How Memory Works: Retrieval Practice

Forgetting is a natural process that happens to our memories. When learning, we need to interrupt forgetting to help remember. Find out how you can use retrieval practice, an evidence-informed strategy, to help you learn.

Remember that thing… you know, the one you were learning about the other day. It was really useful, and you were going to tell everyone you know about how great it is. Remember now? Surely you do, it was only a few days ago.

Actually, the likelihood is that you probably don’t remember. At least not well enough to be able to explain it to people. Even if you do remember the topic area, it might be a struggle to recall and you probably remember few of the details.

This is because our minds are designed to forget, and forget quickly, the information in our working memory, so we can attend to the most important information at the current time.