Does Make It Stick Practice What It Preaches? My Reflection
Make It Stick has helped me reframe my approach to learning and question the “traditional” methods I’ve practiced throughout my academic and professional life. The book provides valuable insights, defining and giving language to what makes learning “stick.” One thing I found particularly interesting was how the authors use callbacks to earlier concepts throughout the chapters, nudging the reader to go back and retrieve past ideas. This technique reinforces their points on retrieval practice, which adds to the book's value. However, a few things stuck out to me that I found less effective or wanted more explanation on. Although Make It Stick emphasizes techniques like retrieval practice and interleaving, the book doesn’t often give readers a space to pause, reflect, or actively practice these methods. The references to past chapters were brief, and opportunities for real retrieval practice felt few and far between. Ending each chapter with questions for reflection or elaboration w...
