An update to the learning pyramid

Every week I receive a couple of questions about the often shared learning pyramid. Most of the time because somebody shared it on a social media platform. That’s why I made this short overview to share yourself when people spread the Loch Ness monster of education:

The Loch Ness Pyramid of Education

6 thoughts on “An update to the learning pyramid

  1. To be fair, as an autodidact I can see the increasing importance of those stair-steps.

    Speaking from personal experience and the experience of all of my self-learner friends (5) and my students who eventually start studying something out of interest. The first step is simple exposition, followed by a ton of reading, funnily enough followed by watching youtube videos, khan academy etc.. then they look for examples and demonstration, they start debating what they learned and putting it to test, and finally they start doing it. By then, they have enough expertise to start explaining it. So if we are talking about autodidactism they are, at least subjectively, surprisingly solid. This may explain the fame of the pyramid.

    DISCLAIMER: I understand that the numbers were completely taken out of imagination and subjective experiences.
    DISCLAIMER²: I know the lack of scientific value to my experiences. I shared it because maybe it sheds some light into understanding why people still use it.

  2. […] Er werden hier percentages genoemd: ‘Uit onderzoek blijkt dat je van het lezen van een tekst maar 30% onthoudt, van een filmpje al gauw 50%.’De keuze voor filmpjes als primaire bron leek hierdoor beslecht. Het betreffende onderzoek kon overigens niet genoemd worden, maar mijn gedachten gingen uit naar de leerpiramide. Niet alleen kloppen de genoemde percentages niet, maar is de leerpiramide inmiddels allang als mythe bestempeld. […]

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