Studying has always been a chore. We pretty much all feel the same way about it. Those who actually claim to enjoy studying are usually labelled as freaks or liars. But why do we hate studying so much? Most of us like the idea of *learning* new things. But studying is something different. *Learning* something new satisfies our natural inquisitive natures. But after that first step, once our initial curiosity is satisfied, the task of *studying* in order to gain a more thorough and permanent knowledge of a subject is just plain hard work.
The problem, I think, is that we're fundamentally lazy creatures. I know I am. I'd much rather be flopped out in front of the television right now than writing this article. It takes a lot of self discipline for me to make myself do anything productive. And I know I'm not alone.
The question, then, is how can we work *with* this natural human characteristic of laziness rather than fighting against it. And while we're at it, can't we make a computer do all the hard work for us? What did we invent the damn things for anyway? Well I happen to think we *can* make a computer do all the hard work for us. That's kind of the whole reason that this web site exists.
Here's my theory. It's not really the *studying* that's hard work. That is, it's not the part where you're filling your head with new information that's hard work. It's all the fiddly logistical, organisational tasks that you need to take care of first. It's taking notes, writing summaries, finding books (or web sites), developing a study schedule, making lists and flash cards, deciding exactly what to study and in what order, pondering whether you actually know how to study at all... well, you get the idea. Most of our time and effort is wasted on these ancillary tasks, and so it ends up seeming like studying is much more work than it actually is (or at least than it should be).
My hope, in developing this site, is to take care of all those ancillary tasks so that the student is left with one and only one thing to do - learn. After all, that's the only thing that students really have to do themselves - the learning part. All that organisational stuff can be done by someone else. Rich kids get their private tutors to do it. For those of us who can't afford private tutors, the next best thing is to get a computer to do it. Or rather, get someone to do all the logistical stuff once and program it into a computer so that everyone gets to take advantage of it without having to pay an arm and a leg.
So, what *exactly* is left for the student to do once all the organisational stuff has been taken care of? What exactly is the bare minimum that a lazy person needs to do to learn, if they've got someone or something helping them to be as lazy as they possible can be? Imagine I had a high-priced, dedicated (and indulgent!) private tutor teaching me, let's say... Italian :). What would my lessons be like? I think they'd go something like this...
* Tutor: Ok, I'm going to teach you how to speak Italian.. are you ready? * Me : Huh? What, sorry, I wasn't paying attention - I was watching TV. * Tutor: I'm going to teach you Italian. * Me : Oh, right, yeh. Ok. Go on then. * Tutor: Maybe you'd like to learn how to say "television" in Italian? * Me : Yeh, ok, that sounds useful. * Tutor: It's "televisione" (in a perfect Italian accent of course). * Me : "taylayveyziowney" * Tutor: "televisione" * Me : "teelayviziowne" * Tutor: "televisione" * Me : "telayvisione" * Tutor: Close enough. Now, how about "tomato"? * Me : No, I'm not hungry. Thanks. * Tutor: No, do you want to learn how to say "tomato"? It's "pomodoro". * Me : Oh. "powmowdowrow". * Tutor: "pomodoro" * Me : "pomowdoro" * Tutor: Excellent. Now, do you remember how to say "television"? * Me : Ummm.... * Tutor: It's... * Me : Hang on, I know this... it's umm... ... um ... no, I've lost it. * Tutor: "televisione" * Me : Right! I knew that. "telayvisioney" * Tutor: Good. And do you remember how to say "tomato"? * Me : Umm... "poromowdow"? * Tutor: "pomodoro" * Me : Right, "pomodorow". * Tutor: Why didn't I become a doctor...
Imagine learning to speak a whole language like this. I think you'd agree that the effort required would be far less than with any other approach. The effort for the student, that is. The teacher would deserve an award. But what if we could get a computer to take the place of the private tutor in the previous example? That would be the best of both worlds, wouldn't it? The student gets to learn a language while maintaining an unconscionable level of laziness and we don't have to rely on a mythical super-dedicated private tutor that most of us could never afford anyway. Well that's exactly what I've *attempted* to do with the software that underlies this website. I am truly aiming to pander to the level of laziness exemplified above.