If Anki/spaced repetition is the evidence-based way to retain material rather than learning it and promptly forgetting it, why do modern-day lectures not come with corresponding Anki decks?
The more I use Anki, the more I fail to understand what the point of just watching lectures, reading textbooks, etc. only one time is. I mean seriously, what’s the point? What’s the point of watching a lecture or reading a textbook chapter if you’re gonna forget it a day later without revisiting it or applying it?
Spaced repetition research has its roots all the way back to the late 1800s, with Ebbinghaus’ work on the forgetting curve. Multiple studies since the 1970s have shown that spaced repetition is effective for the long-term retention of learning material.
Even so, here we find ourselves halfway to 2022, with Anki and similar SRS being fringe software that essentially none of the general population knows about. Despite its proven benefits, the prevailing study strategies of the overwhelming percentage of students are devoid of any spaced repetition.
Some of this might have to do with the laziness of people and not wanting to spend time to review the information that they’ve learned when they could alternatively just cram before any assessments of knowledge, but another part may be due to the fact that the actual purveyors of knowledge (i.e. lecturers, textbook companies. whatever) do not actually provide any means for students to retain what they learn.
Is the onus completely on the student to implement spaced repetition? Or should the teachers put some effort forth to create decks or other means of spaced repetition for their students? I’m just confused as to why we’re here in 2021 with lectures being provided without any regard for long-term retention. The reality is that any lecture you watch will be promptly forgotten by you in a couple of days without revisiting it. What, then, is the point of even watching the lecture in the first place if you don’t implement spaced repetition to remember what you’ve learned?
If someone could please give their perspective on this or point out some cognitive distortion that makes this question unreasonable/unfeasible, I’d greatly appreciate it.
Posted Jun 13, 2021, 6:12 PM UTC