Interleaving And How It Works
Interleaving is an effective learning technique that involves mixing different topics while studying to facilitate learning. Leaving gaps between studying the same topic instead of cramming one specific subject may be beneficial especially when trying to grasp a concept.
Here’s how interleaving works:
1. Switch between ideas during a study session. Don’t study one idea for too long. Depending on your study stamina and length of your study session, switch between ideas regularly in the span of one session without stopping to take a break.
For example, when studying history, you may mix up the history of different countries instead of learning about one country at one time. You may attempt to interleave different parts of history from each country based on a common theme, such as a specific time period.
2. Go back over the ideas again in different orders to strengthen your understanding. For example, if you have just studied the history of Japan, Korea and China in that order, go over your material in a different order (e.g. Korea, Japan, China) in your subsequent study session.
3. Make links and draw connections between different ideas as you switch between topics. Try to categorise your material under different themes, such as motivations, time periods, outcomes etc.
4. While it is good to switch between ideas, don’t switch too often or spend too little time on an idea. Make sure you fully understand the idea first before you move on.
Here are the benefits of interleaving:
Helps draw connections - learners are better able to notice the similarities and differences between the different concepts that they are learning, which helps them learn those concepts better.
Helps in application - mixing concepts such as questions that require different mathematical formulas helps learners discern which formula is needed for which question, instead of applying the same formula to a standard set of questions without fully understanding its use.
Trains contextual inference which in turn leads to better retention of information and ability to transfer skills and information across contexts and domains.
Interleaving has many benefits, and is an effective learning strategy everyone can apply. While it may feel harder than studying the same thing for a long time, it is actually beneficial for your learning. Find out more about other effective learning strategies in our article, Most Effective Studying Methods.
Sources:
https://www.learningscientists.org/uhwl
https://effectiviology.com/interleaving/
By: Shana Lam