Retrieval practice in the form of online homework improved information retention more when spaced 5 days rather than 1 day after class in two physiology courses

Studies have shown that practicing temporally spaced retrieval of previously learned information via formal assessments increases student retention of the information. Our objective was to determine the impact of online homework administered as a first retrieval practice 1 or 5 days after introduction of physiology topics on long-term information retention. Students in two undergraduate courses, Anatomy and Physiology (ASCI 240) and Animal Physiological Systems (ASCI 340), were presented with information on a specific physiological system during each weekly laboratory and then completed an online homework assignment either 1 or 5 days later. Information retention was assessed via an in-class quiz the following week and by a comprehensive final exam at semester’s end (4–13 wk later). Performance on homework assignments was generally similar between groups for both courses. Information retention at 1 wk did not differ due to timing of homework in either course. In both courses, however, students who received homework 5 days after class performed better on final exam questions relevant to that week’s topic compared with their day 1 counterparts. These findings indicate that the longer period between introducing physiology information in class and assigning the first retrieval practice was more beneficial to long-term information retention than the shorter period, despite seemingly equivalent benefits in the shorter term. Since information is typically forgotten over time, we speculate that the longer interval necessitates greater retrieval effort in much the same way as built-in desirable difficulties, thus allowing for stronger conceptual connections and deeper comprehension.

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Homework questions designed to require higher-order cognitive skills in an undergraduate animal physiology course did not produce desirable difficulties, testing effects, or improvements in information retention

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skab246 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Caitlin N Cadaret ◽

Dustin T Yates

Keyword(s):

Undergraduate Students ◽

Cognitive Skills ◽

Higher Order ◽

Information Retention ◽

Desirable Difficulties ◽

Animal Physiology ◽

Initial Learning ◽

Retention Of Knowledge ◽

Practical Exam

Abstract Studies show that retrieval practices such as homework assignments that are completed during the encoding phase of learning benefit knowledge acquisition and retention. In addition, desirable difficulties, which are strategies that intentionally create a greater challenge during initial learning to enhance encoding and retrieval pathways, also benefit learning long term. Our objective was to determine whether weekly homework questions intended to create desirable difficulties by requiring higher-order cognitive skills (HOCS) benefited students’ long-term retention of physiology concepts compared to questions designed to require lower-order cognitive skills (LOCS). Undergraduate students in a junior-level animal physiology course were presented information during weekly laboratory periods, and then required to complete retrieval practices in the form of online homework assignments 5 d after each lab. Homework questions were formatted per Bloom’s Taxonomy to require HOCS (i.e. level 4 or 5) or LOCS (i.e. level 1 or 2). Information retention was assessed the next week via performance on an in-class quiz and again at semesters’ end via performance on a final practical exam. We observed no differences in performance on the in-class quiz or final practical exam between students randomly assigned to complete homework with HOCS questions compared to LOCS questions. However, students that received homework with HOCS questions had decreased (P < 0.05) performance scores on 9 out of the 11 homework assignments compared to those receiving homework with LOCS questions. These findings indicate that desirable difficulties were not created by our HOCS homework questions because students receiving these more difficult retrieval practices did not achieve equal success on them. As a result, this attempt to create variations in cognitive demand did not enhance retention of knowledge in this study.

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Spaced Retrieval Practice Increases College Students’ Short- and Long-Term Retention of Mathematics Knowledge

Educational Psychology Review ◽

10.1007/s10648-015-9349-8 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 28 (4) ◽

pp. 853-873 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Robin F. Hopkins ◽

Keith B. Lyle ◽

Jeff L. Hieb ◽

Patricia A. S. Ralston

Keyword(s):

College Students ◽

Retrieval Practice ◽

Spaced Retrieval ◽

Term Retention ◽

Mathematics Knowledge ◽

Short And Long Term ◽

Long Term Retention

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Beyond the Flipped Class: The Impact of Research-Based Teaching Methods in a Macroeconomics Principles Class

AEA Papers and Proceedings ◽

10.1257/pandp.20181052 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 108 ◽

pp. 297-301 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Austin Boyle ◽

William L. Goffe

Keyword(s):

Working Memory ◽

Stem Education ◽

Teaching Methods ◽

Retrieval Practice ◽

Deliberate Practice ◽

Desirable Difficulties ◽

Curse Of Knowledge ◽

Improved Learning ◽

Stem Teaching ◽

The Impact

Cognitive scientists have identified fundamental principles influencing learning: deliberate practice, interleaving, retrieval practice, spacing, metacognition, desirable difficulties, limited working memory, curse of knowledge, schema generation, and constructivism. STEM education researchers have repeatedly shown improved learning when instruction employs these principles. Particularly, teaching methods like flipping and clickers work best when implemented using them. These “research-based teaching methods” are becoming the norm in STEM teaching. A macro principles course was redesigned using these principles. Five hundred and eight students in this course achieved 0.77 standard deviations more learning than principles students normally do on the macroeconomic Test of Understanding of College Economics (TUCE).

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Expanding retrieval practice promotes short-term retention, but equally spaced retrieval enhances long-term retention.

