Use the Feynman Method to Determine If You’re Ready for a Test
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Learning methods usually boil down to what you can do in your free time to make the most of what you’ve learned, and that’s usually the most important thing. But engaging others in the learning process can also be beneficial, if done correctly. So believed Richard Feynman, the theoretical physicist, at least in theory. According to many, perhaps apocryphal, sources, the Nobel Prize winner once said, “If you can’t explain something in simple terms, you don’t understand it. The best way to learn is to teach.”
It’s entirely possible that Feynman never said this at all. The closest documented quote I could find , courtesy of his colleague and fellow physicist David Goodstein, states that Feynman’s failure to present a subject (in this case, a complex question in particle physics) at a level understandable to a first-year undergraduate meant that science had failed to understand it effectively.
But whether this teaching method actually originated with Feynman or not, its core principle—that to be sure you truly understand a subject, you need to be able to teach it to others—is quite sound. Here’s how Feynman’s teaching method works and how it can be used to master new concepts (perhaps not in particle physics, obviously).
What is the Feynman method?
The Feynman Method is so popular for learning and memorizing information that it’s recommended for college students and even professionals . It’s a four-step method that, when used correctly, will help you fully absorb the material you’re studying. Here are the steps:
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Determine exactly what material you need to learn (try using methods like KWL or SQ3R to identify the most important parts of a topic before you begin), and then study it yourself using proven methods. For vocabulary learning and simple Q&A, I recommend the Leitner Flashcard Method . Then, try the “selection” method: write down everything you can remember about the topic and then check it against your materials to see what you missed.
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Once you’ve mastered the material, teach it to someone else—ideally, someone who’s never studied it before. Explain the material as if you were talking to a beginner (Feynman suggests imagining you’re talking to a child), as thoroughly and directly as possible.
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Return to the source material whenever you encounter an element that you find difficult to explain in detail.
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Rewrite and optimize your notes by breaking down complex topics into simpler parts and drilling down into a topic until you reach a level of detail that seems too basic.
However, step 2 isn’t as simple as it sounds. You need an engaged participant who should ask questions as you teach them. Questions are crucial, as they might come up with something you hadn’t thought of while studying the material, and the dialogue will help you make connections between concepts in your mind. Don’t treat it as if you’re standing in front of them giving a lecture. Instead, turn it into a real conversation, where you present the material but they participate as well. If they ask something you can’t answer, skip to step 3, look up the answer online, and come back to them with more details.
How does the Feynman method work?
The most important element of this method is analyzing and simplifying the material until you feel you can explain it fully to a child. As Goodstein’s story above illustrates, Feynman believed that if you can’t reduce a topic to information a young student can understand, you don’t really understand it. (A similar quote is attributed to Albert Einstein, so consider this a teaching philosophy with some basis—though there’s no evidence Einstein actually said anything like that .)
This works great if you choose an adult unfamiliar with the topic to teach it to. The idea is simply to simplify the material to a child’s level of understanding, but you’ll likely get more meaningful feedback if you actually discuss it with an adult. Perhaps they’ll ask a question you can’t answer or help you make connections between ideas. Perhaps their unique perspectives and experiences will help them better understand this new material and open up new and innovative perspectives for you. Who knows? This feedback will help you in the third step—reviewing the material—by giving you additional ideas to consider.
Once you’ve finished refining your notes, try teaching the topic again to someone else, or move on to a different methodology, such as distributed practice or supplemental learning , where you periodically study your simplified notes until you fully master the material.
Feynman, when no one is around
It’s nice to imagine calling your mom or best friend to use Feynman’s method every time you have a big test, but frankly, that’s probably impossible. If you don’t have anyone to practice this method with, turn to artificial intelligence. Language models like ChatGPT, when used correctly, are excellent study aids .
Instruct the chatbot to act as if it’s completely unfamiliar with the topic, then type everything you can remember into the text input field, as if you were using the “blind typing” method. Ask if the AI has any questions, and proceed from there. I did this, and just told the bot I was using the Feynman method. It understood everything, and it worked just as well as talking to a human, although it felt a little odd. Run ChatGPT before an important test, just in case.