Applying retrieval and distributed practices to enhance student learning and achievement in a university course

Among the "desirable difficulty" (DD) strategies developed by cognitive scientists, retrieval practice and distributed practice are two of the most robust and advantageous. This study evaluated a three-component intervention to enhance student learning that consisted of instruction about the advantages of retrieval and distributed practices, encouragement of independent application of these methods, and the use of pop quizzes to facilitate retrieval and foster distributed studying. Student exam scores were compared in two sections of a university sports nutrition course that differed in only one experimentally relevant way: one received the three-component intervention (DD Strategy Group), whereas the other did not (Control Group). During the DD Strategy Group's first class meeting, the instructor gave the students a 30-minute tutorial in which he introduced retrieval and distributed practices and then summarized the evidence demonstrating the learning advantages of each. The DD Strategy Group also completed 10 pop retrieval quizzes during the semester, each of which consisted of three to five short-answer questions and took roughly 10 min to complete. A multivariate ANOVA with follow up t tests revealed that the DD Strategy Group outscored the Control Group on course exam 1 (t₄₅ = 2.50, P = 0.02, d = 0.8), exam 2 (t₄₅ = 3.35, P < 0.001, d = 1.0), exam 3 (t₄₅ = 4.38, P < 0.001, d = 1.3), and exam 4 (t₄₅ = 4.33, P < 0.001, d = 1.3). In summary, the DD Strategy improved exam performance by nearly 16%, making it a practical and effective way to enhance student learning.NEW & NOTEWORTHY A three-component strategy that included educating students about the counterintuitive benefits of retrieval and distributed practices, encouraging independent application of these methods, and utilizing pop quizzes to facilitate retrieval and foster distributed studying habits resulted in significant increases in student exam performance in a university course.