Retrieval Practice: A More Effective Way to Study

One of the most common study methods used by college students is rereading. Students often reread highlighted portions of their textbook, notes they took during class, and slides you presented in class. While rereading certainly can feel productive, it creates a feeling of familiarity which is often mistaken for actually knowing the material – a bias commonly known as “The Illusion of Knowing”. Thus, rereading is often a less effective way to study.

So what is a better way for students to study in order to ensure that they will be able to remember and understand course content? The answer is what cognitive scientists refer to as retrieval practice – essentially a fancy term for an activity such as self-quizzing. To ensure that your students are ready to retrieve information when they need it (such as when taking a test or trying to solve meaningful problems), they should practice retrieving that information from memory.

How can you help? Give your students frequent low-stakes quizzes. Encourage them to make flashcards. Show them how to effectively use the questions provided in the textbook. Help them form study groups, and encourage them to ask each other questions based on the material they are learning. Invite them to collectively create and then take practice tests. Provide opportunities for them to teach each other key concepts without notes. Teach them to do anything else requiring them to actively recall the information rather than attempt to passively absorb it through rereading.

Think of it this way: if you were trying to help your students develop a skill like playing the piano or improving their free throw in basketball, you probably wouldn’t encourage them to spend most of their time reading and rereading information on how to play the piano or improve free-throw shooting. Although reading may be a good way to start learning some of the basics, practice is by far the best way to develop and improve those skills.

Likewise, help your students discover that retrieval practice is the key to ensuring that they will be able to recall information when they need it. Rereading portions of a textbook or notes now and then may be necessary, but actively trying to retrieve information from memory will increase the chances that students will be able to remember the material when stakes are high.

Finally, encourage your students to keep trying! If they feel they don’t know or understand enough about the material to answer questions about it, invite them to try answering, anyway. Struggling to remember something actually increases the strength of that memory, and it also lets students distinguish what information they understand from that which they still need to learn. As a result, any necessary rereading can be targeted to specific concepts and ideas they haven’t yet mastered and thus can be time better spent.

Resources:

Brown, P.C., H.L. Roediger III, and M. A. McDaniel. (2014). Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning. Carey, B. (2014). How We Learn: The Surprising Truth about When, Where, and Why It Happens, Chapter 5. Doyle, T. And T. Zakrajsek. (2013). The New Science of Learning: How to Learn in Harmony with Your Brain, Chapter 6. Fisher, M. and F.C. Keil. (2015). The Curse of Expertise: When More Knowledge Leads to Miscalibrated Explanatory Insight. Cognitive Science 40: 1251-1269. Koriat, A. (1998). Illusions of knowing: The link between knowledge and metaknowledge. In V.Y. Yzerbyt, G. Lories, & B. Dardenne (Eds.), Metacognition: Cognitive and social dimensions (pp. 16-34). London, England

Contributor:

McKoo Staples, M.S., Graduate Research Assistant
Michael C. Johnson, Ph.D., Teaching & Learning Consultant
Center for Teaching & Learning
Brigham Young University