which of the following points were among those being made?

• Don’t just blindly follow your passions–also work to broaden your passions by keeping yourself open to learning new things, even if you feel you don’t have a talent for them.
• We ordinarily think of learning as something we do when we sit down to study a book. But actually, being able to learn more easily and deeply involves many important facets–including not only periods of focused concentration, but also periods of relaxation, and even times when the body is simply out getting exercise, or even when it’s sleeping. Your brain can be busy figuring things out during times when you have absolutely no conscious awareness of it.

14. Select good approaches that can assist you in forming a mental “chunk.”

• Focus on the information you want to chunk.
• Gain context for how and when to use this chunk by practicing.

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Week 4 – Retrieval Practice

1. Select all true statements about teamwork.

• The best study sessions with others start on time, stay on task, and contain a bare minimum of small talk in order to focus on the purpose of the gathering. The time for play is after the work is done.
• Sometimes you can blindly believe you’ve got everything nailed down intellectually, but you haven’t. This is one reason it is sometimes good to study with others.

2. Select all of the true statements about including “mini tests” in your regular study sessions

• Tests during study sessions are good for concentrating the mind.
• As one of the videos asserted, you will learn and retain more in one hour of testing than you would if you spent one hour studying.

3. Select all of the questions that come from Dr. Richard Felder’s “test checklist.” Do whatever it takes to answer yes to most of the questions on this list.

• Did you get a reasonable night’s sleep before the test?
• Did you go over the study guide and problems with classmates and quiz one another?
• Did you attempt to outline lots of problem solutions quickly without spending time doing the algebra?
• Did you attempt to outline each homework question before discussing it with classmates?
• Did you understand all of your homework problem solutions before the assignment was handed in?

4. Choose all of the true statements about the “hard start, jump to easy” test taking technique.

• It is best to first try this technique during your study sessions before a test in order to determine if it is right for you and to get a feel for how it will work.
• This method is helpful only if you have already spent time preparing for the test.

5. Select all of the true statements about pre-test stress.

• As one of the videos mentioned, when stressed, your body produces cortisol which can give you sweaty palms and a racing heart.
• When stressed before a test, you should turn your attention to your breathing. Taking deep breaths can control your stress level and fight the “fight or flight” instinct.

6. Select test taking tips that were mentioned in the videos.

• One way to look in a fresh way at what you have done during a test is to check your answers from back to front.
• During the test, try to momentarily shift your attention away from the test questions and then go back through the questions with a ‘big picture’ perspective.

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QUIZ- Retrieval Practice

1. Select the following true statements in relation to metaphor and analogy.

• It’s often helpful to pretend YOU are the concept you are trying to understand.
• Metaphors and visualization—being able to see something in your mind’s eye—have been especially helpful, not only in art and literature but also in allowing the scientific and engineering world to make progress.
• Metaphors and analogies, as well as stories, can sometimes be useful for getting people out of Einstellung—being blocked by thinking about a problem in the wrong way.

2. As Dr. Sejnowski mentioned in one of his videos, new neurons are born in your hippocampus every day. These neurons can survive and help you remember things if you (check all that apply):

• Learn a new skill, like how to fix the plumbing in your sink.
• Exercise
• Explore a little bit by trying a new route to get to work.

3. Choose the statements below that best describe the “Imposter Syndrome.

• Getting a good grade on a test but being convinced that it was luck and that you are sure to fail the next test and be exposed as a fraud, is a good example of the impostor syndrome.
• Imposter syndrome involves frequent feelings of inadequacy.

4. Santiago Ramon y Cajal felt that the key to his success was his ____________, which he called “the virtue of the less brilliant.” (Select the appropriate word to fill in the blank.)

• ability to dream

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Quiz: Final

1. Select the following true statements about sleep (according to the video lectures).

• Taking a test without getting enough sleep means you are operating with a brain that’s got metabolic toxins floating around in it—poisons that make it so you can’t think very clearly. It’s kind of like trying to drive a car that’s got sugar in its gas tank—doesn’t work too well!

2. You are sitting down to do your homework. You work along, successfully solving the problems. But you then come across a problem that is more difficult. After spending fifteen minutes working on it, you begin to find yourself growing frustrated. What is the single most reasonable next option for you to take in order for you to make progress towards the solution?

