Spaced Repetition (memorization Technique): What It Is And How To Use It
In recent years, the use of mnemonic strategies has become popular and systematized, which allow us to learn very complex information in relatively simple ways. Among these techniques, the method of loci, the hangers method, the memory palace or spaced repetition stand out.
In this article We will describe what the spaced review technique consists of and we will explain how to apply it to memorize large amounts of information. We will also talk about the spaced memory effect, a psychological phenomenon that explains the effectiveness of this mnemonic.
Spaced repetition, also known as spaced review, is a rote learning technique that consists of learn a given material by allowing longer and longer periods of time to pass between one training session and the next.
This technique is used to memorize content and practice skills over time, rather than intensively over a short period of time. The space between training sessions is progressively increased as learning solidifies in order to use the spaced memory effect, which we will talk about later.
This spacing of learning allows greater maintenance of memory: each time the memorization exercises are practiced, a new review of the information being worked on is carried out. Even intensive learning tends to be maintained to a lesser extent if regular practices are not carried out later.
Spaced repetition is especially useful when you want to permanently learn a large number of different elements by heart. Examples of this could be mathematical formulas or the vocabulary of a foreign language.
Likewise, the advances that have taken place in recent decades in the field of computing have favored the emergence of computer-assisted learning methods. Many of these are based on the spaced review technique, or allow it to be applied easily.
The spaced memory effect
Hermann Ebbinghaus, a pioneer of the experimental study of memory who lived in the second half of the 19th century, described two phenomena that gave him a place in the history of psychology: the forgetting curve, which represents the duration of memory strokes if a subsequent review of learning is not applied, and the spaced memory effect.
According to Ebbinghaus and other later authors, When learning is distributed over time, information is better retained that if it is carried out in a single session. In the first case we talk about spaced presentation of the content, and in the second we talk about massive presentation.
This implies, for example, that if we study for 6 hours for an exam the night before it, after a few days or weeks we will have forgotten a greater proportion of what we learned than if we had spread those 6 hours over several days. However, the superiority of spaced learning is not so clear in the short term.
There are different hypotheses about the causes of this effect; All of them can be true in relation to different types of learning and information retrieval (such as free and cued recall). In this sense The phenomena of semantic priming and neuronal potentiation stand out long-term.
How is this technique used?
The most common method of applying the spaced repetition technique It starts by dividing the information into small blocks of content. In some cases this is simpler than in others; For example, you can study vocabulary using brief definitions, but to memorize historical episodes it will be necessary to outline or summarize the information.
It is necessary understand the content you want to memorize before preparing the training ; This will make it easier to grasp the relationships between the different elements and avoid possible errors in the preparation of the learning material. It is also advisable to divide the information as much as possible to facilitate the retention of each element.
Next, the elements that you want to learn must be distributed on some type of physical or virtual medium. Cards can be used, but there is computer software which makes it easy to use spaced repetition, such as the Mnemosyne, Anki and Mnemodo applications. There are also specific programs for spaced language learning.
Two especially popular types of cards are those that leave spaces that must be filled in by the learner (eg “The trigeminal is the _ of the 12 cranial nerves”) and those that include a question and an answer. The latter can be prepared by writing a question on one side and the corresponding answer on the other.
The time intervals between learning sessions and the duration of the total learning period depend on the needs and preferences of the person applying the technique. The most important thing is to keep in mind that memorization exercises should be more frequent at first and progressively spaced out until learning reaches the desired level.
