Cognitive dissonance is the uncomfortable tension one experiences from holding two conflicting thoughts at the same time. This is very important when learning. We are hard wired to learn through dissonance. If I touch something hot, I experience a painful dissonance between my expectations/desires/beliefs and my experienced emotions. One can hardly think of a better way to learn about hot stoves than to accidentally touch one. You only have to do that once to learn that you should be very careful in the future. Although it was uncomfortable, the pain/dissonance was an effective means of teaching me.

A similar mental dissonance is experienced when we are learning about things that are new and different from what we already think and believe. When I first teach my students to avoid algebra and instead use arithmetic to solve a problem, the students that are strong at algebra tend to resist at first. The contrast between my method and the student’s approach creates an uncomfortable dissonance in the students mind, and as humans we tend to avoid discomfort.

For some, the discomfort associated with having to ‘think’ when learning is enough to avoid the learning all together. We’ve all had the experience of our brain ‘hurting’ when we’re asked to think.

So, learning can involve discomfort of the mind and with it a resistance to learning.

It’s important to keep in mind that learning is about making mistakes and getting the answer wrong. It’s important to work past any discomfort that comes with making mistakes and being wrong. Instead, make the mistakes, accept a new view, let go your frustrations, and learn.