Vary cues, not questions
Memory is cue-dependent. If retrieval only works from one path, it is fragile.
Key findings
- 01
If you always practice with the same cue, you risk training a single retrieval path rather than a usable memory.
- 02
Encoding specificity implies a practical rule: prompts should reflect how knowledge must be retrievable in the real world, not only inside the app.
- 03
Context effects are real but reducible. Richer item cues and varied prompts reduce brittle, context-locked recall.
- 04
Varying examples during retrieval can improve transfer beyond practice tied to one instantiation.
- 05
Cue strength interacts with the testing effect, which supports gradually reducing support as the learner becomes more stable.
References
5 sources- 1.
Encoding specificity and retrieval processes in episodic memory (1973). Psychological Review. doi: 10.1037/h0020071.
- 2.
Environmental context-dependent memory: review and meta-analysis (2001). doi: 10.3758/BF03196157.
- 3.
Creating desirable difficulties to enhance learning (2011).
- 4.
Retrieving and applying knowledge to different examples promotes transfer (2017). doi: 10.1037/xap0000142.
- 5.
Cue strength as a moderator of the testing effect (2009). doi: 10.1037/a0017021.