Mastering the art of Retrieval Practice

High-performing schools do not only teach content. They teach students the science of effective learning and tools and techniques that optimise time in the classroom, and support lifelong learning.

Those tools aren’t simply focused on how to take better notes and how to revise those notes over and over again. Learning science tells us there is a more effective way to learn, retain and recall facts – retrieval practice.

So, what does retrieval practice look like in action?

On some days, a lesson might start with a quiz that tests students on what they have recently learned, with some questions designed to test what students have learned previously. Or a teacher might ask students to summarise a concept in their own words or formulate some questions on a specific topic to ask classmates.

In an English class, rather than simply reciting the plot of a book, students might instead describe why they believe a character behaved in a certain way. In some subjects, students might pair up and revise information they’ve learned together or create their own flashcards to help them memorise and embed facts.

“When we learn something new, that information initially goes into our working memory. From there, some of that information is encoded and stored in our long-term memory,” explains Patrick Sanders, Head of Teaching & Learning at Haileybury.

However, we’re designed to forget many things because our memory simply can’t hold on to every piece of information we learn each day.

German psychologist, Hermann Ebbinghaus, first illustrated this natural process with a diagram called the ‘forgetting curve’. He discovered that when we first learn new information, within 10 days or so, that information is often forgotten.

But if that new information is reviewed regularly, our chances of storing that information in our long-term memory vastly increases.

“In our long-term memory, we want to hold on to core knowledge, like the knowledge we use in academic learning. So, we build networks of knowledge in our long-term memory as we select, organise and integrate new information,” says Patrick.

“That’s where retrieval practice is important because retrieving details from our long-term memory helps embed that information, and that helps us better understand concepts, synthesise and analyse, and solve problems. It allows us to make connections between concepts and knowledge that we learn over time, so we can think in a more complex way.”

For teachers, the different ways of introducing retrieval practice in the classroom are also a quick and effective diagnostic tool.

“It highlights what concepts students are struggling with, and teachers can respond to that by re-teaching those procedures and that content again and then ensuring students have to retrieve that information again at a later time,” says Patrick.

Retrieval practice is used across year levels and subjects at Haileybury and not only

does it help students to retain information for longer and to think more deeply, it also supports young people to become good citizens and to have a deeper understanding of issues that shape and challenge society.

“It helps them think deeply about issues and to be sceptical sometimes. It builds an understanding that not everything that they read, see or hear is always the full truth.”

In an era when social media, AI and fake news are prolific, the ability to question and to develop a healthy scepticism is becoming increasingly important.

“The current social media landscape has so many ‘experts’ and influencers telling young people that certain things are true when they aren’t. They can hear some crazy stuff online,” says Patrick.

“Retrieval practice helps young people build their knowledge and think more deeply and I think that builds better citizens and a better democracy overall.”