Clarity may not be educational, writes Nate Kornell on Miller-McCune. People learn more when they have to work at it, research shows.
Researchers Connor Diemand-Yauman, Daniel M. Oppenheimer and Erikka B. Vaughan convinced a group of high school teachers to change their PowerPoint fonts to hard-to-read fonts such as Monotype Corsiva and Hattenschweiler for one section, while using normal fonts for the other. Students taught with the less-clear fonts did better on exams than the control group.
Ugly fonts are an example of “desirable difficulties,” learning techniques that make us struggle but help us learn, Kornell writes.
Spacing study sessions also can be valuable. It gives students time to forget, struggle to remember and learn.
Taking tests is another desirable difficulty. People learn more when they’re asked to come up with information themselves rather than when they’re told the information. This may seem somewhat intuitive. But students even benefit from being asked test questions that they can’t answer (if they’re subsequently told the answer)! Again, it’s about the struggle.
While it’s OK for a teacher to confuse students, “leaving them confused is an absolutely terrible idea,” Kornell writes.
Confusion can lead to deeper understanding but only if it is followed by clarification. Reach a solution, or better yet, guide your students so they can reach it themselves.
Of course, not all difficulties inspire students to struggle and learn. Too much confusion is overwhelming. I think Kornell is talking about achievable challenges.