The testing effect - Revising with practise tests is the most effective
Summary
- Revising using practise tests is the best way to remember specific information
Details
- Experiment: students attend a 20min lecutre. Afterwards one group takes a test, the second group studies the material again and teh third group do an unrelated mental exercise. Then they do a final test. The rereading group was worse than the group who takes a test by 30%, and about the same as the unrelated group.
- Even if no feedback is provided, a test is effective.
- The test must be a recall test, not multiple choice.
- Feedback is important in that if we misremember something and it is not corrected, it may lodge more firmly in our memory