The Forgetting Curve

Test yourself

Ebbinghaus' Experiment

In 1885, Hermann Ebbinghaus used himself as the subject of a study about memory strength.

Methodology

Ebbinghaus randomly generated thousands of nonsensical words and attempted to memorise them all.
He repeatedly tested his own ability to recall the words at different time points.
His performance can be represented in a graph.

Results

This graph is now called "The Forgetting Curve".
The results of the experiment showed that, although performance may be very good right after practice, it will rapidly decrease with time.
However, if practised over and over again, the information will be forgotten more and more slowly.
In conclusion, the more a piece of content is revisited, the less likely it is it will be forgotten.

The forgetting curve

The red curve shows the loss of memory when the content has not been revisited.
Each subsequent curve shows memory loss after revisiting the next day.

Factors Influencing the Forgetting Curve

Some factors can modify the rate of forgetting.

Factors

The relevance of the information.
Emotional characteristics of the information to be learned.
Age of person.
Type of information being learned.

Reducing the amount of forgetting

Some techniques can be used to reduce the rate of forgetfulness.
- Linking the to-be-remembered information to prior knowledge or personal experiences.
- Revisiting past topics (original conclusion by Ebbinghaus)
- Frequent low-stake quizzes

1Memory

1.1Memory Processing

1.1.1Overview of Memory

1.1.2Memory Processing

1.2Types of Memory

1.2.1Types of Memory

1.2.2Working Memory

2How Do We Learn?

2.1Neural Model of Learning

2.1.1Neural Model of Learning

2.1.2Desirable Difficulties

2.1.3The Forgetting Curve

3Cognitive Load Theory

3.1CLT

3.1.1CLT

3.1.2Background Knowledge

4Effective Strategies

4.1Rosenshine's Principles

4.1.1Rosenshine's Top 1-5

4.1.2Rosenshine's 6-10

4.2Dunlosky's Strategies

4.2.1Dunlosky's Strategies

4.3Dylan Wiliam

4.3.1Dylan Wiliam

4.4Daniel Willingham

4.4.1Daniel Willingham

4.5The Learning Scientists

4.5.1The Learning Scientists

4.5.2Practical Ideas

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