Lots of tests better than lots of study
8 March 2006
by Carina Lee
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Taking small tests or quizzes frequently enable students to better understand and retain information as opposed to studying the material for a prolonged time, suggests new psychology research conducted at the Washington University. Internationally recognised scholar of human memory function, Dr. Henry L Roediger III, explains “Students who self-test frequently while studying on their own may be able to learn more, in much less time, than they might by simply studying the material over and over again.” It can be said that by constantly going over the study material, perhaps students feel more confident than they really are, with experiment results showing that students who had done small tests over the period of time scored better results. The experiment was conducted using two groups of students, both groups being allowed to study a passage. The first group of students were allowed to study the passage for about 5 minutes before taking a short comprehension test. The second group however, studied the passage for about 10 minutes. Final tests were conducted after 5 minutes, 2 days, and 1 week later. The results after 5 minutes showed that 81% of students in the first group retained information with contrast to the 75% of students in the second group. The percentage gap widened as time progressed, and can be possibly explained that frequent testing improves the long-term memory by forcing students to apply the concepts that they have already learnt. |
tests seem to make people remember more image: canvas stock
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Related Links
Original press release from Washington University St. Louis
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