Perceived effort is higher and perceived learning lower for interleaving than blocking, and experience-mediated increases in perceived learning raise interleaving choices¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study (2 entries) · causal r? · q2
Currency · newest study 2023 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Learners perceived more effort and less learning for interleaving than for blocking, but these differences decreased with experience, mostly because effort diminished and perceived learning increased for interleaving. → Anique B. H. de Bruin 2023 q2 i? The effect of the decrease in perceived effort on use of interleaving was mediated by the increase in perceived learning (full mediation); this relation was absent for blocking. → Anique B. H. de Bruin 2023 (2)

Evidence¶

Anique B. H. de Bruin 2023¶

Anique B. H. de Bruin, Felicitas Biwer, Luotong Hui, Erdem Onan, Louise David, Wisnu Wiradhany. (2023). Worth the Effort: the Start and Stick to Desirable Difficulties (S2D2) Framework. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-023-09766-w

q2 · i? · causal · r?

The review reports this experiment by Onan and colleagues (2022), in which learners studied painting styles in blocked and interleaved manners, monitored effort and learning, and then chose a strategy for novel paintings.

"Perceived effort was higher and perceived learning was lower for interleaving than for blocking. These differences between blocking and interleaving decreased after experience with the strategies."

Anique B. H. de Bruin 2023 (2)¶

Anique B. H. de Bruin, Felicitas Biwer, Luotong Hui, Erdem Onan, Louise David, Wisnu Wiradhany. (2023). Worth the Effort: the Start and Stick to Desirable Difficulties (S2D2) Framework. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-023-09766-w

q2 · i? · review · r2

The review attributes this full-mediation finding to the same study, noting the relation was absent for blocking units, where perceived learning was erroneously higher to begin with; familiarity with strategies may play a role.

"Moreover, the effect of this decrease in perceived effort on use of interleav - ing was mediated by the increase in perceived learning."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• The share of students choosing interleaved practice rose from 13% to 40% across the session, but the visual feedback prompt did not further increase interleaved practice choices — related
• Temporal increase in perceived learning fully mediates the effect of temporal decrease in perceived effort on choosing interleaved practice — related
• Perceived effort is higher for interleaved than blocked practice and decreases over time for interleaved practice only — possibly the same claim (merge candidate)
• Perceived learning is higher for blocked than interleaved practice at onset but increases over time for interleaved practice only — possibly the same claim (merge candidate)
• Strategy efficacy beliefs shift toward the strategy a student chooses: choosers of blocked practice raised blocked beliefs and lowered interleaved beliefs, and vice versa — related
• Qualitative findings: students initially held inaccurate beliefs about strategy efficacy, and high effort from interleaved practice was misinterpreted as a sign of poor learning — related
• Learners associate higher effort with less effective study strategies, indicating negative connotations of effort — related
• In a between-subjects experiment, students using blocked studying still reported lower mental effort and higher concurrent judgments of learning than students using interleaved studying — related
• In Experiment 1, personalized feedback after the test made students significantly more positive about interleaved studying, yet they still did not consider it more effective or desirable than blocked studying — related