Use ‘Dual Coding’ to Study Twice As Effectively

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When you learn and use a study method, you help your brain synthesize new information more easily. Great. Now think about how much you could learn and retain if you could double down on the methods you use. Well, you could learn twice as much. You can do this, but it requires a bit of pre-planning and patience. This is called “double coding” and it’s a popular teaching and studying technique that’s proven to help you retain more of what you learn.

Study twice as hard

Dual coding theory was first conceptualized by a professor named Allan Paivio in 1971. He hypothesized that the mind can process new information verbally and visually, one at a time or simultaneously. If you process both together, the mind will process more. It’s not exactly revolutionary, although it does raise the question of whether you’re likely to feel overwhelmed and end up learning. less therefore. Don’t worry: a lot of research has been done on this theory since Paivio proposed it; Researchers have found that item recall increases when you use two processing methods at once. You just need to be strategic in your approach.

How to double code while studying

This all sounds very scientific and theoretical, but dual coding is actually quite easy to put into practice. All you’re really trying to do is combine verbal and visual material when you study. Try these approaches:

• While listening to a recorded lecture, draw doodles representing what you hear. You can also generate a podcast about your study material using software like Google’s NotebookLM, then scribble while you listen to it. Additionally, try creating a “personal podcast” by recording yourself reading your own notes or documents and then reading them back. Here you study once while you take notes, again while you review your script, again while you say it out loud, and again while you listen, more more carefully if you scribble down what you hear.

• After you finish a section or chapter of your book, draw a mind map explaining what you just read (or use the mapping technique to take notes in class). There are specialized apps that can help you achieve this. NotebookLM can generate a mind map for you, but that doesn’t exactly allow you to participate, so it’s not ideal. Try Xmind instead.

• As you read your notes or book, create a timeline of relevant events on a separate sheet of paper.

• Create flashcards containing images. A number of the best flashcard apps offer paid upgrades that allow you to add images, charts, infographics, timelines, diagrams, or anything else to your study materials. By combining the proven method of Leitner flashcards with text and images, you go beyond double coding.

The best visual aids are timelines, mind maps, diagrams and drawings, so use the one that suits you and the topic you are studying. One way to add some punch to dual coding is to also incorporate blurring, a process in which you read your material as usual and then write down or say out loud everything you remember without looking. Try using visuals rather than written explanations, creating a timeline or memory chart before checking your recall against your notes or text. Just make sure to leave spaces in your visuals so you can easily fill in anything you forgot during the message.