“Implementing Distributed Practice in Statistics Courses: Benefits for Retention and Transfer”, 2020-12-01 ():
Laboratory studies showed that distributing learning or practice time across multiple sessions (compared to practicing in only one session in a crammed or massed fashion) enhances memory performance.
We investigated the effect of distributed practice in a field experiment at the university.
After having acquired statistics skills in lectures, students were encouraged to practice these skills at home with a fixed number of practice tasks either distributed on 3 different days (with a gap of 2 and 5 days in between, respectively), or crammed on one day. In the first study, practice at home was recommended to the students but voluntary. As a result, only few students completed these practice tasks and less did so in the distributed condition than in the crammed condition—even though all students had been reminded to do so via email. In the second study, practice was mandatory for successfully completing the course, and most students completed the tasks. Similar as in laboratory studies, students in the distributed practice condition showed a better memory performance, tested after 5 weeks, than students in the crammed practice condition. The positive effect emerged not only for previously practiced skills but also in new tasks.
The results suggest that distributing the practice of statistics skills can be recommended to university students and teachers—at least when memory performance is tested after a longer delay.
The present study investigated the effect of distributed versus crammed practice before a course deadline on the retention and transfer of knowledge, and whether learner characteristics moderate the effect.
In Experiment 1, only 41% (n = 38) of the initially enrolled students worked the voluntary but recommended practice tasks. Moreover, markedly fewer students did so in the distributed condition (12%) than the crammed practice condition (29%). In Experiment 2, working the practice tasks was mandatory and more students completed them (n = 105, ie. 81%).
Students who distributed practice clearly outperformed students who crammed practice on tests of knowledge retention and transfer 5 weeks after the practice deadline. No moderating effects of learner characteristics emerged.
The study shows that distributed practice following knowledge acquisition is a powerful learning tool for fostering long-term retention and transfer with adults in authentic educational contexts.
[Keywords: distributed practice, statistics, spacing, transfer, university course, long-term retention]