avatarJijo George

Summary

The article discusses the "Protege Effect," emphasizing that learning with the intention to teach others enhances understanding and retention.

Abstract

The concept of the "Protege Effect" suggests that individuals who learn with the purpose of teaching others are more likely to grasp and retain information effectively. The article contrasts the insights of new Medium writers, who often provide valuable and current information, with those of more established writers who may recycle known content. It references Ali Abdaal's book "Feel Good Productivity," which introduces the term and its benefits. Experiments have shown that students who learn to teach perform better than those who learn to take tests. The author of the article applies this technique by researching and documenting content to assist other writers, thereby enhancing their own learning and credibility. The article also provides practical advice on implementing the Protege Effect, such as questioning everything and teaching the material to solidify understanding, even if it means teaching oneself.

Opinions

  • The author believes that new writers on Medium tend to offer more useful and up-to-date content compared to some veteran writers.
  • Learning with the intention to teach is presented as a superior method of learning, supported by experimental evidence.
  • The author practices the Protege Effect by engaging with fellow writers, documenting experiences, and sharing them to foster a community of growth and learning.
  • The article suggests that teaching, or preparing to teach, forces a deeper engagement with the material, leading to better comprehension and retention.
  • The author encourages readers to question the material they are learning and to teach it as soon as they grasp the basics, even if they have to teach themselves.
  • The article concludes that learning to teach is not only more effective but also a service to others, as it allows for shared growth and knowledge exchange.

Best Way To Learn Anything

Protege Effect, Learn To Teach

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Have you ever wondered, how is it that on Medium we have so many relatively new writers coming up with ways to grow on Medium?

I read on Medium regularly to learn the way Medium works, I have noticed the stuff written by old writers is often a rehash of things we already know or are no longer relevant, but it is usually the new writers who have useful information.

I recently read the book ‘Feel Good Productivity’ by Ali Abdaal, a must-read for productivity nerds. There he introduced me to a term called ‘Protege Effect’.

What Is the Protege Effect?

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While We Teach, We Learn

— Seneca

There have been experiments conducted in the past where two groups of students were given a task to learn certain things. The first group was told they were learning so they could take a test in the end, whereas the other group was told their final goal was to teach others what they learned. It was found that the group who learned to teach fared much better than the one who learned to take the test.

This is termed a Protege Effect. It states that someone who is learning to teach would almost always put more effort into learning, than someone who learns for themselves.

I am sure you might have experienced this in your life too.

Protege Effect On Medium

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Ibelieve many writers on Medium are implementing this technique in their lives unknowingly. At least I am.

Every day I do my research to be a little bit better than the day before in the way I write or engage on Medium. A crucial part of this is to create content helpful to other writers. The discussions I have with fellow writers are to learn from their experiences. Then I document the learning as a Medium story, so others who have similar experiences can comment by supporting my understanding, or add their understanding of the topic.

As a beginner, I have the same problems as most of you hence giving me incentive for working on the solutions. For an expert, these problems may seem trivial, but for us beginners, these could be show-stoppers. Now when I do my little experiments, and share results it helps both me and my readers to grow a bit more. I ensure I put more effort into learning since I know what I am learning is for a wider audience, and I would not like my credibility to be tarnished by giving out wrong information. Failing to be credible can greatly impact my pursuit of making meaningful relationships with my readers.

How To Implement the Protege Effect

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The most important step to implement the Protege Effect while learning is to question everything. Nothing should be taken for granted.

If you are teaching ways to improve productivity, every new method you learn to enhance it should be weighed for both its pros and cons. The cons should never outweigh the pros, making the overall effort wasteful.

You can learn a subject by spending a lot of time understanding the nitty-gritty of the material, or just understand the basics and start teaching right away. When teaching right away you would come across questions both your own and from your student, and then you can work on coming up with answers together. This method is effective when you are short on time.

If you do not have real people to teach, you can pretend to teach yourself. While learning something you can write down every question that comes into your mind about the subject. Once you have studied what you have to, revisit those questions and see if you can answer them. If you cannot answer the questions it would mean you need to get that information from a different source, look for that source to continue.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the most effective way to learn new things is to learn with an intent to teach. Teaching others is a service you would be providing to others, a service for which everyone would be thankful to you.

Why learn for one when you can learn for all, and achieve better results?

So next time you are trying to learn something, get into it, ask yourself questions about it, and then share the wisdom earned with a larger audience. When you share you will likely get the perspectives of others which would help you to refine your learning further.

So learn as a student with the intent to be a teacher, to help grow not just by yourself, but with everyone around you.

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