5. Spaced repetition algorithms

There are many softwares out there that have spaced repetition algorithms programmed into them such as Anki and Supermemo which replicate flashcards digitally. They assess your knowledge and then show the flashcards that were answered incorrectly more often.

The great added benefit is that these softwares track progression for you and allow you to study remotely with their mobile apps.

I would like to emphasize once again that while flashcard softwares effectively incorporate spaced repetition, they often lack the elements of synthesis, reorganization, comparison, application, and contextualization that are involved in free recall.

 

Therefore, use them as supplemental tools to your retrieval practice, rather than as a replacement for it.

 

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Principle Three: Interleaved Practice

Defining lnterleavetl Practice

Let's first look at its more popular counterpart—blocked practice—using a calculus example. If you were learning derivatives, a common approach to studying would be something similar to the following:

 

• First hour = power rule

• Second hour = sum/difference rule

• Third hour = product/quotient rule

• Fourth hour = chain rule

Students tend to revise a topic extensively before moving on to the next because that is how they are first introduced in their classes. Although you generally do want to start with blocked practice to familiarize yourself, you should be quickly adopting interleaved practice for your studying.

 

Therefore the more appropriate approach to revision would be to randomize and mix the practice questions and then complete them.

For a visual representation of the differences between the two techniques see the illustration below:

 

B*Ocxes

 

 

SumfDicrenence

Paonucv/Quoiienv

 

 

ftuce

Run

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Interleaving has been shown in research to be the more effective approach for several reasons, with the first advantage stemming from the principle of spaced repetition that we discussed in the previous section.

By spacing out your practice, you can revisit the information just as your brain starts to forget it, which ultimately promotes long-term retention. In contrast, the traditional bloCked practiCe would necessitate extensive review of the material just before an exam, as a significant portion of the information, particularly from the earlier blocks, would have been forgotten.

 

Another advantage of interleaving is that it improves your ability to discern between concepts which enhances memory consolidation. Instead of storing the 31

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information as isolated and decontextualized facts, you are creating stronger linkages between concepts. By experiencing different topics in close proximity, you become more skilled at identifying differences and similarities, fostering a deeper understanding of the material.

 

A third advantage is that interleaving mimics the conditions of real-world applications. For example, if I was creating a mathematical model utilizing derivatives, I would not be exposed to each of the rules separately. Instead, it would be much more likely that I would be exposed to a barrage of combinations. Then it would be my responsibility as a biomedical engineer to differentiate them and apply my knowledge in order to sort through the material and create a working model.

 

Moreover, this is certainly the case for exams as well. Especially in higher education, it is likely that you will be exposed to inference questions where a scenario would be explained, and you have to apply the techniques without being guided on a particular order. It will be your responsibility to then retrieve the appropriate rules when necessary for each step in order to come up with an appropriate answer.

 

If you had applied the interleaving principle to your studies, you have a much better chance at solving these problems more effectively when it counts on an exam.

 

 

Exiimining the Scientific Research:

 

 

 

 

 

This study compared the effectiveness of