Journal of Experimental Psychology Learning Memory and Cognition ◽

10.1037/0278-7393.33.4.704 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 33 (4) ◽

pp. 704-719 ◽

Cited By ~ 108

Author(s):

Jeffrey D. Karpicke ◽

Henry L. Roediger

Keyword(s):

Retrieval Practice ◽

Short Term ◽

Spaced Retrieval ◽

Term Retention ◽

Long Term Retention

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Maintenance of Foreign Language Vocabulary and the Spacing Effect

Psychological Science ◽

10.1111/j.1467-9280.1993.tb00571.x ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 4 (5) ◽

pp. 316-321 ◽

Cited By ~ 140

Author(s):

Harry P. Bahrick ◽

Lorraine E. Bahrick ◽

Audrey S. Bahrick ◽

Phyllis E. Bahrick

Keyword(s):

Foreign Language ◽

Retrieval Practice ◽

Spacing Effect ◽

Difficulty Level ◽

Academic Knowledge ◽

Spaced Retrieval ◽

Longitudinal Investigation ◽

Term Maintenance

In a 9-year longitudinal investigation, 4 subjects learned and relearned 300 English-foreign language word pairs. Either 13 or 26 relearning sessions were administered at intervals of 14, 28, or 56 days. Retention was tested for 1.2.3. or 5 years after training terminated. The longer intersession intervals slowed down acquisition slightly, but this disadvantage during training was offset by substantially higher retention. Thirteen retraining sessions spaced at 56 days yielded retention comparable to 26 sessions spaced at 14 days. The retention benefit due to additional sessions was independent of the benefit due to spacing, and both variables facilitated retention of words regardless of difficulty level and of the consistency of retrieval during training. The benefits of spaced retrieval practice to long-term maintenance of access to academic knowledge areas are discussed.

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A meta-analytic review of the benefit of spacing out retrieval practice episodes on retention

10.31234/osf.io/kzy7u ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

alice latimier ◽

Hugo Peyre ◽

Franck Ramus

Keyword(s):

Retrieval Practice ◽

Learning Strategy ◽

Desirable Difficulties ◽

Spaced Retrieval ◽

Spacing Effects ◽

Analytic Review ◽

Meta Analyses

Spaced retrieval practice consists of repetitions of the same retrieval event distributed through time. This learning strategy combines two “desirable difficulties”: retrieval practice and spacing effects. We carried out meta-analyses on 29 studies investigating the benefit of spacing out retrieval practice episodes on final retention.

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Retrieval Practice for Improving Long-Term Retention in Anatomical Education: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Medical Science Educator ◽

10.1007/s40670-021-01298-8 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Mohammad B. Azzam ◽

Ronald A. Easteal

Keyword(s):

Student Performance ◽

Educational Software ◽

Retrieval Practice ◽

Gross Anatomy ◽

Final Exam ◽

Term Retention ◽

Quasi Experimental ◽

Long Term Retention ◽

Gross Anatomy Course

AbstractIt is generally assumed by students that learning takes place during repeated episodes of rereading and rote memorization of course materials. Over the past few decades, however, research has increasingly indicated that the said notion can and should be enhanced with learning paradigms such as retrieval practice (RP). RP occurs when students practice retrieving their consolidated semantic memories by informally testing themselves. This strategy results in the re-encoding and re-consolidation of existing semantic memories, thus strengthening their schemas. The purpose of this quasi-experimental design was to assess the effects of the implementation of RP on student performance on the final exam in a large, undergraduate Gross Anatomy course. It was hypothesized that student participation in RP during class would improve their performance on the final exam in the course. The participants (N = 248) were mainly in Life Sciences, Kinesiology, and Physical Education programs. They answered RP questions using TopHat©, an online educational software platform. The results of this study indicated that student performance on the final exam was enhanced when students engaged in RP. It was concluded that the use of RP effectively enhances learning and long-term retention of semantic memory. In addition to the traditional testing ‘of’ learning, teachers are encouraged to implement testing, in the form of RP, in their classrooms ‘for’ learning.

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Suppressed, but Not Forgotten

Swiss Journal of Psychology ◽

10.1024/1421-0185/a000033 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 70 (1) ◽

pp. 5-11 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Beat Meier ◽

Anja König ◽

Samuel Parak ◽

Katharina Henke

Keyword(s):

Memory Trace ◽

Thought Suppression ◽

Test Phase ◽

Indirect Test ◽

Final Test ◽

Test Experiment ◽

And Control ◽

Cue Words ◽

The Impact

This study investigates the impact of thought suppression over a 1-week interval. In two experiments with 80 university students each, we used the think/no-think paradigm in which participants initially learn a list of word pairs (cue-target associations). Then they were presented with some of the cue words again and should either respond with the target word or avoid thinking about it. In the final test phase, their memory for the initially learned cue-target pairs was tested. In Experiment 1, type of memory test was manipulated (i.e., direct vs. indirect). In Experiment 2, type of no-think instructions was manipulated (i.e., suppress vs. substitute). Overall, our results showed poorer memory for no-think and control items compared to think items across all experiments and conditions. Critically, however, more no-think than control items were remembered after the 1-week interval in the direct, but not in the indirect test (Experiment 1) and with thought suppression, but not thought substitution instructions (Experiment 2). We suggest that during thought suppression a brief reactivation of the learned association may lead to reconsolidation of the memory trace and hence to better retrieval of suppressed than control items in the long term.

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