Daniel T.Willingham

This class format meant your teachers expected that you knew how to (1) set priorities and plan your schedule; (2) read difficult content independently; (3) avoid procrastination; (4) memorize content; (5) avoid distractions; (6) judge when you had studied enough; (7) show what you knew on a test; and (8) deal with emotions like anxiety that interfere with learning. And if you didn’t do those things well, it was your problem, not the teacher’s. In short, you were expected to be an independent learner.

Independent learning calls for many separate skills, and you needed someone to teach them to you.

I was a learning researcher, but not the type who helps you learn.