1. Interleaving and Spaced Practice Prepared by Adam Bacchus
Introduce Self and RRC’s Academic Success Center.

2. Agenda Research findings on Spaced Practice
Research findings on Interleaving
Implementing interleaving strategy
Activity
-Introduce topic, agenda and elicit student’s prior knowledge.
-“Interleaving and Spaced Practice. You may not have realized it, but we have talked about spaced practice in prior workshops. It was hidden! If you think back to previous workshops, can you think of anything that we have mentioned that would connect to the idea of “Spaced Practice”?”
-”We’ll explore the meaning of these two concepts in the next 45 minutes!”

3. Remember this?
Testing yourself on a regular basis, saves you from having to do any special test preparation.
"We have learned in a previous workshop that repetition is required for learning, but how should we schedule these repetitions? Immediately one after another, or after waiting a while? What do you think?"
- Ask for a volunteer to tell you what program they are in. Ask them to list the main areas they need to study after class. So for example, a nursing student might say: Adult health, Anatomy and physiology, Pediatrics
- Write this list of topics on the board; ideally with each subject name in a different colour. Then ask the student to describe how they normally would approach studying these subjects in an after class study session. (We would expect students to say that they study them in chunks, maybe with spaced practice but probably not with an interleaving approach.)
Leave the subjects on the board.

4. The Spacing Effect
Study topic once
Study topic again
Final Test
Spacing Gap
Testing Gap
A space of time between repetitions (spacing gap) improves learners’ recall of subject.
Ideal spacing is 10% - 20% of the testing gap.
That means between 5 and 10 repetitions.
-A 1987 study put students in a testing environment where they had to learn vocabulary definitions. One group was told to review the definitions multiple times in one sitting, while another group was given a 5 minute break between repetitions of the definitions. As it turns out, the students who were given the spaced repetitions overall had a better recall of the definitions. This is the "spacing effect“. (Dempster, F. N. (1987). Effects of variable encoding and spaced presentations on vocabulary learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 79, DOI: / )
Many studies built on this research by testing the best length of space to maximize this "spacing effect" One of importance is: a 2008 study that tested retention with many different groups with varied spacing between instruction. The study observed that shorter spacing gaps provided better retention after a short delay until the test, while longer spacing provided better retention for longer test delays. The ideal spacing gap, they concluded…
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…was 10%-20% of the delay from first exposure to the subject matter to the final testing. This means that if you are reviewing the concepts for an upcoming test between 5 and 10 times in evenly spaced intervals, then you are getting the optimal effect from spaced practice. (Cepeda, N. J., Vul, E., Rohrer, D., Wixted, J. T., & Pashler, H. (2008). Spacing effects in learning: A temporal ridgeline of optimal retention. Psychological Science, 19, DOI : /j x.)

5. Spacing vs Interleaving
Leaving a space of time between repetitions (spacing gap) to improve learners’ recall of subject.
Interleaving
Mixing facts or exercise questions from various topics within a subject, to encourage learners to draw connections.
Different than “blocking” subject matter.
-This spacing effect transfers to learning in the classroom and in self study routines. You can implement it to maximize your study routines. There is another stratagem that researchers have found that can improve student study routines: interleaving.
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-Interleaving is a process of teaching and studying in which problems and concepts of disparate topics within a subject are mixed together when taught.
This is in contrast to Blocking where problems and concepts related to one topic are taught at once. This is the way most classes are taught.
I am clearly introducing Interleaving as a positive tactic to learning. But what possible benefit could there be to learning different topics within a subject at the same time?

