Retrieve to Achieve: Retrieval Practice for Long-Term Learning
by Hall Houston

Retrieval practice (also known as the retrieval effect, the
testing effect, or self-testing) is a hot topic in education. It’s one of the
best study methods, and yet it’s used infrequently by most students and
teachers. In this article, I explain what retrieval practice is, describe some
of its benefits, establish a few key principles, and share some ideas for
retrieval in the classroom.
Teacher,
writer, and blogger Kate Jones, in her recent book Love to
Teach (2018), provides this straightforward definition: “Retrieval
practice is essentially the process of bringing information to mind from
memory, without that information in front of you.”
Your first
thought might be that this is a basic technique that teachers already know about—reviewing
or quizzing is nothing new. Though your reaction might be accurate, the point
is that retrieval practice is highly supported by educational research as one
of the best ways to learn. Unfortunately, most teachers and students do not use
it enough.
Benefits of Retrieval
Practice
Dunlosky et al.’s (2013) article inScientific American Mind titled “What Works, What Doesn’t”
summarized more than 700 academic articles about study techniques. The authors
found that retrieval or self-testing is much more effective than underlining or
rereading, two common study methods. One positive aspect is that teachers can
incorporate it into any lesson without spending a lot of time or putting in a
lot of effort. Also, students often remember significantly more after doing
several weeks of retrieval than they would by just rereading the material, and
many students are often grateful for the opportunity to review what they’ve
been learning.
Here are
some of the main benefits of retrieval practice:
It helps students’
long-term learning. The more times students retrieve
information, the stronger their memory of that information will be. Giving a
quick quiz at the beginning or end of each lesson makes it far more likely that
students will retain information long after the course ends.
It can demonstrate gaps
in knowledge. After a retrieval activity, students have a better
idea of what they have and haven’t learned well. In addition, teachers also can
get a sense of the students’ progress.
It informs students.
It lets students know what material will be likely to appear on the course
assessment. Thus, students are clear about what they will be responsible for
learning in the course.
The 7 Basic Principles
of Retrieval Practice
Following
are the seven basic principles of retrieval practice.
1. Keep It Short and
Simple
Retrieval
practice should only take a few of minutes of class time and should be easy to
explain, set up, and conclude. A perfect example is Agarwal and Bain’s (2019)
retrieval exercise titled “Two Things,” in which students are asked to write
down two things they remember from the current lesson or a previous
lesson.
2. No Notes, No
Books
When
students are doing retrieval work, it’s imperative that they have no access to
their notes, their book, or a search engine. The key is to get students to rely
on their own memory to get the information, not other resources.
3. Everybody
Retrieves
Ideally,
every student in the class should be retrieving. If you call on individual
students to answer a question, other students will not retrieve, and only the
one student you address will receive the benefits. Agarwal and Bain (2019)
suggest using a think-pair-share format, where students first retrieve
individually and subsequently compare their answers with a classmate.
4. Keep It Low Stakes
or No Stakes
Experts,
such as Agarwal and Bain (2019), agree that retrieval practice should not count
toward students’ course grades, or that it should count minimally. This creates
a less stressful environment for the students. In addition, it helps students
to associate retrieval more with learning and less with testing. In the words
of Agarwal and Bain (2019), “By keeping retrieval practice no-stakes, we (and
our students!) get away from thinking of retrieval as more tests and move
toward retrieval as being more learning” (p.
49).
5. Provide Feedback
Immediately
Once the
class is finished retrieving, provide the answers to the questions. If the
retrieval is based on input (e.g., an article in the coursebook, a listening
track, or a video), you can let them access the input again to check their own
answers.
6. Connect Retrieval to
Assessment
When
planning your retrieval practice, it’s ideal to include material that will
appear in the course assessment. Make sure that you have a clear idea of what
you want your students to get out of your course.
7. Retrieve Often
Throughout the Course
Retrieval is
most effective when students are asked to retrieve several times over the days
and weeks of a course. This is called spaced practice. If you want to challenge
your students, you should include quiz questions based on material from
different times throughout the course. Spacing your retrieval practice takes a
little extra planning, but it pays off when students are able to remember more
at the end of the course (and long after the course ends).
