Have you ever noticed your child spending hours memorising entire chapters for an exam, only to forget most of it within the next few weeks? Or perhaps they’ve known the answer to a question until their teacher asked it in a slightly different way, leaving them confused. These experiences are more common in students’ lives than one realises.
We at K.R. Mangalam World School, Noida Extension, recognised as the best CBSE school in Noida Extension, believe these problems don’t arise from students’ lack of intelligence or effort. It’s mostly due to their learning approach. Over the years, we’ve seen students rely mainly on two types of learning approaches – deep learning and fast learning.
In our experience, deep learning is far better than fast learning because it solves most of the core problems students face during their learning journey. We’ve explained more about it in this blog post, so make sure you read till the end.
Deep Learning & Fast Learning: Here’s What It Means
Before we proceed with understanding why deep learning matters more for students than fast learning, you should first develop a clear understanding of both. When we say ‘fast learning,’ we mean learning by rushing through lessons, memorising answers, and studying mainly to complete a chapter or score well in the upcoming exam.
While memorisation has its place in the learning stage, it should be limited to dates, formulas, and definitions. It becomes a problem when students replace conceptual understanding with memorisation.
Deep learning is an entirely different learning approach. It’s built around developing strong conceptual understanding. This approach enables students to understand why a concept works, how it connects to what they’ve already learned, and where they can apply that learning. Instead of simply memorising information, deep learning helps you develop the ability to think, analyse, and solve unfamiliar problems independently.
Here’s Why Deep Learning Matters More Than Fast Learning
At K.R. Mangalam World School, Noida Extension, we have always encouraged our students to follow the deep learning approach. And here’s why we do so:
Memorising everything eventually stops working
Remembering facts may be enough to answer questions when your kids are in the early years of school. However, as they move to higher classes, subjects become connected, and questions become more application-oriented. You can only thrive in such environments if you can communicate the possible reasoning behind your answers, analyse situations, and apply learned concepts in unfamiliar contexts.
However, this can only be achieved if your kids choose to study using the deep learning method. At K.R. Mangalam World School, Noida Extension, positioned among the best schools in Noida, we have designed our curriculum around this concept. This means that as soon as our students enter grade 3, we begin teaching them to:
- Connect information between different subjects and areas of learning
- Critically evaluate information
- Explore interdisciplinary links
- Develop key skills, such as intercultural awareness, collaboration, creativity, and more
This approach ensures that all our students develop a strong conceptual understanding and the flexibility to think beyond the textbook.
Understanding once is better than memorising again and again
Many parents believe that quickly memorising facts will help their kids save time. However, while your children will apparently benefit temporarily from this method, especially till they are in lower classes, the approach will eventually begin to trouble them as they advance to higher grades and end up studying for longer hours.
Since fast learning doesn’t help students retain information for long, they often end up studying the same topics repeatedly. Deep learning, on the other hand, may definitely appear intimidating and time-consuming, but it stays with learners for years.
Once concepts become clearer through deep learning, future chapters and advanced concepts become easier to learn. If you don’t want your kids to keep starting from scratch, encourage them to use a deep learning approach.
Deep learning builds confidence instead of dependence
We’ve noticed an interesting pattern over the years: whenever teachers ask unexpected questions to students or change the question format, those who use fast learning become visibly anxious. It usually happens because fast learning leads students to memorise information without establishing a strong conceptual foundation. With memorisation, they can only respond if the questions sound familiar.
On the other hand, students who study using a deep learning approach rarely hesitate in such situations because they clearly know the reasoning behind their answers. This confidence makes it easier for them to participate more in classroom discussions and tackle unfamiliar problems.
Deep learning prepares children for life beyond exams
As your children will near the stage of graduation, they’ll realise that formal examinations end, but learning never does. Even when they start their professional journey, they’ll have to learn new skills as the world evolves over the years. As such, they will only be able to navigate such situations effortlessly if they develop the habit of deep learning right in their school years.
Since this approach equips them with the skills to connect ideas across subjects rather than treating each chapter as an isolated topic to memorise, learning something new will become effortless for them. These skills will also come to their aid in landing better job opportunities, or even if they choose to switch their career fields altogether, they won’t find it much difficult.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Does deep learning mean studying for more hours?
Not necessarily. Deep learning basically helps students to understand concepts clearly, so that their foundation becomes really strong.
Is memorisation completely unnecessary?
Memorisation isn’t bad if you’re using it to remember dates, formulas, and definitions, but it’s certainly damaging and unnecessary for other areas of learning.
Can deep learning improve academic performance?
Yes, it can. In fact, students with stronger conceptual clarity naturally perform better in exams, resulting in improved academic performance.
Conclusion
Finishing the syllabus quickly may appear to be a smart move to some students. However, the habit begins to shed its negative impact once subjects become complex. Hence, if you want your children to use their time wisely, we’d suggest you encourage your kids to integrate deep learning into their daily study routine. It will help establish a strong learning foundation, which will serve as the base to build advanced knowledge.
So, even though deep learning requires more time and effort, the wise way out is to plan studies accordingly and keep time for indulging in deep learning rather than doing the studies superficially. By means of this blog post today, we at K.R. Mangalam World School, Noida Extension, regarded as the best school in Noida Extension, would like to encourage all students to pursue deep learning for their long-term benefit.