There is an ongoing research program on something called Retrieval Practice
(RP), which could have profound effects on pedagogy, and which I am
attempting to integrate into my new TBL course that begins in September 2013.
I have done a search of this listserv and found no references to RP, so I
would like to open a new thread on it.
Here are some links on RP:
http://blog.questionmark.com/professor-roddy-roediger-on-applying-the-retrieval-practice-effect-to-creating-and-administering-assessments
http://www.purdue.edu/newsroom/research/2011/110120KarpickeScience.html
http://scholar.google.com/scholar_url?hl=en&q=http://testology.co.il/articles/retrieval_practice.pdf&sa=X&scisig=AAGBfm0RNTTRVFy6ve0yvTKPXhLfIzWw9w&oi=scholarr
The key insight of RP research is summarized in the first paragraph from the
Karpicke-Blunt article, above. Assessments do not merely inform instructors
and students of how much knowledge the students acquired during previous
learning sessions. Rather, assessments are themselves learning experiences.
Not only that, there is a growing body of evidence supporting the claim that
assessments are one of the most powerful tools available for creating
learning: more powerful than repeated studying or creating concept maps.
The term "assessment" in the context of the RP research program comprises
any attempt to recall information as long as THE INFORMATION IS NOT
AVAILABLE DURING THE ASSESSMENT. In the context of a typical classroom,
that means that books and notes cannot be used. The essence of an assessment
is that the student is recalling information from memory.
Note that the RP concept of assessment differs fundamentally from the
well-known concept of "formative assessment." Formative assessments are
administered for the purpose of determining how much test-takers have
learned. They are not administered because the test-giver believes that the
test, in itself, will increase what test-takers have learned.
In the context of TBL, iRATs are assessments. It is important to note,
however, that if someone were to give "iRATs" online, the likelihood is high
that students would use books, notes, internet searches, etc. Thus, they
would not be retrieving from memory. Accordingly, learning from online
"iRATs" is likely to be significantly attenuated compared to closed-book,
in-class iRATs. The tRATs, especially when using IF-ATs, enhance the iRAT
process, because feedback enhances learning outcomes.
The RP research program does not address group learning, so I can't draw any
conclusions about group activities, per se.
However, memory research in general, and RP research in particular,
demonstrate that the typical classroom structure leads to learning outcomes
that fall significantly short of their potential.
If we take a paradigmatic TBL course, the semester is divided into units.
Once a unit is complete, the likelihood that assessments and application
exercises will refer to prior units is low. In order to learn, it is
essential that learners be prompted to recall previously learned material
repeatedly over extended (days, weeks) periods of time.
This suggests that RAPs and assessment activities should on week 8, say,
should be referring to material covered in weeks 1-7.
Another possible implication of RP research for TBL is that the fear of
overtesting is misplaced. Virtually all human beings, if RP research is
confirmed, lack a proper understanding of the best learning strategies. We
all tend to overestimate how much we understand after we've heard or read
something. We all tend to test our recall less than would be ideal to
optimize our learning.
For the last few weeks, I have been attempting to use RP learning strategies
in my own studies. Instead of taking notes as I read a text, I read a few
pages or a passage in a text, then I put the text away. I then write what I
recalled of the text. Then I review the text and write some more.
What I have not done is repeat these exercises days and weeks later.
Changing habits ingrained over decades is not easy. But if the result is
more efficient learning, it would be worth the effort.
As I plan for my new September TBL course, here are some modifications that
I am considering:
1. Give RAPs weekly. These are closed-book quizzes on the reading, which
have been demonstrated to improve learning.
2. Include questions on RAPs that cover prior weeks' content. I did not do
this in my Fall 2012 TBL course, which was my first attempt at TBL.
3. Have students do individual freewriting activities in class, in order to
increase the number of retrieval practice sessions. This means that students
write continuously for a number of minutes on a topic without editing or
attending to penmanship, grammar, or, even, correctness of information.
4. Have students pair off and "freespeak" for two minutes on a focus
question. This mean one student speaks continuously and the other student
merely listens and nods. Then the students switch roles.
5. Make some application exercises closed-book
I'll end this too-long post with a personal anecdote. For the past 10 or so
years, I begin my classes by playing the "name game." My classes are
designated "writing intensive" so they are capped at 25 students. I
recognize that many here teach classes 10 times as large as mine, so this
activity would not be possible for them.
In the name game, we all stand up (if we are physically able) and form a
circle. The first person states her name. Then the next person states the
first person's name followed by her own name. The third person states the
first person's name, the second person's name, and then his own name.
I got this idea when my son started preschool and the preschool teachers
began a parents' meeting by doing this name game.
It is only since I started researching RP did I realize that this name game
is a powerful form of retrieval practice and has been researched. It turns
out that it is more effective to run it in reverse. That is, if I am the
seventh person in the circle, I announce my name, then I state the name of
the sixth person, followed by the fifth person, fourth person, etc.
In the past, I merely used the name game to send a message that the focus of
this class would not be the "sage on the stage" but the "scaturient student."
Having studied RP I now realize that I need to state explicitly that the
point of the name game is that we learn best by forcing ourselves to recall
repeatedly the information we have been exposed to. In a matter of minutes,
almost everyone learns almost everyone's name. The lesson is clear and it is
a message I will need to hammer home every class: repeated recall of studied
material is an effective method for deepening learning.
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