• Although you may really want to focus on the problem, because focused attention works to help solve easier problems, you actually need to get your conscious attention OFF the problem in order to allow other “resting” neural states (the “diffuse mode”) to work on it.

3. Select the following true statements about memory according to the information provided in the videos.

• Repetition is needed so your metabolic vampires—natural dissipating processes—don’t suck the memories away.
• When you encounter something new, you often use your working memory to handle it. If you want to move that information into your long term memory, it often takes time and practice.
• Working memory is the part of memory that has to do with what you are immediately and consciously processing in your mind.

4. The following actions help enable the focused mode (check all that apply):

• Ensuring that you plan rewards for yourself after periods of focused attention.
• Setting a timer and “doing a Pomodoro.”

5. Which of the following statements are true about chunks and/or chunking?

• A chunk is a way of compressing information more compactly.
• One concern about using worked-out examples to help you start to form chunks is that it can be all too easy to focus too much on why an individual step works and not on the connection between steps. That’s why it’s also important to keep a focus on the connection BETWEEN steps when following worked-out solutions.

6. Select the following true statements about thinking and learning:

• “Spaced repetition” is an effective learning technique.
• Being puzzled by new concepts and problems when we first see them is common—we often need to step away from what we are learning in order to see it with the new perspective that we need to understand what we’re trying to learn.

7. Select the following true statements, as taught in this course, regarding the concept of “understanding.”

• Can you create a chunk if you don’t understand? Yes, but it’s often a useless chunk that won’t fit in with or relate to other material you are learning.
• You often realize the first time you truly understand something is when you can actually do it yourself.

8. Check the following true statements regarding illusions of competence in learning, as described in the videos.

• Merely glancing at a solution and thinking you truly know it yourself is one of the most common illusions of competence in learning.
• Recall—simply looking away from the material and attempting to recall the main ideas—is a more effective study technique than rereading the material.

9. Check the following true statements regarding the concept of recall.

• A helpful way to make sure you’re learning, and not fooling yourself with illusions of competence, is to TEST yourself on what you’re learning. In some sense, that’s what recall is actually doing—allowing you to see whether or not you really grasped an idea.
• Recalling material when you are outside your usual place of study can also help you strengthen your grasp of the material. When you are learning something new, you often take in subliminal cues from the room and space around you at the time you were originally learning the material. This can actually throw you off when you take tests because you often take tests in a room different from the room you were learning in. By recalling and thinking about the material while you are in various physical environments, you become independent of cues from any one location. That helps you avoid the problem of the test room being different from where you originally learned the material.

10. Select the true statements below regarding the concept of overlearning:

• Repeating something you already know perfectly well is easy. It can also bring the illusion of competence that you’ve mastered the full range of the material when you’ve actually only mastered the easy stuff.
• Once you’ve got the basic idea down during a session, continuing to hammer away at it during the same session doesn’t necessarily strengthen the kinds of long-term memory connections you want to have strengthened.

11. Select the correct answers here in relation to procrastination, according to the videos.

• One of the easiest ways to focus on the process is to focus on doing a Pomodoro—a twenty-five-minute timed work session. (Do NOT focus on completing a task.)
• It is best to try to focus on the process, not the product because the product is often what triggers the pain that causes you to procrastinate.

12. Select all options that are good study and learning methods that can be used to remember something well.

• Take breaks during your study time to let your mind rest and to reward yourself for your good study habits.
• When learning something for the first time, try to make the concept or idea into something memorable like associating it with an object or a funny picture in your mind. An example in the videos involved learning the equation f = ma by associating the equation with a flying mule.

13. Choose all of the true statements about using memorizing techniques such as a “memory palace.”

• The first few times you try these techniques it will be difficult and more time-consuming, but the longer you use it the easier and quicker you will be able to employ these techniques.
• Memory techniques such as the memory palace allow you to develop and use your creativity because you are using such unexpected and unusual scenarios for internal connections later on.

14. What are the four categories of cues that were explained in the video as causing people to fall into a habitual reaction (what might be thought of as a “zombie” response mode)?

