By Jaya Carrier
I hope you’re all having a good week so far. This week I was interested to read a research review about the effectiveness of retrieval practice and spacing as compiled in August 2022 in Nature Psychology. This, for me, was an interesting link to Dr Wood’s session at the start of the January planning day which mentioned ideas about the power of discussing ‘how you learn’ with students.
Objectives: To review the existing literature about effective learning strategies, particularly looking at retrieval practice and spacing.
Summary:
Retrieval practice and spacing have been discussed as important learning strategies rooted in neuroscience for a number of years, and yet they are still underutilised by students
Particularly if students are going to learn using more technology and in more student-centred ways, their autonomous processes and strategies for learning are becoming increasingly important
The article argues that students should treat learning and revision as akin to a ‘fitness routine’ designed to achieve specific goals - doing specific things (including retrieval practice) at specific times (spacing).
Effective spacing is argued to be extremely important for long term memory creation across all ages. When combined with retrieval practice, the benefits of both techniques are significantly amplified.
The authors conclude that educators should look to consider how they introduce students to the ideas of ‘learning routines’.
How does this impact me and my practice?: Some reflections arising from this that might be helpful to consider are:
How am I currently speaking to students about ‘how to learn’?
How am I using spaced learning and retrieval practice currently? How could I amplify this in my practice and in our curriculum?
What would a ‘learning routine’ look like in my subject?
What support do I need for this?
Please do get in touch if you would like to talk further about this - I’d love to hear from you!
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