Blog
What the research says about learning and testing, what official standards ask of teachers, and how we build The Learning Library around both.
Featured · How we buildA map of what to learn nextFinishing a textbook raises an obvious question: what now? Getting stuck in one raises a harder one: is this the wrong book, or am I missing something it assumes?The Learning Library team · 8 Oct 2026 · 6 min read
Posts
How we buildFrom library to growth hub: see what you know, and how to get where you wantA library helps you learn a book. A growth hub helps you see where all those books are taking you.9 Oct 2026 · 7 min read
StandardsStudent data: private, protected, and never used to train AISchools are right to be careful. In a 2025 national survey, 69% of parents said they worry about the privacy and security of the student data their child's school collects, and 23% of teachers reported a large-scale data breach at their school ([CDT, "Hand in Hand", 2025](https://cdt.org/insights/hand-in-hand-schools-embrace-of-ai-connected-to-increased-risks-to-students/)).9 Oct 2026 · 7 min read
For teachersWhat teachers see: a class dashboard built on methods, not labelsA teacher can now make a class for any shelf, share a six-letter code, and see how each student is doing: what they've mastered, how much they studied each day, and who needs a hand.9 Oct 2026 · 6 min read
How we buildHow we turn a 2,000-page textbook into a study guideA 2,000-page textbook is about a million words, far more than an AI model can sensibly read and write about in one go.8 Oct 2026 · 7 min read
Learning scienceMastery, one chapter at a timeMost courses move on when the calendar says so. Mastery learning moves on when the student is ready: learn a unit, check it, fix what's shaky, and only then go on.7 Oct 2026 · 5 min read
Learning scienceWhy we don't ask students their learning styleAsk a room of teachers whether students learn best in their preferred style (visual, auditory or hands-on) and most will say yes.6 Oct 2026 · 6 min read
Learning scienceSeven types of study methods, and what the evidence says about eachThere are dozens of named study techniques, and they aren't equally good. The big research reviews sort them into a handful of kinds.6 Oct 2026 · 7 min read
How we buildHow we figure out which study methods work for youA good score during a study session tells you little about what will be left next week. So every study plan on The Learning Library starts with a short check-in, and a student's methods change only when their check-ins clearly say so.6 Oct 2026 · 8 min read
StandardsWhat 17 education systems agree on about testsWe read the official assessment policies of 17 national and provincial systems: the US, Canada (Ontario and British Columbia), England, Scotland, Finland, Germany, France, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, China, India, South Africa and Kenya.2 Oct 2026 · 8 min read
Learning scienceTesting yourself beats rereading, even though it feels worseRereading feels productive. The words look familiar, the page flows, and it seems like it's going in.29 Sept 2026 · 5 min read
Learning scienceHow far apart should reviews be?Everyone knows cramming is a bad idea. The harder question is how far apart reviews should be.24 Sept 2026 · 5 min read
How we buildAI that asks instead of answersAI can make practice look better while making learning worse. So the AI in The Learning Library is built to ask questions, not hand over answers.18 Sept 2026 · 6 min read
For teachersRetrieval practice in a 50-minute lessonYou don't need a new curriculum to use retrieval practice. Low-stakes recall can fit into the lesson you already teach, in five-minute pieces.12 Sept 2026 · 5 min read
How we buildOne question bank, six formatsA worksheet, a quiz, a test and an exit ticket look different, but they draw on the same thing: the key concepts of a chapter.5 Sept 2026 · 4 min read
Further reading
Free, practical guides from researchers and education agencies.
- Which study strategies make the grade?Association for Psychological Science
- Organizing Instruction and Study to Improve Student LearningUS Institute of Education Sciences practice guide
- Metacognition and self-regulationEducation Endowment Foundation toolkit
- Six strategies for effective learningThe Learning Scientists
- Retrieval practice strategiesRetrieval Practice, Pooja Agarwal
- The myth of the fast learnerCarnegie Mellon University
- Mastery learningEducation Endowment Foundation toolkit