Spaced Repetition

Overview

Spaced Repetition is a learning technique that involves reviewing material at increasing intervals to optimize long-term retention and memory consolidation.

Core Principles

The Forgetting Curve

Review Schedule

  1. Initial learning
  2. Review after 1 day
  3. Review after 3 days
  4. Review after 1 week
  5. Review after 2 weeks
  6. Review after 1 month
  7. Review after 3 months
Two illustrative schedules contain four practice encounters each. Massed encounters cluster in one sitting; spaced encounters occur over separate sessions. A lower strip shows attempting recall, checking the answer and adjusting the next review without assigning universal dates or retention percentages.
Spacing distributes encounters; retrieval requires an attempt before the answer is shown. This conceptual schedule uses equal illustrative encounter counts and encodes no measured intervals or retention values. Original diagram based on Carpenter, Pan and Butler, Nature Reviews Psychology, The science of effective learning with spacing and retrieval practice (2022); Anki Manual, Studying: Answer Buttons.

Implementation Methods

Digital Tools

Manual Methods

Benefits

Application Areas

Academic Learning

Professional Development

Best Practices

All notes