(NaturalPath) It’s back to school time for some and that means studying. Whether you are in college or your children are in grade school or high school, studying becomes a significant part of your life. Procrastination also enters the pictures creating the need to cram for tests. According to a study out of the Association for Psychological Science, the strategy of “cramming” for a test reduces long=term retention of the material. It’s better to leave it alone for a while and then return to it.
Learning specialists have used the term “overlearning” for studying material immediately after you’ve mastered it. You’re doing flashcards and you get through error-free, is studying further a waste of your time or does it help embed the new memories for the long-haul?
Through an experiment, the researchers had some participants study regularly, while others continued drilling, then tested them both one and four weeks later. Interestingly, in the test one week later, those individuals that had done the extra drilling performed better. But that edge on the other group disappeared at the following test after four weeks. While the learning associated with these experiments is rote learning, they found similar effects with more abstract learning like math.
So if long-term retention is the goal, as it should be, significant breaks when studying and going over old material should be the execution of the plan.
Razi Berry, Founder and Publisher of Naturopathic Doctor News & Review (ndnr.com) and NaturalPath (thenatpath.com), has spent the last decade as a natural medicine advocate and marketing whiz. She has galvanized and supported the naturopathic community, bringing a higher quality of healthcare to millions of North Americans through her publications. A self-proclaimed health-food junkie and mother of two; she loves all things nature, is obsessed with organic gardening, growing fruit trees (not easy in Phoenix), laughing until she snorts, and homeschooling. She is a little bit crunchy and yes, that is her real name.