6. Studies on Interleaving
Interleaving increases correct application of learned processes, like math techniques
Interleaving increases correct identification of conceptual categories
The benefits are greater than spaced practice alone, but can be combined with spaced practice for greater effect!
-In a 2007 study, students were taught how to calculate the volume of four 3D objects: wedge, spherical cone, spheroid, half cone. One group was taught with 4 questions for one shape, then 4 questions for the next shape, and so on. The next group was taught with one question of each type, then another question of each type, and so on. When tested a week later those who were taught using the grouped questions had about a 20% accuracy, while the students who were taught using the interleaved questions had a 63% accuracy rating. (Rohrer, D., & Taylor, K. (2007). The shuffling of mathematics problems improves learning. Instructional Science, 35, DOI: /s )
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-This also works for learning categorical concepts as demonstrated in a 2008 study where subjects were taught to categorize paintings according to criteria. The students who were taught using interleaving were the most effective at categorizing previously unseen paintings using existing categories. (Kornell, N., & Bjork, R. A. (2008). Learning concepts and categories: Is spacing the “enemy of induction?” Psychological Science, 19, DOI: /j x.)
-So, are the benefits of interleaving due to the natural spacing effect involved in interleaving practice? That is exactly what the authors of the 2007 practice sought to discover in a follow up study in They matched the time between interleaved iterations to a control group that had spaced blocked instruction. The group with spaced interleaved instruction performed better on the summative test. They speculated that with interleaved instruction, students had the benefit of being able to contrast (or find differences in) and compare (find similarities in) the elements of the varied concepts reducing incorrect application of learned concepts and processes. (Taylor, K., & Rohrer, D. (2010). The effects of interleaved practice. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 24, DOI: /acp.1598.)

7. What does this mean for you?
Spaced Practice
Better retention than blocked practice
Between 10% - 20% of testing gap time
Interleaving
Mixed exposure to different topics within a subject
Helpful for processes and concepts
More effective than Spaced Practice alone
So that's what the research says, but what does this mean for our study routines? Now that you know what the research says, what would you do to adapt all of this into your study routines?

8. Switch Between Topics
"Switch between topics; don't study one idea too long."
-Go back to the original volunteer who generated the list of subjects at the beginning of class. Help them to subdivide the subjects on the board into micro subjects. For example, anatomy and physiology would turn into the skeletal system, the respiratory system, blood, etc.…(each subject area in a different colour, with micro-subjects in the same colour, diagraming the micro subjects within each major subject. Kind of like a mind map, but linear.)
-Work with the group to show them how the micro subjects within the larger subject categories can be interleaved.
So it may end up looking like this:
-taking vitals (adult health)
-skeletal system (anatomy and physiology)
-post natal disease (paediatrics)
-drawing blood (adult health)
-blood flow (anatomy and physiology)
-renal development in toddlers(paediatrics)
"Warning: Give yourself enough time for each topic to make certain you understand!!"

9. Random Order Review
"Go back over ideas in a different order each time you review"
"This strengthens your understanding and your ability to apply facts to varied problems"
- Connect to student example. Explain that one week you may cover it in the order we generated. Next week, we could mix it up and study in a different interleaved order.

10. Make Connections
"Make connections between the different ideas as you switch between them"

11. Is this really working?!
"Warning! Students often feel like they are getting less learning done when they use this strategem, but they universally perform better on tests of knowledge when they use this tactic."

12. Your Turn Spaced Practice & Interleaving
Recall a list of subjects you are currently taking in your program.
Divide each subject into a list of topics.
Interleave topics into a practical study plan.
Materials required: loose leaf or other writing paper.

13. References
Cepeda, N. J., Vul, E., Rohrer, D., Wixted, J. T., & Pashler, H. (2008). Spacing effects in learning: A temporal ridgeline of optimal retention. Psychological Science, 19, DOI : /j x.
Dempster, F. N. (1987). Effects of variable encoding and spaced presentations on vocabulary learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 79, DOI: /
Kornell, N., & Bjork, R. A. (2008). Learning concepts and categories: Is spacing the “enemy of induction?” Psychological Science, 19, DOI: /j x.
Rohrer, D., & Taylor, K. (2007). The shuffling of mathematics problems improves learning. Instructional Science, 35, DOI: /s
Taylor, K., & Rohrer, D. (2010). The effects of interleaved practice. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 24, DOI: /acp.1598.

14. Remember: Help is available!
Academic Success Centre – P 210
For more information about Tutoring, Workshops or Academic Coaching please contact:
Chris Harder
/ (204)
Here’s how to find us.

15. Remind students of next week’s workshop.
BB EDC Info
Remind students of next week’s workshop.

16. Remember: Help is available!
Academic Success Centre – D 110
Tutoring & Workshops - Kyle Schewe
/ (204)
Academic Coaching – Lauren Phillips
/ (204)
Counselling and Accessibility Services – D 102
(204)
Help is available
Here’s how to find us.

17. Remind students of next week’s workshop.
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Remind students of next week’s workshop.