{"id":6664989,"date":"2025-09-21T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-21T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/?p=6664989"},"modified":"2025-09-22T12:04:04","modified_gmt":"2025-09-22T17:04:04","slug":"research-reality-check-more-is-better-doesnt-always-apply-to-learning-strategies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/research-reality-check-more-is-better-doesnt-always-apply-to-learning-strategies\/","title":{"rendered":"Research Reality Check: &#8216;More Is Better&#8217; Doesn&#8217;t Always Apply to Learning Strategies"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>We&#8217;ve got lots of strong research suggesting that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/does-drawing-a-simple-picture-benefit-memory\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"4169\">drawing <\/a>can improve memory for specific words.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>And<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We&#8217;ve got LOTS of strong research showing that <a href=\"http:\/\/www.retrievalpractice.org\">retrieval practice<\/a> enhances learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>So<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Simple logic suggests that <strong>combining drawing with retrieval practice<\/strong> will super-duper strengthen memory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To capture this <em>specific <\/em>suggestion, let&#8217;s propose a <em>general <\/em>equation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>[Research-supported technique A] + [research-supported technique B] = even MORE benefit<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>That equation just sounds like common sense. Of course, in the world of science, we always have to stop and check our common-sense assumptions. (It just makes sense to believe that the earth is flat. But because we stopped to check that assumption, we now know it to be untrue &#8212; knowledge that has proven HIGHLY useful.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/AdobeStock_544395531-1024x576.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6665042\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/AdobeStock_544395531-1024x576.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/AdobeStock_544395531-300x169.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/AdobeStock_544395531-768x432.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/AdobeStock_544395531-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/AdobeStock_544395531-2048x1152.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>I&#8217;ve <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S0959475225000672\">found a study<\/a> that explores the <em>specific <\/em>question raised above: &#8220;do students learn more when they combine drawing with retrieval practice?&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Of course, it also invites us to consider that <em>general<\/em> equation: [technique A] + [technique B] = MORE benefit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let&#8217;s dig in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Drawing Biology; Drawing Conclusions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The researchers here wanted to know if students who <em>combined drawing with retrieval practice <\/em>learned more than those who <em>simply drew<\/em>. To do so, they had some students [retrieve + draw], while others [drew without retrieval].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Specifically: 8th and 9th grade students in Germany read a 670 word passage for biology class. This five-paragraph passage discussed the human immune response to the flu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The [retrieve + draw] students followed a multi-step procedure. (If you want to skim these details, that&#8217;s ok. I&#8217;ve skipped a few steps to keep things simple.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>They read the five-paragraph passage.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>After each paragraph, they drew a picture to capture the key ideas that they just read. Note: they could NOT look back at the paragraph while they did so. In other words: they had to <em>retrieve <\/em>the important ideas <em>as they drew<\/em>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Once they had completed the full passage and generated five drawings, they then <em>looked at the passage<\/em> while they revised and corrected those earlier drawings.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>The [draw without retrieval] group did all that, but they could always see the passages while they drew. So: lots of drawing, but no retrieving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To measure the potential benefits of [retrieving + drawing], the researchers measured three outcomes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>How well did students remember the information &#8212; as measured by a <em>written quiz<\/em>?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How well did students remember the information &#8212; as measured by <em>drawings<\/em>?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Did the students <em>understand other ideas<\/em> &#8212; for instance, HIV infection &#8212; better based on learning these related concepts?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The research team asked these questions TWICE: both 2 weeks later and <strong>8 weeks later<\/strong>. This point merits attention, because research only rarely looks for results so long after an experiment. Because we have data gathered two months after the students combined [retrieving + drawing], we can have a plausible basis to start talking about &#8220;learning.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So: how much better did the [retrieve + draw] group do than the [draw only] group?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">When a Bust is Not a Bust<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>We can summarize the findings in three words:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>&#8220;Nope,&#8221;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>&#8220;Nope,&#8221; and<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>&#8220;Nope.