Students can't apply what they've learned - Enhancing Education - Carnegie Mellon University

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| ENHANCING EDUCATION | > Solve a Teaching Problem > Students can't apply what they've learned

Step 2: Identify Reasons

Identify possible reasons for the problem you have selected.
To find the most effective strategies, select the reason that best describes your situation, keeping in mind there may be multiple relevant reasons.

Students can’t apply what they've learned.

Students struggle in individual activities because they did not gain deep understanding during previous group work.

Students often focus on superficial features instead of the underlying principles, concepts, or theories.

Students have learned the individual skill or piece of knowledge but can’t apply it in complex contexts because they haven’t practiced the skills of integration and synthesis.

Students have learned to rely on cues (from the teacher, textbook, or other parts of instruction) rather than learning themselves how to identify the appropriate approach.

Other knowledge — from prior or current courses or from everyday life — can interfere with students’ ability to perform well in your course.

Students compartmentalize knowledge and skills and hence can’t draw on them.

Students don’t view knowledge as cumulative and useful across courses and hence don’t draw on relevant prior knowledge from other courses.

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learning principles

Students’ prior knowledge can help or hinder learning. MORE>
How students organize knowledge influences how they learn and apply what they know. MORE>
Students’ motivation determines, directs, and sustains what they do to learn. MORE>
To develop mastery, students must acquire component skills, practice integrating them, and know when to apply what they have learned. MORE>
Goal-directed practice coupled with targeted feedback enhances the quality of students’ learning. MORE>
Students’ current level of development interacts with the social, emotional, and intellectual climate of the course to impact learning. MORE>
To become self-directed learners, students must learn to monitor and adjust their approaches to learning. MORE>