Spontaneous Use of Retrieval and Rereading: Relation to Achievement Goals and Exam Performance

Educational Impact and Implications Statement We examined spontaneous (as opposed to instructed) use of study strategies and found that spontaneous retrieval (i.e., repeatedly recalling to-be-learned material) facilitates exam performance while spontaneous rereading (i.e., repeatedly reading to-be-learned material) neither facilitates nor undermines exam performance. We also examined the goals that students have as predictors of spontaneously used study strategies. We found that individuals using their own past achievement as a standard for their goals (as opposed to a social comparison standard for their goals) were more likely to spontaneously use both of the study strategies and that their use of retrieval (but not rereading) was predictive of better exam performance. This research is important because it takes common and effective study strategies outside of the laboratory to examine how they are used in real-life educational settings. It is also important because it shows that students' goals affect the strategies they choose; this understanding may be an important first step to changing the strategies that students habitually use so they can learn more effectively. Laboratory research has demonstrated that when students are instructed to use retrieval (i.e., recalling from memory information to be learned) rather than rereading (i.e., reading the material repeatedly) they learn better. However, little is known about spontaneous use of retrieval. In the present studies, we designed a scale to measure spontaneous use, perceived enjoyment, perceived effort, and perceived effectiveness of retrieval and rereading. Across two studies, we found that students perceived retrieval to be more enjoyable, effortful, and effective than rereading. In Study 2, we additionally examined the relation between achievement goals, spontaneous study strategies, and exam performance. We found that both mastery-approach goals and mastery-avoidance goals predicted use of retrieval and rereading. No other achievement goals predicted use of study strategies. We also found that spontaneous use of retrieval positively predicted exam performance; there was no relation between use of rereading and exam performance. These studies suggest that like instructed use of retrieval, spontaneous use of retrieval facilitates exam performance. However, unlike instructed use of rereading, spontaneous use of rereading is not deleterious to exam performance. This may be due to variation in the time students spontaneously spend studying (in contrast to a lab task where total time studying is the same across all participants). This initial step in investigating spontaneous use of study strategies is important for understanding and encouraging effective approaches to studying.