Teach Yourself How to Learn

McGuire, a chemist by training, has spent her whole life learning. After retiring from chemistry, she became an academic writer in order to share her stories and strategies with the world. She begins her practical analysis of metacognition by asserting that learning is a skill—not an innate attribute. Because it is a skill, anyone can adopt it and get better at it. McGuire refutes the idea that people are naturally gifted learners as a common misconception. In fact, everyone has to put in effort in order to improve learning processes.

Next, McGuire defines metacognition. Generally, the term means the capacity to think about one’s own thinking. The first step to thinking about thinking is to recognize that our minds are constantly solving problems, even in the most seemingly mundane moments. After recognizing these different problem-solving processes, we are able to watch over, plan, and influence how we mentally process things. Over time, we will become better and better at judging how much we learn, as this mental supervision improves. McGuire recommends that people who are interested in improving their metacognition take more responsibility for their thinking processes. It also helps to have a curious disposition about our own mind, as well as about the world.



McGuire presents an analytic tool for metacognition known as Bloom’s Taxonomy. Bloom’s Taxonomy is made up of six tiers, each of which describes a category of learning behavior. As we learn, we move from shallower levels of the taxonomy to deeper levels. The shallowest level is remembering, which is the act of recalling basic information without interpretation. Second, there is understanding—grasping information on the conceptual level, and being able to produce analogies. Third, there is applying—using our understanding to solve real-world problems. Fourth comes analyzing, or the ability to break down information into smaller problems and concepts. Fifth is evaluating—the process of interpreting others’ expressions and beliefs and deciding whether or not they make sense. The sixth and deepest level of learning is creating, or the active use of existing knowledge to explore and solve new or unfamiliar problem domains.

McGuire argues that the secret of improving metacognition comes down to remembering Bloom’s Taxonomy. Most people go about their lives merely using levels 1 and 2 of the hierarchy—remembering and understanding—because they work for most of the problems we encounter in ordinary experience. However, if we learn to actively employ levels 3 through 6, we will dramatically improve our enjoyment and rate of learning. McGuire compares this transformation to the act of becoming a teacher after taking many exams. Exams require only levels 1 and 2, but teaching requires deeper tiers, such as application and analysis.

McGuire wraps up her book by enumerating simple but useful techniques to improve metacognition. These include cultivating a positive mindset, eating healthy and sleeping well, and exercising. She warns against procrastination, which tends to nudge us away from deep learning processes. She endorses the active taking of notes, whether or not we are in school. She especially recommends teaching concepts to other people as part of our experience of learning the concepts ourselves. The processes of application, analysis, and evaluation all come with teaching, and thus afford a deeper understanding of topics at hand. Teach Yourself How to Learn is a handy manual for the basic processes of the mind that anyone can use to reap great cognitive rewards.