&#8221;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>That is: <\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>[Retrieving + drawing] didn&#8217;t improve scores on a <em>written quiz <\/em>after 2 weeks. Or 8 weeks.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It didn&#8217;t improve scores on <em>drawings<\/em>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>And, it didn&#8217;t improve scores on learning <em>related new information<\/em>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>These results might feel like a bust. The researchers did ALL THAT WORK, and they found nothing. But I think this &#8220;what a bust&#8221; response misses several key points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>First<\/strong>: the researchers DID find something. They found that combining [retrieving + drawing] DIDN&#8217;T produce extra learning. That information gives us useful guidance &#8212; because it tells us not to devote our scarce resources to this extra work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Second<\/strong>: These results help us rethink our general equation: &#8220;[research-supported technique A] + [research-supported technique B] = even MORE benefit.&#8221; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While that equation initially sounded like common sense, we can see that it&#8217;s not necessarily true. (Just as: it&#8217;s common sense to think that the earth is flat, but&#8230;)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As we enter the world of research-based teaching advice, we should be careful how far we extrapolate research findings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Intriguing Possibilities<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>This research suggests that [reading followed immediately by drawing] doesn&#8217;t improve learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>BUT&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I myself don&#8217;t think that IMMEDIATE retrieval is, in fact, &#8220;retrieval practice.&#8221; As it&#8217;s typically understood, retrieval practice involves attempts to recall from <em>long-term memory<\/em>. But in this case, the information the students just read hasn&#8217;t gotten anywhere near long-term memory. It&#8217;s probably awash in some working-memory-ish zone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, drawing <em>right after <\/em>reading might not help learning. But <\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Maybe [drawing the <em>next day <\/em>as retrieval practice] might help. Or,<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Maybe [reading] then [immediate generative drawing] then [retrieving the drawing the next day] might help. Or,<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Perhaps [an alternating schedule of drawing and retrieving], or&#8230;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>In other words: I don&#8217;t think this study rules out the benefits of [drawing + retrieval practice]. I think it shows that IMMEDIATE drawing doesn&#8217;t produce the benefits of retrieval practice &#8212; <em>because it isn&#8217;t retrieval practice<\/em>. (By the way: I have checked with my friend Dr. Cindy Nebel &#8212; one of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.learningscientists.org\/\">the Learning Scientists<\/a> &#8212; to confirm my suspicion that immediate recall isn&#8217;t technically retrieval practice.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">In Sum<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>This study provides a specific &#8220;no&#8221;: drawing as retrieval practice doesn&#8217;t improve learning (if the drawing happens immediately after reading).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It also provides a broader &#8220;no&#8221;: we shouldn&#8217;t assume that two research-informed teaching strategies interact positively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Finally, it offers an intriguing possibility: we <em>might<\/em> get the benefits of both drawing and retrieval practice if that retrieval practice happens <em>after some time<\/em>. We don&#8217;t know yet&#8230;but it&#8217;s a question worth asking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After all: research-based teaching strategies don&#8217;t always enhance each other, but they might!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>Kim, S., Abel, R., Leutner, D., Schmiemann, P., &amp; Roelle, J. (2025). Can the effects of generative drawing on lasting learning be optimized through integration of retrieval practice?.&nbsp;<em>Learning and Instruction<\/em>,&nbsp;<em>98<\/em>, 102143.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We&#8217;ve got lots of strong research suggesting that drawing can improve memory for specific words. And We&#8217;ve got LOTS of strong research showing that retrieval practice enhances learning. So Simple logic suggests that combining drawing with retrieval practice will super-duper strengthen memory. To capture this specific suggestion, let&#8217;s propose a general equation: That equation just [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":6665042,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[261,12],"class_list":["post-6664989","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lb-blog","tag-drawing","tag-retrieval-practice"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6664989","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6664989"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6664989\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6665045,"href":"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6664989\/revisions\/6665045"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6665042"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6664989"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6664989"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learningandthebrain.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6664989"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}