Keep the
preceding principles in mind when planning to do retrieval practice. It can be
as simple as asking students to write down a few things they remember or answer
a few questions.
Retrieval Practice
Options: Keeping It Interesting
Using the
same format for retrieval practice every week can become dull for students (as
well as teachers). Here are some suggestions for adding some variety to
retrieval practice.
Take Advantage of
Reading, Listening, and Video Exercises
Retrieval is
not only for word lists. Students can also retrieve ideas and concepts from any
reading, listening, or video activity. Agarwal and Bain (2019) suggest an
activity called “Retrieve-Taking,” where students take notes without access to
the text. During a lesson, students can close their books, retrieve some of the
material they’ve been reading or listening to, and then open their books again
to continue.
Retrieve Information
Related to Your School
Additionally,
you can build important information related to your course or school into
retrieval practice. Ask students to recall the school’s address, phone number,
email address, rules of the class, or even fun facts about their
classmates.
Employ Apps and
Websites
Use apps
such as Kahoot! or Quizizz to create
multiple-choice quizzes for your class. Russell Stannard has some outstanding
videos (www.teachertrainingvideos.com)
which show you how to use these apps.
Use Both Recognition
and Recall
Horvath
(2019) distinguishes between recognition and recall, two types of retrieval.
Recognition is when students have a few cues that help them remember the
important information, while recall entails remembering the information without
any cues. Multiple-choice quizzes or translation exercises are examples of
recognition. Activities where students must write a summary or a few vocabulary
words (without being able to look at the text) are examples of recall. Though
recall is the most challenging and the most powerful, you might wish to use
recognition when students are first encountering new information.
Get Students to Quiz
Each Other
Students can
create a list of questions or cues, then work in pairs or small groups to quiz
each other. Jones (2019) describes an activity titled “Quiz Quiz Trade.” In
this activity, each student has a card with a question on one side and the
answer on the back. Students use the cards to mingle and find a partner. The
two will then quiz each other, give feedback, and trade cards.
Make a Game Out of
It
Students can
play a game in which they take turns retrieving material from previous lessons.
You can find a blank gameboard by doing a Google or Pinterest
image search on the phrase “free blank board game templates.” You can
add review questions or short cues on the board game spaces. Alternatively, you
can put questions or cues on small cards (I use blank business cards) and put
the words “DRAW A CARD” on most of the gameboard spaces.
Article Update: For some ideas and classroom activities, see "9 Ways to Do Retrieval Practice in the Classroom."
Make Retrieval Practice
Part of Your Own Professional Development
The next
time you get to the end of a presentation at a conference, an online webinar,
or an article in TESOL Connections, find a quiet spot to
sit down and write down the main points, without looking at your notes.
Alternatively, you can create a study guide or mind map that covers the most
important information.
This year,
as you plan your lessons, consider devoting a small section of each lesson for
retrieval practice. If you do retrieval practice repeatedly, without assigning
grade points, and provide feedback afterwards, your students should see an
improvement in their retention of material.
References
Agarwal, P.,
& Bain, P. (2019). Powerful teaching.
Jossey-Bass.
Dunlosky,
J., Rawson, K. A., Marsh, E. J., Nathan, M. J., & Willingham, D. T.
(2013). What works, what doesn’t. Scientific American Mind,
24(4).
Horvath, J.
C. (2019). Stop talking, start influencing.
Exisle.
Jones, K.
(2018). Love to teach. John Catt Educational.
Jones, K.
(2019). Retrieval practice. John Catt
Educational.
Hall Houston currently teaches at
National Taipei University of Nursing and Health Sciences in Taiwan. He has a
master’s degree in foreign language education from The University of Texas at
Austin. He has conducted presentations and workshops for Cambridge Assessment
and British Council. He is the author of numerous articles and several books
about ELT, including Provoking Thought andCreative Output. (www.hallhouston.com)