How to become the smartest kid in the class (II)

I’ve written about retrieval practice before.  You should read “Learning genius,” a column I wrote on July 3, 2017.  If you can’t find it, let me know and I would forward it to you.  Retrieval practice or test-enhanced technique or testing effect, is the effect that long term memory is enhanced when some learning time […]

I’ve written about retrieval practice before.  You should read “Learning genius,” a column I wrote on July 3, 2017.  If you can’t find it, let me know and I would forward it to you. 

Retrieval practice or test-enhanced technique or testing effect, is the effect that long term memory is enhanced when some learning time is devoted to retrieving the information to be remembered through testing, followed with good feedback.

“Put your class materials away, and then write out or maybe sketch or speak everything you know and try to be as thorough as possible, and then check your materials for accuracy,” Megan Smith of The Learning Scientists counsels.

 “You’re bringing information to mind almost like you’re testing yourself,” she continues“though it can be a practice test, it doesn’t have to be. You can just sort of go through and explain what you know, or teach a friend or a pet or even an inanimate object everything that you learned in school. By bringing that information to mind, you’re changing the way that information is stored so that it’s easier for you to get to later on.”

Many studies have been done regarding the effectiveness of retrieval practice and the most importantfinding is that after all the learning strategies have been analyzed, retrieval practice or test-enhanced technique, was found to be the most effective learning strategy.  And many methods were considered, such as note taking, mind-mapping, cramming, etc.

For example John Dunlosky and his colleagues analyzed 100 years’ worth of research on learning strategies trying to find out which strategy gave you the most bang for your time.  And settled on retrieval practice.  In “Learning Genius” I wrote: “John Dunlosky and his colleagues wanted to determine   the best learning strategy ever invented.  That is, which study method gives you the best value for the time invested?  One good way to know this is to go to the extant literature.  So the researchers analyzed 100 years’ worth of literature published on learning methods.  It took them three years to finish their work… and came out with one answer: retrieval practice.  For their work, they employed what is called meta-analysis.  That is, the analysis of the analyses or, analysis of what has been analyzed before on the subject by other scientists. ”

The foregoing shows that the effects of retrieval practice is well documented. Further, Cynthia J. Brame and Rachel Biel of Vanderbilt University enumerated six things that science tells us about retrieval practice and called the strategy “one of the most consistent findings in cognitive psychology.”

One of those insights is that research shows that repeated retrieval enhances long term retention.  For example, a highly cited study isthat of Roediger and Karpicke of 2006. Three groups of students were tested in a laboratory.  First they were given passages of 250 words to read.  The first group studied the passage four times.  The second group studied the passage three times and then did retrieval practice once.  The final group studied it only once then did retrieval practice three times.

After one week, those who did more (three times) retrieval practice remembered the material 5% more than the group that did retrieval practice only once, and remembered 21% higher than the first group who only studied the material four times without using retrieval practice.

In summary, retrieval practice is testing yourself  by answering questions about what you learned.  But it is better to do the testing after you feel you’ve understood the lesson.

Sometimes you may  be surprised to find out that what you thought you knew, you actually don’t when it comes to application.  Test-enhanced technique is effective because of the immediate feedback it gives.  It also doesn’t fool you into believing you understand what you actually don’t.  Therefore, sometimes it can be frustrating or hard to do retrieval practice.

Research has even shown that it lowers your confidence concerning the material you learned.  You usually feel that you’ve not learned as much as you’ve learned compared to people who use other methods, say re-reading.

However, research also shows that despite eliciting lower confidence than other methods, those who use retrieval practice do better than others on the test than those who use other methods.

Implementing Retrieval Practice

Simply cover what you’re reading and test yourself.  For example, after reading one paragraph or section of your textbook, cover the page with your hand or another object and answer the questions.  Or as you read, write down questions that you will answer later.  Or teach someone like your friend or even your cat.  When you make mistakes, go back to the material, correct your mistakes and try again.

This may appear to take more time, but compared to time spent on other methods, this is the best way to go.