# How do you learn best?



## Dannyalcatraz (Jul 24, 2013)

In a lot of cases, I learn best by doing or by seeing/listening to a teacher and asking questions- reading is great, and MOST of my learning is via that route- but there is something about experiencing things "live" that makes things stick better.

With computer games, I jump in, then read the books if/when I encounter an issue.  With learning RPGs, the need to create your PC necessitates the use of the books first, but even there, I tend to lock in on some aspect and go with that for inspiration rather than read things through.  I'll only read so much as I need to be functional.


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## Janx (Jul 24, 2013)

I'm a figure it out myself kind of guy.

I taught myself how to program when I was 10 by sitting at the PC and reading the language reference guide on all the commands.

I taught myself how to read sheet music by googling the note reference and then spending a 3 day weekend computing and visualizing where those notes were on the guitar neck in reference to the location on the musical chart.  By the end of the weekend, I couldn't sight read (that is play a song straight off the sheet), but I could parse any sheet music into what I needed to do and memorize that).  You could call out a note and I could nail it on the guitar or place it on the chart.

Pretty much most of what I know for programming technologies, I figured out.   Generally, a business need is presented, and I find a technology that could solve it, and then I figure out how to use that technology from articles and exploring the specification.

I read 60 pages an hour, and I've keenly honed my ability scroll through titles, tables of contents, headings to jump to the exact section I actually need from a google search or given site/book that allegedly holds the answer.  Basically, I know what the answer should look like before I find it, allowing me to ignore anything not shaped like the answer.

As a result, I really hate YouTube tutorials.  They force me to sit through blather on irrelevant content. Other than moving the slider to see a freeze frame that might be near where I need to start watching.  Unlike real text which contains section headings and such that I can pick out from the whole cloth.  Video is a terribly linear experience.

In most games, I just jump in and figure it out.  Most games play the same nowadays, and it is usually a matter of finding the differences in the control scheme, rather than fretting about "how do I move forward".  bear in mind, I'm used to the old days of getting pirated Apple IIe games with no directions and having to figure out how to play Aztec (a game that used MOST of the keys on the keyboard).

Part of my trick to learning is that I build a mental model of how a thing should work before I even approach learning how it should work.  So I know what to expect from a banking program before I run your banking program.  At that point, I am merely revising my model with the artifacts I find in the actual model.

Contrast that to the typical clueless user, who approaches the computer banking program and it's like they've forgotten how to manage their money at all, let alone what data structures and interfaces one should expect to see when dealing with the topic of money and Your Banking Transactions.

this methodology is part of what helps me spot what the right answer is when I'm googling for it.  I have already deduced what the general solution should look like, and am merely looking for something in that shape with the exact actual details that I need.

I loathe sitting in a classroom while somebody runs through their lecture.  I could have read the same content in a fraction of the time, or simply meditated on the concept the session was intended to teach and come to the same conclusion.

If I have to ask somebody for help, I want to sum up the situation ,clarify a term that I didn't know, and find out what I should expect to find when I remove the cover, or how to remove the component without causing damage.  

If I have to start over with troubleshooting every prior step with that person so they can catch up to where I am in the problem, they are wasting my time, more often than not.


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## Ahnehnois (Jul 24, 2013)

I think failure is tremendously important. It's valuable to have enough responsibility that you can make mistakes. It's critical that you have enough support that you feel comfortable making them. It's important to be able to recognize them, and feedback helps.

To me, gaming is great at giving you those things.


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## diaglo (Jul 24, 2013)

i readsomething, i play/try something. i make mistakes and adjust.

but i learn best by repetition.

it has to become second nature


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## howandwhy99 (Jul 25, 2013)

I learn best by making stuff up. In fact, I'd say about 50% of the statistics I quote are made up.


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## Unpossible E (Jul 25, 2013)

You actually learned how to play from Wes Ives? That's awesome. I was big into FGU games back in the day.

Like many here, I learn best by way of a brief introduction, followed by a lot of experimentation. I find I'm a "just in time" learner, meaning that for me the material has to have some bearing on a goal I'm trying to reach. In the case of gaming, the goal is understanding the game well enough to play (and frequently GM). 

