A recent
review written by Jeffrey D. Karpicke, PhD from Purdue University, explained why retrieval is one of the most effective
methods of learning and memorization for college students. To recap, retrieval
is the ability to access different types of information from your memory
whenever you need it. In one study reviewed (Karpicke & Blunt, 2011), students were put into two groups and told to read pages of a science book. The
first group was told to write down as much as they could remember and then to
practice retrieving that information as well. While the other group was told to
draw out concept maps that linked information they learned while reading their
textbook. After one week, both groups were given two types of exams that
assessed how well they retained what they learned. The first exam was a short
answer exam that tested concepts directly from the textbook. While the second asked students to draw out a concept map to show what they learned.
Surprisingly, the students who practiced retrieval not only proved to be better
on the short answer test, but also did better on the concept map test than the
group that studied by drawing them out.
In today’s
society we have access to endless amounts of information. This comes with many
benefits, but there are also drawbacks. For students, it’s the difficulty in
digging through the heaps of useless techniques to find the best ones. Practicing
retrieval when studying may seem so simple that students must use it as a
studying technique most of the time, but that’s not true. In fact, the review
cited a survey (Karpicke, Butler, & Roediger, 2009) that asked college students what studying
techniques they used and which ones they used the most. The results showed that
the most frequent strategies used were rereading textbooks and looking over
notes.
The best
thing about utilizing retrieval methods is they don’t require
sophisticated technology and practicing is simple. Students only need to review
the information ,set it to the side, and then try to recall it. Different
techniques that students can use to utilize retrieval during studying are
things like practice tests or flashcards. Even looking at notes at the end of a
class can be useful, the most important takeaway is that they need to be able
to retrieve that information from their memory.
I am not at all surprised at the finding most college students showed that the most frequent strategies used were rereading textbooks and looking over notes just from knowing how I am, and those around me. I think it's interesting though because we all know that retrieval methods over a elongated course of time works better for studying. We were always told to not procrastinate, we won't remember what we studied.
ReplyDeleteI think that students should be sternly taught to use retrieval methods when studying. I think it would improve our overall capacity for education and increase our intelligence.
I am also not very surprised that most students do not practice retrieval methods, although they very well should. Rereading notes and textbooks materials without critically working with the material is certainly faster and easier, and many college students are juggling a lot. However, starting this school year I made a point to utilize retrieval methods while studying, and the results have been great! In class we have talked about how retrieval and consolidation can occur even while we sleep, and there have actually been a handful of times where I have woken up in the process of working through an organic chemistry mechanism. This, and the article, have me wondering if those students who actively use retrieval methods to study show more signs of consolidation while they sleep, and in turn, enhanced memory.
ReplyDeleteThis study is interesting because as a college student, I have used the technique of looking over notes and rereading books more often than I would have the retrieval technique. In one of my neuroscience classes last semester, I actually had a professor recommend taking a blank sheet of paper and trying to recall each lectures important information. Using this technique I was able to do well in the class because after I would go back to review what I couldn't recall, I would remember that information more easily. I also think that is is interesting that the retrieval technique students were able to perform better on making concept maps than the students that actually made the concept maps. Looking at this data and from personal experience I agree that the retrieval technique is easy to use and extremely important for students to use in order to make their studying successful.
ReplyDeleteI instantly gravitated towards this article because I have been exposed many times to professors saying that rereading notes is not going to help for exams. Specifically, we talked about in class how students often say for example, "I remember the reading the answer of the short essay question to the exam but I totally forgot it". Professor Morrison stated that "forgot" is the wrong terminology because in fact that information never reached that student's long-term memory.This is why using retrieval methods is much more highly effective instead of just skimming notes over again. I was a tutor for BIOL 101 and the most common thing for students to do was say that they new the material because they read it but in reality would not be able to recall much of it. I think that is why acronyms are such a popular concept when trying to remember information. It gives the brain a purpose to remember information because there is something special behind them and therefore it makes it into the long-term memory.
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