The Ins and Outs of Spaced Learning

Does this statement to a student sound familiar? “You know this. I taught it earlier in the year.” Well, the truth is that you may have done a fabulous job teaching it, and they may have learned it then and even done great on assessments. But if they haven’t regularly used the knowledge since first learning it, chances are very high that they have forgotten what they learned. The knowledge did not transfer from short-term memory to long-term memory. This is where Spaced Learning comes in!

Spaced Learning: A Powerful Tool for Long-Term Retention

This can be a common problem with the typical math curriculum format, which uses a massed learning approach. Students learn a select set of skills and concepts in each chapter. They study for assessments for that specific material (i.e., the mass). Then the curriculum moves on to another skill and concept in the next chapter (another mass), without continuing to practice the information learned in the previous chapter. In a nutshell, students absorb the material, brain dump it for the assessment, and then don’t revisit the information regularly. This results in a low rate of students retaining the information. 

Enter an alternative method that has been proven by research to increase retention rates… Spaced Learning. Studies suggest that learning is more effective when information is reviewed at spaced intervals (spaced training or learning) compared to cramming it all in at once (massed training). Spaced training helps create stronger memories.

This is because our brains forget things quickly if we don’t review them. Cramming information doesn’t work because we forget most of it soon after. Spaced learning tackles this problem by teaching us things in small chunks and then reviewing them at spaced intervals, helping us transition information into long-term memory. This method not only improves information retention but also deepens our understanding by allowing us to revisit and connect concepts over time.

Boost Long-Term Memory with ORIGO’s Stepping Stones 2.0

Did you know that Spaced Learning is an important part of ORIGO’s Stepping Stones 2.0 Curriculum? We recognize that fluency occurs over time as the practice of previously learned skills and concepts is frequently reviewed throughout our lessons for short amounts of time. This results in better retention of the material. Plus, since it is already built into our curriculum model, teachers don’t have to spend time preparing and adding the reviews on top of another curriculum not designed for Spaced Learning.

Stepping Stones 2.0 | Core Math Curriculum | ORIGO Education

👉 Check out the recent post, How Spaced Learning Solves a Key Math Problem, from our Vice President of Research & Content, Sara Delano Moore, to learn more about the “forgetting curve,” as well as four tips for using Spaced Learning.