---
type: permanent
status: mature
created: "2026-01-16"
description: "Being tested on material strengthens memory more than additional study time — retrieval is learning"
tags:
  - memory
  - assessment
  - evidence-based
---

# Testing Effect

The testing effect (also called the retrieval practice effect) is the finding that the act of retrieving information from memory strengthens that memory more than additional study. Tests are not merely assessments -- they are powerful learning events.

## Key Research

- Roediger & Karpicke (2006): Students who took practice tests remembered 50% more after one week than students who re-studied
- The benefit occurs even without feedback -- the retrieval attempt itself is what matters
- Multiple-choice tests produce smaller effects than free recall (more retrieval effort = more benefit)

## Mechanism

Retrieval modifies the memory trace by:
1. Strengthening the cue-target association
2. Creating new retrieval routes
3. Updating the memory with current context (see [[Encoding Specificity]])

This is the core principle behind [[Active Recall]] as a study technique.

## Applications

- Low-stakes quizzing in classrooms (see [[Formative Assessment]])
- Flashcard systems using [[Spaced Repetition]]
- Self-testing before lectures to activate prior knowledge
- [[Elaborative Interrogation]] as a form of conceptual retrieval practice

## Connections

- [[Active Recall]] is the practical application of the testing effect
- The effort required makes it a [[Desirable Difficulties]] exemplar
- [[Spaced Repetition]] combines the testing effect with the [[Spacing Effect]]
- Challenges traditional study advice, supporting [[Effective Study Habits]] redesign
- [[Formative Assessment]] leverages the testing effect in educational settings

#memory #assessment #evidence-based
