Abstract
The testing effect refers to the finding that retrieval of previously learned information improves retention of that information more than restudy practice does. While there is some evidence that the testing effect can already arise in preschool children when a particular experimental task is employed, it remains unclear whether, for this age group, the effect exists across a wider range of tasks. To examine the issue, the present experiments sought to determine the potential roles of retrieval-practice and final-test formats, and of immediate feedback during retrieval practice for the testing effect in preschoolers. Experiments 1 and 2 showed no testing effect in preschoolers when a free-recall task was applied during the final test, regardless of whether free recall (Experiment 1) or cued recall (Experiment 2) were conducted during retrieval practice. In contrast, if cued-recall tasks were used during both retrieval practice and the final test (Experiment 3), a reliable testing effect arose. Furthermore, the magnitude of the effect was dramatically enhanced when, in addition, immediate feedback was provided during retrieval practice (Experiment 4). The present findings suggest that cued-recall practice and test formats, as well as immediate feedback during practice, are crucial ingredients for obtaining the testing effect in preschoolers.
Highlights
A vast number of studies have shown that retrieval practice of previously studied information can improve long-term retention of that information quite dramatically, relative to repeated study of the information (e.g., Hogan and Kintsch, 1971; Roediger and Karpicke, 2006; McDaniel et al, 2007)
This pattern is consistent with the results reported in Experiment 1 and in Lipowski et al (2014), which together suggest a delevelopment trend in the testing effect, the two lines of findings arose under slightly different experimental conditions, The finding of Experiment 2 that preschoolers again showed no testing effect, even though success rates during practice were considerably higher than in Experiment 1, again contrasts with the results from the Fritz et al (2007) study
The testing effect arose in Experiment 3 slightly more pixelated versions of the pictures during retrieval practice were used in Experiment 3 than in Experiment 2, resulting in considerably lower mean success rates
Summary
A vast number of studies have shown that retrieval practice of previously studied information can improve long-term retention of that information quite dramatically, relative to repeated study of the information (e.g., Hogan and Kintsch, 1971; Roediger and Karpicke, 2006; McDaniel et al, 2007). This so-called testing effect has been demonstrated over a wide variety of materials and settings, in both lab-based and classroom studies (for reviews, see Roediger and Butler, 2011; Dunlosky et al, 2013). The present study sought to determine whether the testing effect in preschool children is limited to
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