The other day, I was working on Spanish with one of my students. Specifically, she was learning preterite conjugation.
We began with a brain dump. Since this was a topic she had learned in class, I gave her the chance to remember it. On a blank sheet of paper, she tried to remember the conjugation pattern. It was about 40% right. I showed her the correct version, and she fixed it.
Then we put it to use. We hopped on Conjuguemos and did a 5-minute drill of preterite conjugations (with the notes hidden so she had to recall the pattern). It went okay: poorly at first, but better toward the end – about 65% right on average.
Then we set that aside and worked on two other Spanish topics for a while. After about 30 minutes, I had her do another Conjuguemos drill. This time, it went much better – over 90% correct. Why is this? How did it get better over the span of half an hour in which she was not practicing?
The answer is unconscious brain activity. While we were doing other things, her brain continued to work on preterite conjugations in the background.
It did so because she had effectively convinced her brain to care about the topic. By trying to remember via the brain dump, writing a corrected note, and then doing a practice drill, she had sent her brain a strong message that said, “Hey brain! We really need to know this!” So her brain responded by building and strengthening neural connections for that knowledge.
If she had waited longer – let’s say 24 hours – to practice again, she likely would have performed worse. That’s because, if you spend too long away from what you’re trying to learn, your brain thinks to itself, “Oh, never mind, we’re not using this information. I should delete it.” And thus, you forget it.
When something is new, you have to come back to it right away. A good rule of thumb is three repetitions within the first 24 hours, then once a day for three days, then once a week for three weeks.
This is spaced repetition.
The best way to learn something is not one giant time-block of studying; it’s many short sessions of studying, separated by other work, downtime, or sleep. Usually, spaced repetition is seen as a method for improving memory. You come back to the topic repeatedly, each time rescuing it from being forgotten and building a long-term memory in the process.
The experience of my student with preterite conjugations, however, shows that spaced repetition is also a tool for improving understanding and increasing skill. In her second round of practice, she didn’t just strengthen her memory of the topic; she became better at it.
The same effect would be seen if you were working on a tough topic in math, physics, or chemistry. Each session of practice would improve your ability to do the problems.
If you were trying to make sense of a novel in order to write an essay, each round of engagement would increase your understanding of the literature.
If you were studying for a history exam, each study session would improve your grasp of the time period.
So spaced repetition is about more than just memory. It’s also about understanding, skill, and mastery.
Chris Loper has been working as a tutor and academic coach since 2014, racking up over 13,000 hours of experience supporting students.
Along with Greg Smith, Chris is the co-creator of Parenting for Academic Success, a series of classes that create empowered parents, confident students, and harmonious families.
Chris writes the popular self-improvement blog Becoming Better, where he also offers habit coaching, helping busy adults with habit formation and productivity.
Chris’s most recent endeavor combines his academic and habit-formation expertise to help students thrive in college. Visit SmartCollegeHabits.com to learn more.
In 2021, he published a humorous memoir titled Wood Floats and Other Brilliant Observations, a book that blends crazy stories with practical life lessons.
He lives in Issaquah, WA, where he is the owner of South Cove Tutoring.