Appendix E: Resource Directory

A curated guide to the best resources for going deeper into the science of learning. Everything listed here was selected for quality, accessibility, and relevance to the topics in this book.

Books

Foundational — Start Here

Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning by Peter C. Brown, Henry L. Roediger III, and Mark A. McDaniel (2014) The single best popular book on evidence-based learning strategies. Written by the researchers who did much of the foundational work on retrieval practice and spacing. Highly readable, full of stories and practical advice. If you read one book beyond this one, make it this.

A Mind for Numbers: How to Excel at Math and Science by Barbara Oakley (2014) Despite the title, this book applies to all learning, not just math and science. Oakley (an engineering professor who herself struggled with math) explains chunking, focused vs. diffuse thinking, and procrastination in approachable, personal terms. The companion MOOC "Learning How to Learn" (see Courses below) is the most popular online course in history.

Why Don't Students Like School? by Daniel Willingham (2009; revised edition 2021) A cognitive scientist answers nine fundamental questions about how the mind works and what it means for the classroom. Written for teachers but equally valuable for students and self-directed learners. Chapter on "Is drilling worth it?" is worth the price of the book.

Going Deeper — The Science

How We Learn: The New Science of Education and the Brain by Stanislas Dehaene (2020) A neuroscientist's account of the four pillars of learning: attention, active engagement, error feedback, and consolidation. More scientifically detailed than the "Start Here" books, but still accessible. Excellent on the neuroscience of reading and number sense.

Powerful Teaching: Unleash the Science of Learning by Pooja K. Agarwal and Patrice M. Bain (2019) Written by a cognitive scientist and a veteran teacher, this book bridges the research-practice gap better than almost anything else in the field. Full of concrete classroom strategies backed by evidence. The companion website (retrievalpractice.org) is outstanding.

Understanding How We Learn: A Visual Guide by Yana Weinstein, Megan Sumeracki, and Oliver Caviglioli (2019) From the founders of The Learning Scientists (see Organizations below). Visually rich, evidence-based, and designed to be shared with students. The dual-coded format practices what it preaches.

Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise by Anders Ericsson and Robert Pool (2016) Ericsson's own account of his deliberate practice research, correcting many of the misinterpretations popularized by Malcolm Gladwell's "10,000-hour rule." Essential reading for anyone pursuing mastery in any domain.

On Metacognition and Self-Regulation

Metacognition in Educational Theory and Practice edited by Douglas J. Hacker, John Dunlosky, and Arthur C. Graesser (1998) The academic reference work on metacognition. Not a casual read, but invaluable for anyone who wants the full theoretical framework. Individual chapters on calibration, comprehension monitoring, and self-regulated learning are excellent.

Teach Students How to Learn by Saundra Yancy McGuire (2015) A practical guide written by a learning center director who spent decades teaching students metacognitive strategies. Focused on higher education but applicable broadly. McGuire's approach to introducing students to Bloom's Taxonomy as a metacognitive tool is particularly effective.

On Mindset, Motivation, and the Psychology of Learning

Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck (2006; updated edition 2016) The original popular book on growth vs. fixed mindset. Read this alongside our Chapter 18 discussion about the replication debates — the core idea is valuable, even as the field has refined its understanding of how large the effects are and when interventions work.

Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel Pink (2009) An accessible introduction to self-determination theory (autonomy, competence, relatedness) and the limits of external rewards. Useful complement to Chapter 17 on motivation and procrastination.

Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance by Angela Duckworth (2016) Duckworth's research on sustained effort and long-term goals. Read critically: the "grit" construct has been debated in the field, and we discuss these debates in the book. But the core message — that persistence in a direction you care about is more predictive of achievement than talent — is well-supported.

Websites and Online Tools

Learning Science Blogs and Websites

The Learning Scientists — learningscientists.org Founded by Yana Weinstein and Megan Sumeracki, this site translates cognitive psychology research into practical strategies for students and teachers. Their six strategies of effective learning (which overlap substantially with this book's recommendations) are presented in downloadable posters, blog posts, and videos. One of the best resources on the internet for evidence-based learning.

Retrieval Practice — retrievalpractice.org Pooja Agarwal's website dedicated to the science and practice of retrieval-based learning. Includes research summaries, classroom strategies, downloadable guides, and a regularly updated blog. The "Research" section provides accessible summaries of key studies.

The Effortful Educator — theeffortfuleducator.com Blake Harvard's blog applying cognitive science to teaching. Particularly strong on practical classroom applications of spacing, interleaving, and retrieval practice.

Daniel Willingham's Science and Education Blog — danielwillingham.com The cognitive scientist's blog covering learning myths, research controversies, and practical applications. His posts debunking learning styles remain among the clearest treatments of the topic.

Spaced Repetition Apps

Anki — apps.ankiweb.net The gold standard for spaced repetition. Free on desktop and Android; paid on iOS. Highly customizable, with a large community sharing pre-made decks. The learning curve is steeper than commercial alternatives, but the algorithm is well-designed and the flexibility is unmatched. Best for factual knowledge, vocabulary, and anything that can be expressed as a question-and-answer pair.

RemNote — remnote.com Combines note-taking and spaced repetition in a single tool. You take notes, and RemNote automatically generates flashcards from them. Good for students who want to integrate their note-taking and review systems. Free tier available.

Quizlet — quizlet.com The most popular flashcard app among students. Easier to use than Anki, with a large library of shared decks. The "Learn" mode uses a spaced repetition algorithm. Best for collaborative study and for users who prefer a polished interface over maximum customization.

Focus and Productivity Tools

Forest — forestapp.cc A phone-blocking app that gamifies focus: you "plant a tree" when you start studying, and it dies if you leave the app. Surprisingly effective for students who struggle with phone distractions.

