Students have dozens of ways to study: rereading notes, highlighting textbooks, making flashcards, answering practice questions, summarizing chapters, watching explanations, or studying with classmates. The important question is not which method feels productive, but which study techniques actually help you remember, understand, and use what you learn.
Research in cognitive and educational psychology suggests that study techniques are not equally useful. A major review by Dunlosky and colleagues evaluated 10 commonly discussed learning techniques and rated practice testing and distributed practice as having high utility. Other approaches, including self-explanation and interleaved practice, received moderate ratings, while commonly used methods such as rereading and highlighting received lower overall utility ratings.
This does not mean students should never reread or highlight. It means those activities are usually more useful when they support stronger forms of learning rather than becoming the entire study strategy.
This guide compares some of the best study techniques for students, explains the evidence behind them, and—most importantly—shows how to translate research findings into an everyday study routine.
What Makes a Study Technique Effective?
A useful study technique should do more than help information look familiar. Students eventually need to retrieve knowledge, explain concepts, solve problems, distinguish between similar ideas, or apply what they know in a new situation.
That distinction matters because a textbook can seem easy to understand while it is open in front of you. The real test comes when the book is closed.
| Study Activity | What the Student Does | Main Learning Demand | Practical Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rereading | Reads the same material again | Re-exposure to information | Useful for review, but limited as a complete strategy |
| Highlighting | Marks important information | Selects information | Can organize reading, but does not by itself require recall |
| Practice Testing | Attempts to retrieve answers | Retrieval from memory | Strong general-purpose learning technique |
| Distributed Practice | Revisits material across separated sessions | Repeated learning over time | Especially useful when knowledge must be retained |
| Self-Explanation | Explains ideas or problem-solving steps | Meaning and connections | Useful for developing understanding |
| Interleaved Practice | Mixes related problem or material types | Choosing among strategies and distinguishing categories | Promising for appropriate subjects and tasks |
The strongest study routine will often combine several of these approaches rather than depend on a single technique.
FACT BOX: Familiarity Is Not the Same as Recall
Seeing an answer repeatedly can make it feel familiar. Practice testing changes the task: instead of asking “Does this look familiar?” the student has to ask “Can I produce the answer without looking?” Research on test-enhanced learning shows that retrieving previously studied information can improve later retention.
Practice Testing: A High-Utility Study Technique
Practice testing does not necessarily mean sitting through a formal exam. In learning research, the idea includes low-stakes or no-stakes attempts to retrieve information from memory.
A student can practice retrieval by:
- answering questions without notes;
- using flashcards;
- completing textbook practice questions;
- writing what they remember on blank paper;
- labeling a diagram from memory;
- solving problems without copying an example;
- creating their own short-answer questions;
- explaining a topic before checking the textbook.
A well-known experiment by Roediger and Karpicke compared repeated studying with repeated retrieval of educationally relevant prose passages. Repeated studying helped more on a test given only minutes later, but testing produced substantially better retention on delayed tests given two days or one week later.
This illustrates an important point: a study technique that produces easier immediate performance is not necessarily the technique that produces stronger long-term learning.
RESEARCH SUMMARY:
Research on the testing effect indicates that retrieving information can strengthen later retention rather than merely measure existing knowledge. Educational research has also found benefits when retrieval is used with classroom-relevant material.
For students, the practical interpretation is straightforward. After reviewing material, stop looking at it and attempt to produce the information yourself.
For example, instead of reading a page about photosynthesis four times, read it carefully and then close the material. Try answering:
- What is photosynthesis?
- What does the process require?
- What does it produce?
- Where does it occur?
- Why is it important?
Check your answers afterward. Anything you could not explain becomes a target for additional study.
Distributed Practice: Why Spacing Study Sessions Matters
Another consistently supported strategy is distributed practice, often called spaced practice. Instead of concentrating nearly all review into one session, students revisit material over time.
A large quantitative review by Cepeda and colleagues examined hundreds of experiments involving distributed practice. The overall evidence supported a spacing effect: separating learning episodes generally improves retention compared with placing them close together. The review also showed that the ideal spacing depends partly on how long the information needs to be retained.
More recent classroom-focused evidence points in the same general direction. A 2025 meta-analysis of applied classroom studies found an overall advantage for distributed over massed practice, although the size of the benefit varied across studies and conditions.
| Approach | Typical Pattern | Possible Advantage | Important Limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Massed Study / Cramming | Most studying happens in one concentrated period | Can support immediate preparation when time is extremely limited | Less suitable when durable retention is the goal |
| Distributed Practice | Learning is revisited across separated sessions | Strong evidence for improving longer-term retention | Requires planning before the deadline |
Students do not need a mathematically perfect spacing schedule to use this principle.
