Self-explanation when studying: how to check your understanding with a recording

Familiar terms don’t mean you understand how they fit together

When you read lecture notes, the reasoning may seem obvious. The difficulty becomes apparent when you have to explain on your own why one step follows from another. Self-explanation focuses on that connection: you state the grounds, the conditions and the purpose of the step.

Start with a small passage rather than an entire subject. Choose a step in a solution, a distinction between concepts or an application of a rule. The recording is a draft of your reasoning. You can revisit it and mark the exact point where you stopped explaining and started repeating the source.

Run a short cycle of explanation and checking

1. Ask a specific question

   Choose what you want to explain: why a step is needed, when a rule applies or how two cases differ. Have the original material ready to consult later. Avoid trying to explain several topics at once when you’re still unsure how they relate.

2. Explain the idea in your own words

   State the initial conditions and the main idea, then explain how you get to the result. Give an example of your own and explain why it fits. If you need to consult your notes, do so and mark the point where you needed them. Reading out a definition alone does not show that you understand it.

3. Look for gaps in the recording

   Listen to your attempt or read the transcript. Mark phrases like “well, that’s obvious,” steps with missing reasoning and terms you used without explaining them. Distinguish difficulty speaking from difficulty understanding: a pause on its own doesn’t show that you’ve missed the idea.

4. Clarify and explain it again

   Go back to the source to address the specific gap. Correct a faulty connection, find another example or write a question for your instructor. On your second attempt, focus on the point you clarified and try applying the idea to a slightly different situation.

Explaining why units of measurement matter

This is a fictional study example. Any names, conditions and results are included solely to illustrate the method.

This explains the purpose of the unit and how it relates to division. Next, check a concrete example: six kilometres in two hours gives an average speed of three kilometres per hour. Keep the qualification that this is an average.

If a new problem gives the time in minutes, explain how to make the units consistent. Repeating the familiar formula won’t do. The new case reveals which step still needs clarification.

Self-explanation worksheet

Keep short versions from before and after the clarification. You’ll be able to see which connection became clearer as well as how the wording changed.

Idea or step:
Question my explanation answers:
Initial conditions:
Explanation in my own words:
Why this step works:
Example of my own:
Limit of applicability:
Timestamp of the gap in my recording:
What the course material says:
Correction:
New case to test:

Check the reasoning, regardless of how polished it sounds

• The connection is explained beyond simply repeating the definition.
• The example meets the stated conditions.
• The unclear point is stated specifically.
• The correction has been checked against the course material.