Cheery Friday Greetings from Learning How to Learn! Dec 9, 2016

Cheery Friday greetings to our Learning How to Learners!

Book of the Week

We have to admit that we’re fans of writer Tim Ferriss. Tim has a wonderful way of ferreting out fantastically interesting people—like Nicholas McCarthy, the only one-handed pianist to graduate from Britain’s Royal College of Music in its 130 year history. Or like Mark Andreessen, co-founder of Netscape.

Tim’s new book is Tools of Titans: The Tactics, Routines, and Habits of Billionaires, Icons, and World-Class Performers. Tim’s stream-of-consciousness style brings out important questions that are so obvious that sometimes we just don’t think to ask them. This book is something like a buffet—parts are fantastic, while other parts are best left on the table. But it’s all presented in a way that helps you pick and choose what’s right for you.

Another favorite Tim Ferris book of ours is The Four Hour Chef. It cuts past the usual recipe books and gives real insight into what you need to set up a good kitchen and be an efficient chef. (Oh yes, speaking of cooking, Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential (updated edition) shouldn’t be missed!)

Free e-Guide on Finding a Fulfilling Career that Does Good

“You have about 80,000 hours in your career, which makes choosing your career is one of the most important decisions you’ll ever make. Ben Todd and his team of researchers have dedicated their careers to helping you find a career you enjoy, you’re good at, and that tackles the world’s most pressing problems.”

Here’s a career e-guide that Todd and his team have developed and made available for free to Learning How to Learners until December 12th. After that time, you can purchase the paperback on Amazon, here. This might make an interesting holiday gift for the student in your life.

Integrating Learning How to Learn into a College Class

If you are wondering how you might integrate a MOOC like Learning How to Learn into your university or college level class, wonder no further. In the paper “Developmental Math Pilot: Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), Psychology Concepts, and Group Work,” authors Elyse D’nn Lovell and Denise Elakovich describe the very positive results of their work. They note: “Research findings suggest that MOOCs used in developmental math coursework can improve math success, and group work within face-to-face classrooms can increase connectivity to learning. A MOOC [Learning How to Learn] was merged with face-to-face psychology of learning group projects, and students described increased connectivity to their learning. For example, Haley exclaimed, ‘So definitely learned how to learn all over again this semester and I’m doing awesome … It’s like I’m breezing through!’”

Class Central Year in Review

Class Central is five years old, and has become the most popular search engine for online courses and MOOCs! Here’s the Year in Review for 2016, which also gives good insight into the special Class Central features that learners find most popular.

MOOC of the Week: Deciphering Secrets

We’ve got a fascinating recommendation for you this week: Coursera and the University of Colorado’s Deciphering Secrets: The Illuminated Manuscripts of Medieval Europe, co-taught by Barb’s friend Ana B. Sanchez-Prieto. As the course description notes: “Perhaps no other relic of the European Middle Ages captures our imagination more than illuminated medieval manuscripts.” This is your chance to learn more from masters of the field!

That’s all for this week. Have a happy week in Learning How to Learn!

Barb, Terry, and the entire Learning How to Learn team

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