Hi Michael
Some other interesting reading is bob bjork's retrieval strength vs storage strength
http://bjorklab.psych.ucla.edu/research.html
Jim Sibley
Sorry for brief message -sent from my iPad
On 2013-06-29, at 4:49 PM, "Michael Kramer" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> 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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