The topic of how people learn to play tabletop RPGs is near and dear to my heart. I recently overhauled my site, Learn Tabletop RPGs which is designed with the goal of introducing would-be gamers to the hobby. 

While it isn't possible to "learn by doing" with the site, I've tried to make it easy for someone to enter the site, orient themselves to what tabletop RPGs are all about, download one of several starter game PDFs, then come back and explore more in-depth topics as they please. I've also augmented this approach by including links to a few videos that (hopefully) effectively demonstrate how tabletop RPGs are played. 

It's difficult to tell whether the site is useful to newcomers because they don't typically hang out in tabletop forums and the like. Unfortunately I haven't had an EN World account long enough to post a link to the site (learntabletoprpgs.com), but I'd appreciate any constructive feedback that you think might help make the site more useful to newcomers.


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## sabrinathecat (Jul 25, 2013)

I start by building a straight fighter character and playing that for a while. It is usually the simplest character.

Generally, if it is funny, I have a much easier time remembering it. Best instructors I had in college were the ones who made the subject funny. And I had some amazingly funny history professors.


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## Dannyalcatraz (Jul 25, 2013)

sabrinathecat said:


> Generally, if it is funny, I have a much easier time remembering it. Best instructors I had in college were the ones who made the subject funny.




Ditto that!


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## Razjah (Jul 25, 2013)

I learn best hearing and discussing. For classes or game systems discussions really help me. Learning a game system, I can make comparisons to help me get a frame of reference- for example, I was not getting how to use Aspects in Dresden Files properly until I was explaining BITs from Burning Wheel to my group when it suddenly clicked.  I also really like being able to have someone either give me a short hand version (I can then read the rules with a framework) or double check that I am understanding the rules properly by giving my own paraphrased version.


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## Gilladian (Jul 26, 2013)

I read the rules. I read cover to cover before I put the game in the drive. Same with RPGs. I have to read it all first. Same with crafts. When I buy a new project book, I have to read the whole thing, cover-to-cover, every project, every step (although I will skim things I'm not directly interested in). 

I learn by first reading, then doing. I have to DO it to cement the reading, yes, but if I don't read first I get very confused and don't have a lot of fun.


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## Hishen (Jul 26, 2013)

diaglo said:


> i readsomething, i play/try something. i make mistakes and adjust.
> 
> but i learn best by repetition.
> 
> it has to become second nature




yes of course repetation is best way to become professional or perfect....


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## nerfherder (Jul 28, 2013)

I work best with a mix of theory and practical.  If I can grok the reasons behind why something works, them I will remember how to do it better.

I also find that practical examples help me learn better, too - especially at work.  If the lecturer on a training course can give real-world examples that I can identify with, then I find that the subject sticks better with me.

For RPGs, my experience of playing lots of new systems at conventions seems to be that a short introduction to the rules is all that is necessary for me to enjoy the game.  Then specific rules can be explained as they come up.

Learning new games at home, I have found that sometimes just creating a character isn't sufficient for me to grasp important concepts.  For example, my first Champions character had Armour - not Resistant Armor.  I hadn't realised how important that was until the first fight when they were shot by a mook with a smallarm, and taken out of action.


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## Jhaelen (Jul 29, 2013)

For me learning works best if I read plenty of background information, ideally from various sources. It can take a while but eventually everything falls into place.
I have to create a working model of something in my head before I can actually start 'doing' something. Try and error doesn't really work for me. Neither does learning by doing. I always need to first come up with a good plan for something.
What this means is that I am slow to learn something completely new, but once I've tackled a subject, it's easy for me to delve deeper or figure out related topics. I'm generally good at researching specific items, especially if I read something about it at some earlier point or if I can transfer knowledge from a different field.

Regarding RPGs my introduction was by playing Fantasy Fighting books. After that, all it took was the realization that I'm supposed to portray only a single character before it 'clicked'. Learning how to (efficiently) GM took a bit longer, though, and being exposed to negative examples surely helped!

Ah, I suppose that's a good point: Good and bad examples are very helpful for my learning process!


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