Learning and Education

to gain or learn something

“Students acquire new knowledge through reading, discussion and practice.”

• acquire knowledge
• acquire a skill
• acquire experience

Word family: acquisition

Often used for gaining knowledge, skills, habits or possessions.

to keep something or remember information

“Reviewing information at different times can help students retain it.”

• retain information
• retain knowledge
• retain control

Word family: retention

In learning contexts, retain often means to keep information in memory.

to remember something

“Learners can test themselves to see how much they can recall.”

• recall information
• recall a detail
• recall an experience

Word family: recall

Often used when someone deliberately tries to remember something.

to deal with information by thinking about it or working with it

“Students need time to process complex information.”

• process information
• process data
• process a request

Word family: processing

As a noun, a process is a series of actions or stages.

a way of doing or dealing with something

“Group discussion is one approach to learning a new topic.”

• a different approach
• an effective approach
• approach a problem

As a noun: an approach to something. As a verb: approach a problem.

a plan or method used to achieve a goal

“Making short notes is a useful strategy for remembering key ideas.”

• learning strategy
• effective strategy
• develop a strategy

Word family: strategic, strategically

A strategy usually has a clear purpose or goal.

a particular way of doing something, especially one requiring skill

“The teacher demonstrated a technique for organising notes.”

• learning technique
• research technique
• use a technique

Word family: technical, technically

A technique is often a specific method within a wider approach.

successful in producing the desired result

“Short, regular study sessions can be an effective way to revise.”

• effective method
• effective way
• highly effective

Word family: effect, effectively, effectiveness

Effective describes something that works; efficient focuses more on avoiding waste.

to examine something carefully to understand it

“Students analyse the results before drawing a conclusion.”

• analyse data
• analyse a problem
• analyse the results

Word family: analysis, analytical

British spelling: analyse. American spelling: analyze.

to explain the meaning of information, evidence or an event

“Readers must interpret the findings in the context of the study.”

• interpret results
• interpret evidence
• interpret a graph

Word family: interpretation, interpretive / interpretative

Interpreting information means explaining what it suggests, not merely repeating it.

to recognise or find a particular person, thing, problem or feature

“The first step is to identify the main problem.”

• identify a problem
• identify a pattern
• identify the main idea

Word family: identification, identifiable

Common in academic instructions: identify the main idea, cause or difference.

to think carefully about something; to show or represent something

“After the test, learners reflect on the mistakes they made.”

• reflect on an experience
• reflect on progress
• reflect a change

Word family: reflection, reflective

Reflect on something means think carefully about it.

to succeed in doing or getting something after effort

“Learners can achieve their goals by practising consistently.”

• achieve a goal
• achieve success
• achieve a result

Word family: achievement, achievable

Usually refers to something reached through effort.

to improve the quality, value or strength of something

“Examples can enhance a learner's understanding of an abstract idea.”

• enhance understanding
• enhance performance
• enhance the quality

Word family: enhancement

A formal alternative to improve in some contexts.

to judge or evaluate the quality, value, amount or importance of something

“Students assess their progress at the end of each week.”

• assess progress
• assess performance
• assess the impact

Word family: assessment, assessor

Assessment is the process of judging or measuring something.

the result of an action, process or event

“The outcome of the experiment was different from what the researchers expected.”

• learning outcome
• positive outcome
• expected outcome

An outcome is a result; it is not necessarily a good result.

to help cause or produce something

“Regular revision can contribute to better long-term recall.”

• contribute to success
• contribute to a discussion
• make a contribution

Word family: contribution, contributor

Use to after contribute in this meaning.

to be affected or determined by something; to rely on something

“The best study method may depend on the task and the learner.”

• depend on the context
• depend on the results
• be dependent on

Word family: dependent, dependence, independent

Use on after depend.

to cause or produce a particular result

“Skipping revision may result in weaker recall.”

• result in a change
• result in improvement
• result in failure

Word family: result

Result in means cause; result from means be caused by.

important, noticeable or large enough to matter

“The study found a significant difference between the two groups.”

• significant difference
• significant improvement
• statistically significant

Word family: significance, significantly

In statistics, statistically significant has a specific technical meaning.