Simultaneous decisions at study: time allocation, ordering, and spacing

Learners of all ages face complex decisions about how to study effectively. Here we investigated three such decisions made in concert-time allocation, ordering, and spacing. First, college students were presented with, and made judgments of learning about, 16 word-synonym pairs. Then, when presented with all 16 pairs, they created their own study schedule by choosing when and how long to study each item. The results indicated that (a) the most study time was allocated to difficult items, (b) relatively easy items tended to be studied first, and (c) participants spaced their study at a rate significantly greater than chance. The spacing data, which are of particular interest, differ from previous findings that have suggested that people, including adults, believe massing is more effective than spacing.