The document summarizes a study on the most effective study techniques for increasing student learning. The study reviewed research on 10 common techniques and found that practice testing and distributed practice were the most effective techniques. Practice testing improves learning through retrieval and feedback, while distributed practice improves long-term retention by spacing out study sessions over time. The study recommends training students on these high-impact techniques starting in upper elementary grades and integrating them into lesson plans and homework assignments.

1. The Most Effective Study Techniques
to Increase Student Learning
Source: “Improving Students’ Learning With Effective Learning Techniques: Promising Directions
From Cognitive and Educational Psychology,” by John Dunlosky, Daniel Willingham et al.,
Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 2013, Volume 14, number 1, pps. 4-58.

2. Simple study techniques can
significantly improve learning and
achievement, but:
1)Teachers aren’t being told about them
2) Many students don’t know about them or are not
using them enough or well enough
Researchers did an exhaustive review of studies on learning
techniques to identify the most effective ones

3. 10 Popular Learning Techniques
Researchers reviewed the
evidence to answer 2
questions:
 What does the research
say about the efficacy of
each technique?
 Which are least effective?
Which are most effective?

4. Techniques
High Utility
 Practice Testing
 Distributed practice
Moderate Utility
Self-explanation
Elaborative Low Utility
interrogation Highlighting
Interleaved Keyword mnemonic
practice Rereading
Summarization
Imagery use for text
learning

5. Low-Utility Techniques
According to review of
research:
 Highlighting
Distracting, most students
don’t use properly
 Summarization
Requires training, less
useful for younger
students

6. Low-Utility Techniques Cont’d.
 Keyword mnemonic
Students often forget the word that is supposed to trigger memory
 Imagery use for text learning
Limited to image-friendly texts, only shown to be effective on memory
tests
 Rereading
Only studies are on college-age students, effects vary with student
characteristics

7. Moderate Utility Techniques
 Elaborative
interrogation
Solid evidence for short-term
learning, greatest benefits for
students with low levels of
domain knowledge. Takes
some training, limited to
discrete factual statements

8. Moderate Utility Techniques Cont’d.
 Interleaved practice
More effective than practice focused on one topic at a time;
encourages organizational processing. Fewer studies on this technique
than others
 Self-explanation
Facilitates problem solving and helps overcome misconceptions.
Time-consuming and students need instruction to be successful with it

9. High Utility Techniques
 Practice Testing
-Testing has been shown to
improve learning.
-Practice testing even more effective
if students receive feedback
Benefits:
-Not time consuming, little
training needed
-Students can self-test
-Evidence that it improves
comprehension

10. Distributed Practice
Studying of material over several sessions
improves retention
The longer the lags, the greater the retention
Students need to be educated about benefits
Frequent testing encourages distributed
practice rather than cramming

11. Implications of study
 Train students to use high-
impact study techniques
instead of ineffective ones
 Teach study techniques
beginning in the upper
elementary grades
 Integrate techniques in
lesson plans, e.g. begin unit
with a practice test
 Include techniques in
homework assignments

12. Any questions? Contact 207.632.1954 or visit www.ernweb.com
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