• Location, time, how you feel, reaction (either to other people or to something that just happened)

15. Check the four components of habit (as described in the videos) from the list of words given below.

• reward
• cue
• routine
• belief

16. Select all of the true statements about the purpose and benefits of writing a list of the tasks you want to perform.

• It is better to make a task list before you go to sleep, so your subconscious, “diffuse” thinking processes can have a chance to help assist you in actually accomplishing the tasks the next day.
• Task lists free up working memory because they transfer some of the ideas to paper (or smartphone, or computer). All you have to do is remember to check your task list instead of trying to keep in mind all the many things you want to do. The “zombie task list” on one of the videos helped reinforce this idea.

17. Select the following true statements in relation to metaphor and analogy.

• It’s often helpful to pretend YOU are the concept you are trying to understand.
• Metaphors and visualization—being able to see something in your mind’s eye—have been especially helpful, not only in art and literature but also in allowing the scientific and engineering world to make progress.
• Metaphors and analogies, as well as stories, can sometimes be useful for getting people out of Einstellung—being blocked by thinking about a problem in the wrong way

18. As Dr. Sejnowski mentioned in one of his videos, new neurons are born in your hippocampus every day. These neurons can survive and help you remember things if you (check all that apply):

• Exercise
• Learn a new skill, like how to fix the plumbing in your sink.
• Explore a little bit by trying a new route to get to work.

19. Choose the statements below that best describe the “Imposter Syndrome.”

• Getting a good grade on a test but being convinced that it was luck and that you are sure to fail the next test and be exposed as a fraud, is a good example of the imposter syndrome.
• Imposter syndrome involves frequent feelings of inadequacy.

20. Santiago Ramon y Cajal felt that the key to his success was his ____________, which he called “the virtue of the less brilliant.” (Select the appropriate word to fill in the blank.)

• perseverance

21. Select all true statements about teamwork.

• The best study sessions with others start on time, stay on task, and contain a bare minimum of small talk in order to focus on the purpose of the gathering. The time for play is after the work is done.
• Sometimes you can blindly believe you’ve got everything nailed down intellectually, but you haven’t. This is one reason it is sometimes good to study with others.

22. Select all of the true statements about including “mini tests” in your regular study sessions

• Research has shown that testing yourself during your studies is one of the best ways to understand and retain information.
• A benefit of testing yourself during your studying is that the testing process becomes routine and a natural extension of the learning process. This can ease anxiety and improve your performance for actual examinations.

23. Select all of the questions that come from Dr. Richard Felder’s “test checklist.” Do whatever it takes to answer yes to most of the questions on this list.

• Did you make a serious effort to understand the text?
• Did you participate actively in homework group discussions?
• Did you ask in class for explanations of homework problems that were unclear to you?
• Did you attempt to outline each homework question before discussing it with classmates?
• Did you go over the study guide and problems with classmates and quiz one another?

24. Choose all of the true statements about the “hard start, jump to easy” test taking technique.

• This testing technique involves scanning the whole test quickly and starting first on the hardest problem on the test, working through the problem as far as you can, and, when you get stuck, immediately jumping to another problem.
• The hardest part of this technique for many students is that you must have the self-discipline to pull yourself off of a problem you are stuck on and move to another question.

25. Select all of the true statements about pre-test stress and how to overcome it.

• One easy way to overcome the effects of stress and cortisol is to tell yourself that you are not afraid of failing the test but instead, that you are EXCITED to take the test and get a good grade.
• As one of the videos mentioned, when stressed, your body produces cortisol which can give you sweaty palms and a racing heart.

26. Select test-taking tips that were mentioned in the videos.

• When answering multiple-choice questions, cover the answers and try to recall the answer on your own.
• Face your fears. If you fear getting bad grades because it will impact your future career, try coming up with an acceptable ‘Plan B.’ While Plan B may not be ideal, your test-taking stress can be reduced by knowing that doing poorly on one test or one subject will not ruin your entire life and future.

27. Which of the following options have been shown by research to be generally NOT as effective a method for studying—that is, which methods are more likely to be used by those suffering from illusions of competence in learning?

• Highlighting more than one or so sentences in a paragraph.
• Concept mapping

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Introduction to Statistics Coursera Quiz Answers

In Conclusion

Mastering tough subjects may require some extra effort, but with these powerful mental tools at your disposal, you’re destined for success. Embrace your curiosity, break down the subject, tell captivating stories, find connections, and remember to take those well-deserved breaks. Now, go forth and conquer those challenging subjects like the hero you are! And remember, learning can be fun too.