Spaced training enhances equine learning performance

This field experiment examined whether the well-documented benefit of spaced over massed training for humans and other animals generalizes to horses. Twenty-nine randomly selected horses (Equus ferus caballus) repeatedly encountered a novel obstacle-crossing task while under saddle. Horses were randomly assigned to the spaced-training condition (2 min work, 2 min rest, 2 min work, 2 min rest) or the massed-training condition (4 min work, 4 min rest). Total training time per session and total rest per session were held constant. Days between sessions (M = 3) were held as consistent as possible given the constraints of conducting research on a working ranch and safety–threatening weather conditions. During each training session, the same hypothesis-naïve rider shaped horses to cross a novel obstacle. Fifteen of 16 horses in the spaced-training condition reached performance criterion (94% success) while only 5 of 13 horses in the massed-training condition reached performance criterion (39% success). Horses in the spaced-training condition also initiated their first obstacle-crossing faster than horses in the massed-training condition and were faster at completing eight crossings than horses in the massed-training condition. Overall, task acquisition was higher for horses undergoing spaced training despite both groups experiencing the same total work and rest time per session. These findings generalize the learning-performance benefit observed in human spaced practice to horses and offer applied benefit to equine training.

MASSED TASK REPETITION IS A DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD FOR FLUENCY DEVELOPMENT

To examine the effects of task repetition with different schedules, English-as-a-foreign-language classroom learners performed the same oral narrative task six times under three different schedules. They narrated the same six-frame cartoon story (a) six times consecutively in one class (massed practice), (b) three times at the beginning and at the end of a class (short-spaced practice), and (c) three times as a part of two classes 1 week apart (long-spaced practice). The results yielded by an immediate posttest using a novel cartoon showed that massed practice reduced breakdown fluency (mid-clause and clause-final pauses) the most. However, the participants in the massed-practice group showed degraded speed (slower articulation rate) and repair fluency (more verbatim repetition). The effects of repetition schedule seem limited on a 1-week delayed posttest involving a novel cartoon. Yet, when participants narrated the same practiced cartoon 1 week later, massed practice also resulted in more verbatim repetition.

Effectiveness, efficiency, engagement: Mapping the impact of pre-lecture quizzes on educational exchange

Our study addresses a systemic issue facing higher education – a lack of rigorous educational research alongside new technology-assisted ways of teaching and learning. The issue highlights the disciplinary disconnect as many academics do not research outside their discipline, yet are tasked with educational modernisation through trying out new educational technology. Addressing this issue, we present our conceptual framework, the course transaction space (CT-space), and use it to analyse the impact of an intervention we designed that involved the use of regular online pre-lecture quizzes in a university mathematics course. The aim of the intervention was to optimise the effect of distributed (spaced) practice on long-term retention. Our findings suggest that a relatively small change in course instruction can improve the efficiency and effectiveness of educational exchange. Our analyses of data from multiple sources provide evidence that our intervention resulted in a sustained increase in the frequency of students’ engagement with the content, increased attendance of lectures, and improved grades. Additionally, we discuss the impact of our intervention on the quality of student engagement with reference to competence related beliefs and self-efficacy. Finally, we discuss how our intervention can be used in other contexts for supporting an evidence-based approach to teaching and learning. Implications for practice or policy For teachers designing an intervention with the aim of improving students’ learning engagement during a course of tertiary study, we advise incorporating a series of frequent low stakes online quizzes with low level of difficulty. For students, these will act as an incentive, enabling improvement in the frequency of their learning engagement and its quality. The course transaction space (CT-space) model can be used to explore and analyse the impact of a variety of interventions introduced in tertiary courses through the lens of engagement.

