Active Learning

Techniques for rapid learning and long term memory retention.
Author

Chuck Nelson

Published

August 31, 2025

1 Active Learning Techniques: A Deep Dive into Retrieval Practice, Spacing, and Interleaving 🧠

Cramming, re-reading notes, and highlighting textbooks are the hallmarks of passive learning. They feel productive, but decades of research show they are inefficient for long-term retention and deep understanding.

Active learning, in contrast, requires you to engage with the material in a meaningful way. It’s about building a strong, lasting connection to the information. This page will take a deep dive into three of the most powerful and evidence-based active learning techniques: retrieval practice, spacing, and interleaving.

1.1 1. Retrieval Practice: The Art of Testing Yourself

1.1.1 What It Is

Retrieval practice is the act of recalling information from your memory without looking at your notes. It’s not just a way to test your knowledge; it’s a powerful learning strategy in itself.

1.1.2 Why It Works

Every time you successfully retrieve a piece of information, you strengthen the neural pathways associated with that memory. It’s like exercising a muscle: the more you use it, the stronger it gets. Retrieval practice also exposes what you don’t know, allowing you to focus your study time on your actual knowledge gaps rather than what you already feel comfortable with.

1.1.3 How to Do It: Practical Tips

  • Use Flashcards (The Right Way): Instead of just looking at the front and then flipping to the back, try to genuinely retrieve the answer from memory first. Say it out loud or write it down before you check.
  • Practice Questions: After a lecture or a chapter, close your notes and answer the questions at the end of the chapter, online quizzes, or questions your professor provided. If you can’t answer, don’t just look it up immediately. Try to think through the problem first.
  • The “Brain Dump”: Take a blank piece of paper and write down everything you remember about a specific topic. Don’t worry about perfect spelling or grammar. Just get the ideas, key terms, and connections out of your head. Then, compare it to your notes to see what you missed.
  • Explain it to a Friend: This is a form of retrieval practice combined with metacognition. Try to explain a concept to a roommate, a family member, or even just to yourself out loud. The act of articulating the information forces you to recall and organize it in your mind.

1.2 2. Spaced Practice: The Power of Forgetting

1.2.1 What It Is

Spaced practice, or “spacing,” is the opposite of cramming. It involves spreading out your study sessions for a particular subject over a longer period of time. Instead of studying for six hours the night before a test, you might study for one hour over six different days.

1.2.2 Why It Works

When you space out your learning, you allow for a little bit of forgetting to occur between sessions. This may sound counterintuitive, but when you return to the material, the act of retrieving that “fading” memory is more challenging and, therefore, more effective. This “desirable difficulty” signals to your brain that the information is important and needs to be stored for the long term.

1.2.3 How to Do It: Practical Tips

  • Create a Study Schedule: Plan out your week so that you revisit each subject multiple times. Instead of a single long block for one class, dedicate a few shorter blocks to it across the week.
  • Use a Calendar: When you learn a new concept, make a note to review it the next day, then three days later, then a week later. Adjust the intervals as you see fit.
  • The Leitner System: A great way to apply spacing to flashcards. You divide your cards into different boxes (or piles). Correct answers move to the next box (a longer review interval), while incorrect answers return to the first box (a shorter interval).

1.3 3. Interleaving: The Art of Mixing Things Up

1.3.1 What It Is

Interleaving involves mixing different types of problems or topics within a single study session. For example, instead of doing 10 math problems all on one formula, you would do a mix of problems that require different formulas to solve.

1.3.2 Why It Works

When you practice only one type of problem at a time, your brain gets used to applying a single, simple strategy. It becomes a matter of imitation, not true problem-solving. Interleaving, however, forces your brain to actively choose the correct approach for each unique problem. It trains your mind to differentiate between concepts and apply the right strategy at the right time.

1.3.3 How to Do It: Practical Tips

  • Mix Different Problem Types: When studying for a science or math exam, do not just practice all the problems from Chapter 5, then all the problems from Chapter 6. Instead, create a practice set with problems from both chapters mixed together.
  • Alternate Subjects: If you have multiple classes to study for, try switching between them during your study session. For example, spend 45 minutes on history, then switch to 45 minutes of chemistry, and then back to history.
  • Combine Interleaving with Spacing: When you return to a subject after a few days (spacing), interleave your practice questions from different sections to strengthen your ability to recall and apply the correct information.

1.4 Bringing It All Together

These techniques are most powerful when combined. Imagine a study session for your statistics class:

  1. Planning: You decide to review three different types of statistical tests.
  2. Spaced Practice: You schedule 30-minute review sessions for these topics three times this week.
  3. Interleaving: In each session, you work through a mix of problems that require different tests to solve.
  4. Retrieval Practice: You don’t look at the answers until you’ve solved each problem, and at the end of the session, you “brain dump” the key steps for each test.

By actively engaging in your learning, you move beyond just remembering information and begin to truly understand and master it.

1.5 Reflection Prompts

  • Which of these techniques feels the most challenging to you? Why?
  • How can you incorporate one of these strategies into your study routine this week?
  • Think of a class you’re currently taking. How could you apply interleaving to the material?

1.6 Further Reading

  • Brown, P. C., Roediger, H. L., & McDaniel, M. A. (2014). Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning. Belknap Press.
  • Dunlosky, J., et al. (2013). Improving Students’ Learning With Effective Learning Techniques: Promising Directions From Cognitive and Educational Psychology. Psychological Science in the Public Interest.
  • Kornell, N., & Bjork, R. A. (2008). Learning Concepts and Categories: Is It Better to Space or Mass Your Practice? Memory & Cognition.
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