Frequent test-taking may optimize learning

Studying might be overrated, according to Purdue University researchers.

The researchers found that of four different study methods, repeated test-taking improves fact retention better than other methods. However, Penn professors and students contend that more examinations do not necessarily mean more learning.

Participants in the experiment were divided into four groups and asked to read a passage. One group simply read the text for five minutes. Another drew concept maps based on information from the passage. A third studied the text repeatedly, and the final group wrote an essay about it from memory and then took a test.

Those in the latter — the “retrieval practice test” group — performed better than others.

Graduate School of Education professor Susan Yoon said that the study appeared to stress only the importance of retrieving factual knowledge, as students are forced to recall from memory what they had just read.

“We put way too much emphasis on factual knowledge,” Yoon said. “What we critically need to do is to emphasize 21st-century skills in education [like] real world problem-solving, complex communication, ethical decision-making, creativity and innovation,” she added.

College junior Ellen Wang agreed. In a college course, “everything is supposed to fit together — so doing tests every two weeks would break up the curriculum, and we might lack the ability to connect concepts if everything is broken up into little steps with test after test,” Wang said.

According to Yoon, participants in the study were asked to read a small amount of information to be reproduced in a test. If the conclusions of the study were to be transferred to the classroom, it would be a “logistical nightmare in terms of classroom practice,” she said.

Even if more tests and quizzes could be added to a curriculum, some believe that more examinations don’t necessarily translate into more knowledge.

“There is other research that shows a curvilinear relationship between frequency of testing and how much you remember,” GSE professor Jonathan Supovitz said. “There’s a point at which most testing helps you remember and there’s a point at which the returns diminish,” he added.

According to Supovitz, the results of this study could have important educational policy implications.

“Advocates of high-stakes testing might see this as a justification of a test prep curriculum, when that is going far beyond what this study should be generalized to,” he explained.

As Education Director of West Philadelphia Tutoring Project, Wang explained that Penn student tutors are encouraged to find “what is best for our tutees’ learning styles.”

“Some of them have just never properly learned how to think through a test question,” Wang said.

“Our goal is to give them one-on-one attention and walk them through the concepts when their school teachers can’t adapt to each individual learning style,” she added.

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