If you learn something on Monday, for example, you might review it briefly on Tuesday, return to it later in the week, and test yourself again the following week. The exact schedule can change according to the subject, difficulty, deadline, and how well you remember the material.
FACT BOX: Spacing Is a Schedule, Not a Separate Learning Activity
You can space different kinds of practice. A spaced session might involve retrieval questions, math problems, flashcards, self-explanation, or another appropriate learning activity. This means students can combine distributed practice with other effective techniques.
Practice Testing and Spacing Work Especially Well Together
Practice testing and distributed practice solve different parts of the learning problem.
Retrieval practice asks: Can you remember or produce the information?
Spacing asks: When should you return to it?
Combining them creates a practical study system: learn something, try to retrieve it, allow some time to pass, and retrieve it again.
| Stage | Student Action | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Initial Learning | Read, listen, observe, or work through an explanation | Build an initial understanding |
| First Retrieval | Answer questions without looking | Identify what can actually be recalled |
| Feedback | Check answers and correct errors | Prevent mistakes from remaining uncorrected |
| Later Retrieval | Return after a delay and test again | Strengthen access to the knowledge over time |
| Application | Use the knowledge in problems or explanations | Develop flexible understanding |
This system can be adapted to almost any academic schedule.
A student preparing for a Friday biology test might learn one topic on Monday, retrieve the main concepts on Tuesday, answer mixed questions on Wednesday, and complete a broader self-test on Thursday. The sessions do not have to be extremely long. What matters is that the student repeatedly has to reconstruct knowledge instead of simply keeping the answer visible.
Self-Explanation: Useful When Understanding Matters
Memorization is not the only goal of studying. Students often need to understand why something happens or why a particular solution works.
Self-explanation involves explaining information to yourself, including relationships between new and existing knowledge or the reasoning behind steps in a solution.
For example, while solving an equation, a student might ask:
- Why am I performing this operation?
- What rule allows this step?
- How does this step move me closer to the answer?
- How could I check whether the result makes sense?
When studying history, self-explanation might involve explaining why one event contributed to another rather than memorizing isolated dates.
In science, it might mean explaining a process in your own words and connecting each stage to the next.
The Dunlosky review rated self-explanation as a technique with moderate utility. That rating should not be interpreted as “ineffective.” Rather, the evidence and generalizability were not judged as strong as those for practice testing and distributed practice.
A useful practical approach is to combine self-explanation with retrieval. First attempt an explanation without looking. Then check the source, correct the explanation, and try again.
Interleaved Practice: Mixing Related Types of Problems
Students sometimes practice one type of problem repeatedly before moving to another. This is known as blocked practice.
Interleaving changes the arrangement by mixing related categories or problem types during practice.
Imagine a math student has learned three types of problems: A, B, and C.
Blocked practice might look like:
A – A – A – B – B – B – C – C – C
Interleaved practice might look more like:
A – C – B – A – B – C – B – A – C
Why might this matter? In a blocked set, the student often already knows which method to use because every nearby problem is similar. A mixed set can require the student to first identify what kind of problem is being presented and then select an appropriate strategy.
The evidence does not justify claiming that interleaving is universally better for every subject or every stage of learning. The Dunlosky review classified it as moderate utility, and its usefulness depends on the learning material and task.
PRACTICAL INTERPRETATION:
Students can first learn how to perform a new procedure with focused examples. Once several related problem types are reasonably understood, mixing them can provide practice in recognizing which strategy fits which problem.
Rereading and Highlighting: Useful Tools, but Weak Complete Strategies
Rereading and highlighting are popular partly because they are convenient. They also create visible evidence of studying: pages have been reviewed, lines have been marked, and notes look organized.
But these activities can become too passive when used alone.
| Method | Useful For | Main Risk | How to Strengthen It |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rereading | Revisiting confusing material or refreshing context | Mistaking familiarity for mastery | Follow rereading with closed-book retrieval |
| Highlighting | Identifying important information while reading | Highlighting too much without processing meaning | Turn selected information into questions |
| Summarizing | Organizing major ideas | Producing a summary while relying heavily on the source | Try summarizing from memory, then verify |
| Flashcards | Practicing retrieval of appropriate information | Flipping the card before making a genuine recall attempt | Answer fully before checking and revisit missed cards later |
The lesson is not “never highlight.” A better conclusion is: do not confuse marking information with learning it.
For example, after highlighting an important paragraph, turn the heading into a question. Close the book later and answer that question without looking. Highlighting has now become preparation for retrieval rather than the final step.