Predicting Learning: Comparing Study Techniques, Perseverance, and Metacognitive Skill

Background: Instructors and students are on a continuing quest to identify predictors of learning. Objective: This study examines the associations between self-reported exam score and study techniques among students in two courses, Introductory Psychology and Computer Science. Method: We used an online survey to measure the extent students ( N = 249) used 10 techniques studied in cognitive science. We also measured students’ perseverance, metacognitive skill, distractions, and procrastination. Results: Student use of specific study techniques varied between the two courses and a high utility technique, practice testing, was well used. Students reported low levels of spaced practice. Perseverance and metacognitive skills both correlated significantly with many of the study techniques. While no study techniques predicted exam scores in Introductory Psychology beyond variance predicted by GPA, the use of spaced practice predicted a significant portion of variance in students in Computer Science. Conclusions: Students’ use of study techniques varies between their courses and while related to GPA and exam scores, are not unique predictors of variance in learning. Additional moderators and mediators of learning need to be identified. Teaching Implications: We discuss ways instructors can help prepare students in Introductory Psychology and key needs for future research on studying.

The Advantages of Retrieval-Based and Spaced Practice: Implications for Word Learning in Clinical and Educational Contexts

Purpose Researchers in the cognitive sciences have identified several key training strategies that support good encoding and retention of target information. These strategies are retrieval-based practice, also known as learning through testing, and spaced practice. The recent resurgence of research on retrieval-based and spaced practice has been extended to investigate the effectiveness of these strategies to support learning in individuals with language disorders. The purpose of the current article is to review key principles of retrieval-based and spaced practice that can be used to support word learning in individuals within clinical and educational contexts. Conclusion Current research provides evidence that principles of retrieval-based and spaced practice can enhance word learning for individuals with language disorders. Current research provides guidance for clinicians on how to implement these strategies both within and across sessions to support encoding and retention of target information. Additional research should be conducted to provide a better understanding of how to optimize encoding and retention in clinical and educational contexts. Most notably, research that examines long-term retention after interventions are withdrawn would further our understanding of how these principles can be optimally applied to improve outcomes for individuals with language disorders.

1128. Online Spaced Education to Teach Microbiology to Medical Students in a Threaded Medical School Curriculum

Background A strong foundation in microbiology continues to be essential for physicians-in-training. Little research exists examining pre-clinical microbiology education in undergraduate medical education (UME) curricular structures. Further, no study has evaluated the use of a spaced repetition model for pre-clinical UME students studying microbiology in a threaded curriculum. Methods We conducted a prospective cohort design study and enrolled 81 out of 154 (53%) first-year medical students at Oregon Health & Science University from August 2018 through December 2019. The first 18 months of the UME curriculum is organized by organ system blocks with end-of-block exams including retired National Board of Medical Examiner (NBME) questions. Participants were invited to complete 10 microbiology questions using the spaced practice online platform QSTREAM weekly. Performance between participants and non-participants on end of block NBME exams were compared using t-tests for categorical variables. Results At the conclusion of the study, 42.5% of participants were “very active” (questions in < 2 days), 7.5% of participants were “active” (questions in 3-7 days), and 50.0% of participants were “inactive” (questions in >7 days). Student performance on second-pass questions improved by 41%, and NBME end-of-block exams demonstrated improved performance in each block compared to non-participants. Specifically, performance in the Skin, Bones, and Musculature end-of-block exam and Developing Human end-of-block exam was significantly (p=0.0001, 0.008, respectively) improved, and study participants outperformed non-participants on topics practiced in the study. Conclusion As more medical schools move to a threaded curriculum, with many of these programs proposing fewer contact hours, innovative methods targeting microbiology education should be explored for pre-clinical medical students. Online spaced practice in a threaded curriculum could provide a feasible and acceptable pedagogical technique for UME and add to the discourse around microbiology curriculum development. With initial start-up costs, sustaining such a program across medical school curricula is an inexpensive, innovative, technologically-savvy approach to medical education. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures

Fooling Father Time

This chapter discusses varied methods for achieving what psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi calls “flow,” the feeling that all members of a team are working smoothly and effectively together. In order to achieve flow in rehearsal, instructions must be delivered clearly and efficiently. Based on music education research and the author’s many years of experience, this chapter examines the mechanics of giving short and cogent instructions. It further explores lessons from thin-slicing research about the importance of one’s tone of voice when delivering instructions and the impact of non-verbal behaviors. Conductors can benefit from research on interleaving, which involves taking advantage of spaced practice and the mixing of learning activities when structuring rehearsals. The chapter further examines how rehearsal efficiency will increase when conductors understand the primacy/recency effect, the phenomenon that people remember best what happens first in a learning episode, and they remember second best what happens last.