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Tag Archives: retrieval practice
Study Advice for Students: Getting the Specifics Just Right
To get the best benefits from “retrieval practice,” teachers can try this strategy to reassure and motivate nervous students. Continue reading
The Best Teaching Book to Read This Summer: Powerful Teaching
Powerful Teaching, by Agarwal and Bain, combines research and practical classroom strategies. The result: an ideal book for teachers who want to improve our practice. Continue reading
Posted in Book Reviews, L&B Blog
Tagged classroom advice, long-term memory, retrieval practice
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A Rose by Any Other Name Would Smell as Confusing
All too often, psychology discussions use confusing — or worse, deliberately cheerful — terminology. Teachers should seek out direct and neutral terms to simplify and clarify our discussions. Continue reading
Meet Blake Harvard, “Effortful Educator”
An interview with Blake Harvard: high-school psychology teacher, and Effortful Educator. Continue reading
Posted in L&B Blog
Tagged boundary conditions, classroom advice, coaching, retrieval practice
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The Better Choice: Open- or Closed-Book Quizzes
As predicted by research into “retrieval practice,” closed-book quizzes do in fact help students learn better than open-book quizzes do. Once again, the right kind of difficulties can be desirable in school. Continue reading
Can Teachers Be Trusted to Evaluate Research?
Too often, teachers hear that our judgment about classroom applications of scientific research isn’t to be trusted. And yet, teacher judgment is essential when applying research in the classroom. Given that psychology research affects classroom practice only when teachers use it, why put down the teachers who are essential partners in this process? Our field should focus not on competition, but on respectful collaboration. Continue reading
Posted in L&B Blog
Tagged boundary conditions, methodology, retrieval practice, working memory
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Good News! Contradictory Research on Desirable Difficulties…
As we regularly emphasize here on the blog, attempts to recall information benefit learning. That is: students might study by reviewing material. Or, they might study with practice tests. (Or flashcards. Perhaps Quizlet.) Researchers call this technique “retrieval practice,” and
The Limits of Retrieval Practice, Take II…
Just two weeks ago, I posted about a study showing potential boundary conditions for retrieval practice: one of the most robustly supported classroom strategies for enhancing long-term memories. As luck would have it, the authors of that study wrote up their
The Limits of Retrieval Practice: A Helpful Case Study
Here on the blog, I write A LOT about the benefits of “retrieval practice.” (For example: here and here.) In brief: our students often review by trying to put information into their brains. That is: they “go over” the material. However,
Let’s Get Practical: When Should Students Self-Test?
When should students self-test for maximum learning? Recent research suggests that retrieval practice timing matters less than retrieval practice doing. That is: students can self test at the end of a textbook section, or an the end of a chapter; both techniques help them learn. For even better memories, do both! Continue reading