How the Best Technique Changes by Subject
Evidence-based principles still need to be matched to the learning goal. Memorizing terminology, solving calculus problems, analyzing literature, and preparing a speech require different forms of practice.
| Learning Goal | Useful Techniques | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Remember vocabulary | Retrieval + spacing | Recall definitions with flashcards across several sessions |
| Learn factual content | Practice testing + spacing | Answer short-answer questions without notes |
| Understand a process | Retrieval + self-explanation | Explain each stage and why it leads to the next |
| Solve math problems | Problem solving + feedback + appropriate mixed practice | Solve problems, analyze errors, then mix related problem types |
| Prepare for an essay | Retrieval + organization + writing practice | Reconstruct arguments and evidence, then write responses |
| Prepare a presentation | Retrieval + realistic rehearsal | Deliver the presentation without reading the script |
The central question should be: What will I eventually need to do with this knowledge?
If you need to recall information, practice recalling it. If you need to solve problems, solve problems. If you need to explain an argument, practice explaining it. If you need to deliver a presentation, rehearse delivering it.
Why Difficult Studying Can Sometimes Be More Productive
Students naturally notice how studying feels. A method that feels smooth can seem effective, while a method that exposes forgotten information can feel discouraging.
Research on retrieval helps explain why those feelings can be misleading. Repeated exposure can increase familiarity and confidence, while attempting retrieval makes gaps in knowledge obvious.
Suppose Student A rereads a chapter three times. By the third reading, nearly every paragraph looks familiar.
Student B reads the chapter and then attempts 15 questions without looking. Student B misses five questions.
Who had the better study session?
You cannot answer from those facts alone, but Student B has gained something especially valuable: diagnostic information. The missed questions identify what needs further work.
FACT BOX: Errors Can Guide Studying
A failed retrieval attempt is not automatically wasted effort. When students check the correct information afterward, errors can identify weak areas and help direct subsequent practice. Feedback is particularly important when students are uncertain or incorrect.
A Research-Informed Study Routine Students Can Actually Use
Students do not need to reproduce laboratory experiments at home. The evidence can be translated into a simple routine.
- Learn a manageable amount. Read the explanation, attend the lesson, or work through an example carefully.
- Remove the answer. Close the notes, textbook, or solution.
- Retrieve. Write, say, draw, or solve what you can from memory.
- Check. Compare your response with accurate materials.
- Correct. Pay special attention to missing or misunderstood information.
- Explain. Describe important concepts or reasoning in your own words.
- Return later. Revisit important material in another study session.
- Mix appropriate practice. Once related skills are understood, practice identifying which approach each problem requires.
For a 45-minute study period, that might mean spending some time reviewing new material, a larger portion attempting questions or problems without help, and the final portion checking errors and deciding what needs to be revisited later.
The exact number of minutes is less important than the structure. A student should spend meaningful time producing knowledge rather than only consuming it.
Comparing the Best Study Techniques for Students
No evidence supports one universal method for every learner, subject, and task. However, the research does allow students to make better-informed choices.
| Technique | Evidence-Based Role | Best Used For | Practical Priority |
|---|---|---|---|
| Practice Testing / Retrieval | Strong support for improving retention | Recall, review, exam preparation | High |
| Distributed Practice | Strong support for learning across time | Longer-term retention | High |
| Self-Explanation | Promising support for deeper processing | Concepts and problem-solving reasoning | Useful complement |
| Interleaved Practice | Benefits depend on material and implementation | Distinguishing related problem types or categories | Useful when appropriate |
| Rereading | More limited as a standalone technique | Initial review and clarification | Combine with active methods |
| Highlighting | Limited evidence as a standalone learning technique | Selecting important material | Use as preparation for stronger practice |
This comparison should not be interpreted as a rigid ranking that applies identically to every situation. Different subjects require different forms of practice, and students may need additional strategies for motivation, organization, reading comprehension, writing, or managing complex projects.
But for general academic learning, two principles are especially useful: retrieve what you are learning and return to it over time.
Put the Evidence Into Practice
The best study techniques for students are not necessarily the techniques that make studying feel easiest. Effective learning often requires you to attempt an answer before seeing it, discover what you have forgotten, correct errors, and return to the material after some time has passed.
If your current routine consists mostly of rereading and highlighting, you do not need to abandon everything at once. Change what happens after the initial review.
Read a section, close the material, and retrieve the main ideas. Turn highlighted information into questions. Solve a problem before looking at the example. Explain difficult concepts in your own words. Record what you missed and test it again in a later session.
Start with one subject this week. Replace part of your passive review with retrieval practice and schedule at least one later review. Then judge the technique using something more meaningful than how easy studying felt: check what you can still recall, explain, or solve when the answers are no longer in front of you.
Research basis: This article draws on established research on practice testing, retrieval practice, distributed practice, self-explanation, and interleaved practice, including the review of learning techniques by Dunlosky and colleagues and research on retrieval and spacing by Roediger, Karpicke, Cepeda, and colleagues.
