The influence of a short preliminary examination of learning material.

Abstract

The somewhat conflicting results of studies of the relative efficiency of Massed and Distributed learning are functions of the learning activity used and the method of distributing the learning sessions. In the present experiment we have studied the influence of a short preliminary examination of learning material on the efficiency of learning. The total time used in Massed learning was 30 minutes, and in Distributed learning, six minutes were allowed for the short preliminary examination and 24 minutes were allowed for the later learning. As learning materials we used (1) paired associates, (2) series of familiar words, and (3) meaningful reading material. Two equalized sets of each of the three kinds of material were used with each subject, one set with Massed learning, and the other set with Distributed learning. Each test was of such a length that complete learning was practically impossible.Material.-(1) Paired Associates Nonsense Syllables. The syllables were selected from Cason's (1, 201) list of nonsense syllables, and there were two lists of 12 pairs each.(2) Series of Three-Letter Words. The words were selected from Cason's (1, 202) list of familiar words, and there were four lists of 24 words each.(3) Meaningful Reading Material. We used the two standardized reading tests dealing with the Declaration of Independence and the American Revolution in the Iowa Comprehension Test (2), Series Di and D2.Procedure.-The two sets of each of the three kinds of material and the temporal order of the Massed and Distributed learning were rotated in such a way that the comparisons made are entirely valid. The total time of 30 min-473

The Influence of the Evaluating Instrument on Students’ Learning

“…Nelson (1959, p. 25) showed that this can be done in the area of genetics by presenting a set of multiple-choice items that pursue one major idea, requiring the student first to dispose of prevailing misconceptions and then to select hypotheses that evidence tends to support, until a chain of proof has been established. Grossman and Cason (1937) found that giving students a preparatory quiz covering difficult material had no effect on how well they performed on a recall test given later. However, both the quiz and the learning period were so short-6 minutes and 30 minutes, respectively-that their results hardly apply to the ordinary classroom situation.…”