1. How to coach students to use the Pomodoro technique.
2. How cell phones can be a hindrance to learning.
3. Why distributed practice works and why it is better than cramming.
4. How active recall creates deep learning.
5. Why sleep impacts learning.

Teach Students the Pomodoro Technique

Do you know what the Italian word for tomato is? It is “pomodoro.” The originator of the Pomodoro Technique, Francesco Cirillo, would use a timer shaped like a tomato to help himself study for concentrated amounts of time.  The beauty of this technique lies in its simplicity: focused work periods followed by intentional breaks.

Here’s the basic framework:

1. Set a timer for 25 minutes.
2. Focus completely on your work.
3. If distracting thoughts arise, quickly jot them down on paper and return to your task.
4. When the timer rings, take a 5-minute break.
5. After completing four cycles, take a longer 15-30 minute break.

The goal is to maintain focus for a set period. What makes this method particularly effective is its approach to distractions. Rather than fighting against wandering thoughts, students acknowledge them by quickly writing them down, then return to their work. During breaks, students can address these noted thoughts or tasks.

There are many excellent videos on the topic, but I picked this one because it shows meaningful variations of the technique. It is also fast-moving and easy to understand, making it a great video to share with students.

Encourage Students to Move Their Cell Phones Out of The Room

Many things can distract from focus, and one of those things is a cell phone. It is likely no surprise that students who have their cell phones out during class have lower comprehension and lower test scores, but you may not know that having a cell phone in visual range while studying can also impede learning. Researchers at the University of Texas discovered that even a cell phone that is turned off can impair cognitive performance. 

Researchers divided 800 smartphone users into three groups:

• Phones placed on the desk
• Phones stored in bags in the room
• Phones kept in another room

All phones were turned off, yet the results were striking. The physically closer students were to their phones, the more their working memory and fluid intelligence suffered. In other words, having your phone in your backpack that is in the room, can still impact learning. Researchers dubbed this the “brain drain hypothesis” – an apt description of how phones silently sap cognitive resources. The more a student was dependent on their phone, the more it hurt their learning. Two roommates I coached had a solution: they would give each other their phones during their set study times. One told me, “It may sound funny, but we found that it works!”

When students combine the Pomodoro Technique with mindful phone placement, it can create an environment that truly supports deep learning and sustained focus.

Teach Students Effective Learning Strategies: Beyond Cramming

“Cramming works for me!” It’s a common refrain among students. At first glance, cramming might seem to work. After all, most students can point to at least one success story where cramming helped them pass a test. While students might temporarily hold information for a test, that knowledge typically vanishes shortly after. This becomes painfully evident when they need to access this material later and find that they have to learn the material all over again. 

The Power of Distributed Practice

Neuroscience research demonstrates that distributed retrieval practice creates stronger, more durable learning outcomes. Spaced repetition involves the repeated review of previously learned material at various intervals. A comprehensive meta-analysis of 55 studies found that 78% showed significant benefits for learners using spaced repetition techniques.

Distributed practice can improve skill development and enhance student attitudes toward learning. When students begin to succeed through consistent practice, they develop more favorable attitudes toward challenging courses. After all, it is easier to like a class and think that class is worthwhile when you are not failing it. Karpicke revealed that students who had repeated retrieval of information showed up to an 80% increase in the proportion of ideas recalled, reinforcing the time-tested adage that “practice makes permanent.”

Active Recall: The Key to Deep Learning

Perhaps the most crucial insight about learning is this: Retention happens during retrieval, not during initial exposure. Learning occurs when students actively reconstruct material from memory, discuss what they’ve learned, and apply their knowledge to new situations. This is called active recall. Active recall may look like many things but it always involves intentionally reconstructing what they have learned. It is that reconstruction of the information that actively enhances learning.  This type of work closely parallels the world outside of college where students will have to apply their knowledge in real-time. 

If you think of your brain as a muscle, making it work to find a piece of information is training that muscle to get stronger and find the information more easily in the future. Research shows that active recall can improve long-term retention by two to three times compared to passive review methods. The more you retrieve the information, the more you learn. 

“You can’t short-change your brain of sleep and still learn effectively.”
Matthew Walker, Neuroscientist

Sleep Helps You Learn

By the end of the week, my desk is a complete mess. I often come in from class and pile extra handouts, lecture notes, and the roll sheet in a not-so-neat way. It is often tossed wildly on the corner of my desk. I’m off to a meeting with more handouts and more notes and then I add more to the pile. If you ask me on Thursday to find Monday’s handout, it might take me a minute to get through the pile. Every Monday, I come to the office early and I neatly file my paper and put them into their proper spots. I type up my meeting notes and consolidate similar topics. If something is important, I write a sticky note and put it on my computer so I won’t forget.

This is not really about me and my messy desk, it is about people and their messy minds. All day, we collect ideas, experiences, and memories and dump them hastily on the desk or in our minds. It is only when we sleep (specifically the final stages of sleep) that we organize those ideas in a way that we can access them. Sleep helps the parts of your brain associated with facts about the world and episodic events. When we don’t sleep and file the information, much of the information is lost. 

Not only does sleep organize the materials and “file” them into long-term memory, but without sleep, the desk is so messy that you might not be able to pile any more information on it. It will just fall off on the floor (that did happen to me and my desk once). In other words, if you don’t file the old information, it can prevent you from taking in new information. 

Interestingly enough, because of the filing aspect of sleep, it is better to study before going to bed rather than getting up early to study. That sleep allows the information to become a long-term memory. 

Sleep is the key to having a brain that is ready to learn.

Watch this 2-minute video clip from Dr. Lila Landowski from her TED talk, “Six Secrets to Learning Faster, Backed by Neuroscience,”” on the connection of sleep and learning. Consider sharing this with your students.

Supporting Student Success

Coaches play a crucial role in helping students become self-regulated learners. By teaching these evidence-based techniques and explaining why they work, we empower students to take control of their learning journey. In this chapter, you learned strategies based on science that enhance learning. You learned about the Pomodoro technique and the advantages of distributed practice. Finally, you learned about how sleep impacts learning. To be a self-regulated leader, students need a plan on how to reach their learning goal and they need strategies on how to accomplish that.