Creative recall testing: activity idea

Following from my previous post about the value of recall testing, I used this activity as a creative way to apply the findings of research to my thinking classroom.

1. Prepare a list of key terms or phrases derived from the previously studied material. Cut these up onto individual cards or pieces of paper and hand out to students (who should be in small groups e.g. 4's) face down in a pile (shuffled, the cards not the students obviously!).
2. Students take turns to reveal a key term and explain to the group it's relevance, meaning etc. Students should create a pile of any terms which cannot be confidently elaborated on, or where there is any disagreement. This pile highlights points for later clarification (make sure there is sufficient differentiation in the terms included).
   
3. Once students have covered all the terms (around 16 if they are in 4's) they should look in their notes to answer their own queries. Circulate to ensure you pick up any common or unexpected issues to explore as a class.
   
4. Finally ask students to choose a group member to rotate to the next group in an agreed direction. This student will strive to find the answers to any remaining queries generated by their group. Students may rotate around each group before their queries are answered if one exchange is not sufficient.

This task was valuable as it was engaging, ensured the group collaborated towards a common goal, gave each student opportunity to take part in a recall test without feeling like they were being tested and allowed opportunity for teacher and self assessment of understanding and consolidation of learning in an active student-centred task. The whole task took about 25 minutes which left time for a written task in this 1 hour lesson.

The value of recall testing in the modern classroom

According to research carried out by the University of Washington (Roediger, Karpicke 2006) "Taking a memory test not only assesses what one knows, but also enhances later retention". The study in question showed that participants who undertook several recall tests retained more information (long term) than participants who completed further study of the material without taking the further recall tests. What can we - or rather students - do with this information in and outside of the classroom? The modern teacher, committed to providing students with opportunities for deep learning and extension may have turned their back on simple recall tasks to assess retention of concepts, especially at A Level. In the words of the researchers "testing is a powerful means of improving learning, not just assessing it". As teachers we often try to encourage students to test themselves regularly, to improve retention and future learning, but this finding might just give this advice a bit more weight!