Uso de testes como oportunidade de aprendizagem: uma avaliação do efeito de testagem e reminiscência em crianças

Abstract

The retrieval of a particular memory increases the long-term retention of that memory, a phenomenon often called testing effect. This study aimed to investigate the testing effect in children retention and learning. This doctoral dissertation has two sections: a theoretical and an empirical one (with two empirical studies). The theoretical section is a systematic review of the literature, which aimed to select and review articles on this subject to verify its extent and importance, highlighting the main findings of recent research. To accomplish this, a systematic review of articles covering this topic, which were published between the years of 2006 and 2012, a period in which there was an acute increase in the amount of publications on this subject, was conducted. The articles were searched at the Web of Science, PubMed, and PsycINFO databases. The results of the 31 selected articles demonstrated that tests can be remarkably beneficial to the retention of long term memories. The first empirical study aimed to examine the testing effect with school-age children (8-10 years old) in the educational context (classroom) using didactic material as a stimulus material. The sample (N = 66), students from Grade 3 from public schools, conducted after the text study, or an (1) initial test (cued recall test) or a (2) restudy session. After seven days, the students conducted a final recognition test. The results suggested that the performance in the final test was superior in the group that makes an initial test. This increase in the final test was more than 30%. The study showed that testing practices increases children memory. In the second empirical study, the potential benefits of the testing effect were also examined with children (8-10 years old). The reminiscence effect (remember correctly the information in the final test that were not been recalled in the initial test) was investigated using a text as a stimulus material. The children (N = 35) studied a science text and received an initial test (cued recall test), and after a week, they received a final recognition test. The results suggested that repeated testing increases the information retrieval; that is, there were inoculation effects (remember correctly the same information in the initial and final test) and reminiscence effects. That is, the results demonstrated that a retrieval practice produces hypermnesia (positive difference between the rate of reminiscence and forgetting). The repeated studying promotes low effects of relatively forgetting (forget information in a final test that were correctly recalled in the initial test) and absolute forgetting (forget information on initial and final tests). The findings of the three studies may have implications for educational settings as they contribute to the pedagogical practices optimization (use of repeating tests) that promotes the children retrieval of information and, consequently, learning.