Return on Strategy: The ROI That Actually Matters for Learning
How do you know if the changes you’re making are actually paying off?
You're studying for hours. You're working hard. You're doing everything you're "supposed" to do.
So why does it feel like you're spinning your wheels?
Here's what nobody tells you about ROI (Return on Investment): it was never designed for learning. It was designed for money, for business, for measuring profit against cost.
But students? You're not investing dollars. You're investing something far more precious and far less renewable: your time, your energy, your attention, your cognitive capacity, your actual life.
And the question isn't just "am I studying enough?"
The real question is: "Are my learning strategies actually helping me learn?"
The Problem with "Just Study More"
For highschoolers, it’s exam time. For post-secondary learners, midterms will be here in a flash. To prep, you might be doing what everyone says to generically do: “study more.”
More hours at the library. More highlighting. More re-reading. More...exhaustion.
And then the exam happens, and you blank. Or you remember just enough to scrape by but not enough to actually know it.
This isn't because you didn't work hard enough. It's because we've confused effort with strategy.
You can spend 6 hours re-reading your textbook (high effort, low return) or you can spend 2 hours testing yourself on key concepts (moderate effort, high return).
Same subject. Completely different outcome.
This is what I call Return on Strategy (ROS): the measure of whether your learning strategies are actually translating into understanding, retention, and capability.
What Studying With High ROS Looks Like
High ROS strategies share three things in common:
1. They're active, not passive.
Passive strategies feel like studying but don't create strong learning:
Re-reading notes
Highlighting everything
Watching lectures on repeat (and at 2x speed)
Copying definitions word-for-word
Active strategies engage your brain in retrieval and application:
Testing yourself before you feel ready
Explaining concepts out loud (even to your pet…or potted plant)
Creating questions from your notes
Teaching the material to someone else
The research is clear: retrieval practice: pulling information from memory is one of the most effective learning strategies. But it feels harder than re-reading, so students avoid it.
That's low ROS thinking.
High ROS thinking says: "If it feels too easy (or comfortable), I'm probably not learning."
2. They match the task.
Not all studying is created equal, and not all strategies work for every task.
Memorizing anatomy terms? Flashcards and spaced repetition (try ANKI for free flashcards).
Understanding a complex theory? Create a mind- or concept-map (use NotebookLM for free mapping, infographic-creating, or audio- or video-overviews of tough material).
Solving calculus problems? Practice problems until your brain hurts, then a few more (try Wolfram Alpha for free formula-understanding support).
Low ROS: using one strategy for everything because it's what you've always done.
High ROS: choosing strategies that match what you're actually trying to learn.
3. They build understanding, not just familiarity.
There's a dangerous trap in studying: the illusion of knowing.
You've seen the material. You recognize it. It feels familiar. So you think you know it.
But familiarity ≠ understanding.
Understanding means you can:
Explain it in your own words
Apply it to new situations
Connect it to other concepts
Identify when something doesn't fit
Familiarity just means you've been exposed to it enough times that it looks friendly.
High ROS strategies force you to test your understanding, not just your familiarity.
Calculating Your ROS
Here's a quick audit you can run on any study session. After studying, ask yourself:
Can I explain this concept without looking at my notes?
If not → your strategy might not be creating understandingCould I teach this to someone who's never seen it before?
If not → you might have familiarity, not masteryIf I saw a question about this tomorrow, would I know how to
approach it?
If not → your strategy might not be building application skillsDo I feel like I accomplished something, or just like I "put in time"?
If it’s just time → your strategy might be high effort, low return.
High ROS doesn't mean everything clicks immediately. It means you're using strategies that create learning, not just feel like learning
Making the Shift
The shift from low ROS to high ROS isn't about studying more. It's about studying differently.
Here's what that looks like in practice:
Low ROS approach:
Spend 4 hours re-reading the chapter
Highlight the important parts
Make neat notes
Feel accomplished because you "studied"
High ROS approach:
Spend 20 minutes skimming the chapter
Close the book and write down everything you remember
Check what you missed
Spend the remaining time testing yourself on weak spots
Feel uncomfortable because it's hard
Trust that the difficulty means learning is happening
Same chapter. Same amount of time (or less). Completely different return.
The Strategies Worth Your Investment
If you're wondering where to start, here are the highest-ROS strategies backed by learning science:
Retrieval Practice - Close the book. Pull the information from memory. Check your work. Repeat.
Spaced Repetition - Review material multiple times over increasing intervals. Your brain needs time between exposures to consolidate.
Interleaving - Mix up topics and problem types rather than blocking them. It's harder in the moment, but you learn better.
Elaboration - Ask yourself "why" and "how." Make connections. Explain concepts in your own words.
Self-Explanation - Talk through your reasoning process out loud. Teach it to a friend, a pet, a plant, your reflection in the mirror. When you get stuck, that's where the learning needs to happen.
Sleep - Not as a reward for studying, but as a strategy for studying. Your brain consolidates learning during sleep. Pulling an all-nighter doesn't just make you tired; it actively prevents the memory consolidation you just worked so hard to build. Seven to nine hours isn't luxury. It's strategy.
Movement - Physical activity increases blood flow to the brain, reduces stress, and improves focus. A 20-minute walk before studying? That's high ROS. Movement between study sessions? Also high ROS. Exercise isn't something you do instead of studying; it's something you do to support studying.
Connection & Belonging - Time with family and friends isn't a distraction from learning. It's fuel for it. Social connection reduces stress, increases motivation, and reminds you why the learning matters in the first place. Study groups where you actually discuss and debate? High ROS. Dinner with people who care about you? Also high ROS.
Nutrition & Hydration - Your brain is an organ. It needs fuel. Skipping meals to study more? Low ROS. Eating something nourishing and staying hydrated? High ROS. You can't think clearly when your brain doesn't have what it needs to function.
Joy & Play - The things that make you feel alive? They're not distractions. They're part of your capacity. Playing music, creating art, laughing with friends, doing the things you love. These aren't rewards you earn after studying, they're strategies that keep your whole self functioning so studying actually works.
These strategies don't always feel productive in the moment. Sleep looks like "doing nothing." Movement looks like "wasting time." Connection looks like "procrastination."
But here's what the research shows again and again: learners who prioritize these holistic strategies alongside cognitive strategies consistently outperform those who sacrifice wellbeing for more study hours.
High ROS isn't just about what you do while studying. It's about how you live while learning.Same chapter. Same amount of time (or less).
What This Means for Parents and Educators
If you're supporting a learner, the question shifts from "are they studying enough?" to "are they studying effectively?"
Watch for these signs of low ROS studying:
Spending hours with notes open but not engaging
Re-reading the same material repeatedly
Highlighting without stopping to think
Feeling “busy” but not making progress
High ROS support looks like:
Asking "can you explain that to me?"
Encouraging practice testing even when it feels early
Helping them identify what they don't know yet
Validating that difficulty and frustration means learning is happening
The goal isn't to make studying easy. It's to make it effective.
One Thing to Try This Week
Pick one upcoming study session. Before you start, choose ONE high-ROS strategy from this list:
Close your notes and write everything you remember
Explain the concept out loud to someone (or to yourself)
Create practice questions and answer them
Draw a concept map connecting ideas
Solve a problem, then explain your reasoning step-by-step
Do just that one strategy for 20 minutes.
Then ask yourself: "Did I learn more in these 20 minutes than I usually do in an hour?"
That's your ROS talking.