Freedom — freedom.to A distraction blocker that works across all devices. Schedule focus sessions in advance and block specific websites and apps.

MOOCs and Online Courses

Learning How to Learn — Coursera (Barbara Oakley, Terrence Sejnowski) The most enrolled online course in history, with over 3 million learners. Covers chunking, focused vs. diffuse thinking, procrastination, memory techniques, and test preparation. Free to audit. An excellent companion to this book, covering some of the same territory from a complementary angle.

Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles to Learning — Coursera (Barbara Oakley) The sequel to Learning How to Learn, focused on career change, lifelong learning, and overcoming imposter syndrome. Particularly relevant to the Marcus Thompson thread in this book.

The Science of Well-Being — Coursera (Laurie Santos, Yale) Not directly about learning science, but highly relevant to the motivation, habits, and self-regulation themes in Parts III and IV. Includes practical exercises and addresses misconceptions about what makes us happy — a metacognitive approach applied to well-being.

Studying and Learning — edX (various institutions) Search edX for current offerings on study skills, metacognition, and learning science. Course availability changes, but there are usually several relevant options, including some that focus specifically on academic success strategies for college students.

Podcasts

The Learning Scientists Podcast Hosted by Yana Weinstein and Megan Sumeracki. Episodes cover specific learning strategies, common misconceptions, and interviews with researchers. Accessible, practical, and well-produced. Episodes are short (15–30 minutes), making them easy to fit into a commute.

Cult of Pedagogy — cultofpedagogy.com Jennifer Gonzalez's podcast for teachers, but many episodes are directly relevant to learners. Episodes on retrieval practice, spacing, cognitive load, and feedback are especially strong.

The Huberman Lab Podcast Andrew Huberman (Stanford neuroscientist) covers neuroscience topics including focus, motivation, dopamine, sleep, and learning. Episodes are long and detailed. Particularly relevant episodes include those on neuroplasticity, focus and concentration, and the science of sleep.

Hidden Brain — NPR Shankar Vedantam's podcast on unconscious patterns in human behavior. Not specifically about learning, but frequently covers cognitive biases, decision-making, and motivation — all relevant to metacognition and self-regulation.

Research Journals

For readers who want to go to the primary sources. Most articles are behind paywalls, but many are available through university library access, Google Scholar, or the authors' personal websites (look for "preprint" or "author's accepted manuscript" versions).

Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition — The premier journal for lab-based research on how people learn and remember. Published by the American Psychological Association. This is where many of the foundational studies in this book were originally published.

Memory & Cognition — Publishes research on human memory, learning, and cognitive processes. More accessible than some alternatives. Many of the spacing, interleaving, and retrieval practice studies cited in this book appeared here.

Educational Psychology Review — Publishes review articles and meta-analyses on educational topics. The Dunlosky et al. (2013) strategy review paper appeared here. An excellent starting point for finding comprehensive research summaries.

Cognitive Science — Interdisciplinary journal covering learning, memory, reasoning, and problem-solving from multiple perspectives (psychology, neuroscience, computer science, philosophy, linguistics).

Learning and Instruction — Focused on the intersection of learning science and educational practice. Publishes research on self-regulated learning, metacognition, and instructional design.

Metacognition and Learning — The only journal dedicated specifically to metacognition research. Published since 2006. Covers metacognitive monitoring, calibration, self-regulation, and related topics.

Organizations

The Learning Scientists — learningscientists.org A team of cognitive psychologists dedicated to making learning science accessible. They produce blog posts, podcasts, videos, downloadable materials, and social media content. Their "six strategies for effective learning" campaign has reached millions of students and teachers. Follow them on social media for regular research summaries and practical tips.

The Learning Agency — the-learning-agency.com An organization focused on making learning science research more accessible and actionable. Produces the "Lessons with the Learning Scientists" video series and other educational content.

Society for the Teaching of Psychology (STP) — teachpsych.org Division 2 of the American Psychological Association. While focused on psychology education, their resources on evidence-based teaching and learning are broadly applicable. Their "Office of Teaching Resources in Psychology" (OTRP) maintains a library of teaching materials, many of which are useful for self-directed learners.

Association for Psychological Science (APS) — psychologicalscience.org Publishes Psychological Science in the Public Interest, which occasionally features landmark reviews of learning science topics. Their website includes accessible summaries of research findings.

International Association for Metacognition — metacognition-association.org An academic organization for researchers studying metacognition. Their conference proceedings and member publications represent the cutting edge of metacognition research. Most useful for advanced readers and researchers.

Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST) — cast.org Develops the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework, which is grounded in learning science and neuroscience. Their UDL guidelines are a practical resource for anyone designing learning experiences — for themselves or others.

A Note on Staying Current

Learning science is an active field. New studies are published every week, and our understanding of what works, for whom, and under what conditions continues to evolve. Here are three ways to stay current:

1. Follow The Learning Scientists and Retrieval Practice on social media. They regularly translate new research into accessible summaries.
2. Set up a Google Scholar alert for key terms like "retrieval practice," "spaced practice," "metacognition," or "self-regulated learning." You'll receive email notifications when new papers are published.
3. Revisit your Learning Operating System (Template 9, Appendix C) every 6 months. Update it as you learn more about yourself as a learner and as the science evolves.

The fact that you're reading this appendix means you're already doing something most students never do: thinking deliberately about how to learn. That metacognitive stance — the willingness to examine your own processes and seek better ones — is the single most powerful tool in this entire book.

For the research methods behind these resources, see Appendix A. For summaries of the key studies, see Appendix B.