Organization of Learning
- id: 1755352559
- Date: Aug. 16, 2025, 2:26 p.m.
- Author: Donald F. Elger
Goals
- Explain how to organize learning.
- Organize learning in the best way.
What and Why
Learning is the process of changing the brain in ways that improve knowledge or performance.
Organization is the process of arranging things systematically to maximize payoffs — the rewards minus the drawbacks, considered holistically.
Therefore, organizing learning is the process of arranging the elements of learning in a way that produces the greatest overall learning.
To make this practical:
- Learning = brain change that enables better knowing or doing.
- Organization = structure that directs energy toward maximum
benefit.
- Organizing learning = designing the path of meaning making, practice, feedback, and reflection so that each step compounds into lasting, useful improvements (brain changes).
How
Essence:
Organizing learning means building a clear, repeatable pathway
where each learning activity strengthens prior knowledge, connects to
meaning, and leads naturally into deeper or broader abilities.
Details:
- Identify Fundamentals
- Begin with the highest-leverage elements: the small set of skills,
facts, or concepts that unlock much of the domain.
- Example: In math, number sense and operations; in music, rhythm and pitch; in golf, stance, grip, and swing.
- Begin with the highest-leverage elements: the small set of skills,
facts, or concepts that unlock much of the domain.
- Break Down and Sequence
- Divide complex skills into parts.
- Arrange them so each step builds logically on the last.
- Keep the steps small enough to be achievable, but large enough to feel rewarding.
- Divide complex skills into parts.
- Cycle Through Practice
- Apply the fundamentals in real or realistic contexts.
- Use part–whole–part learning: practice a piece, then the whole, then
refine pieces again.
- Embrace iteration: information → practice → feedback → adjustment → repeat.
- Apply the fundamentals in real or realistic contexts.
- Build Connections (Meaning Making)
- Link new learning to what you already know.
- Show how each element fits into the bigger picture.
- Use analogies, stories, and comparisons to deepen understanding.
- Link new learning to what you already know.
- Integrate Feedback and Reflection
- Feedback = information on how well you are doing.
- Reflection = noticing patterns, progress, and sticking points.
- Together they guide what to repeat, refine, or move on from.
- Feedback = information on how well you are doing.
- Spiral Upward
- Revisit key ideas at higher levels of difficulty or
sophistication.
- Each pass reinforces old knowledge while extending it into new contexts.
- Revisit key ideas at higher levels of difficulty or
sophistication.
- Balance Breadth and Depth
- Depth: strengthen core fundamentals until automatic.
- Breadth: branch into variations, applications, and related
domains.
- Both are necessary for mastery and adaptability.
- Depth: strengthen core fundamentals until automatic.
Summary
Organizing learning is about creating a spiraling, systematic structure: start with essentials, break them down, practice them in cycles, connect them to meaning, use feedback and reflection, and keep revisiting at deeper levels. Done well, this structure turns learning into a self-reinforcing growth process.