Interleaved learning with verbal materials
Inductive learning is a ubiquitous way in which humans acquire conceptual knowledge (e.g., general facts or rules) about the world. It involves abstracting and consolidating concepts (e.g., what an elephant is) by studying exemplars (e.g., photographs or descriptions of elephants). One effective method for enhancing inductive learning is interleaved practice. Learners study exemplars from different categories interleaved, as opposed to studying the same exemplars from one category before being presented with exemplars from another category (i.e., “blocking”). Prior research suggests that interleaved practice benefits inductive learning compared to blocking, but inductive learning benefits are likely to depend on the type of learning materials and the age, with a dearth of studies examining verbal materials and children (Brunmair & Richter, 2019).
The main goal of this research project is to investigate the extent to which interleaving enhances inductive learning of verbal materials (e.g., texts), which constitute a large part of students’ learning activities at school but have attracted very little systematic research to date. Specifically, we address this research question in three core areas of school learning in which verbal materials play a prominent role: (1) learning how to read and (2) learning how to write in elementary school and (3) the acquisition of conceptual knowledge in secondary school science classes.
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2025
Dahdah, P., Naumann, J., Haffmans, M.-B., Schindler, J., & Richter, T. (2025). Development of the retrieval of word meanings and its impact on reading comprehension throughout elementary school: A longitudinal study. Journal of Educational Psychology. (in press)
Klimovich, M., & Richter, T. (2025). Spelling acquisition in children through interleaved practice: The role of instructional guidance. Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, 10, Article 68. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41235-025-00680-z
Klimovich, M., & Richter, T. (2025). Using interleaved practice to foster spelling acquisition. Learning and Instruction, 98, Article 102146. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2025.102146 (open access)
Richter, T., & Kubik, V. (2025). Wissenserwerb [Knowledge acquisition]. In D. Urhahne, M. Dresel & F. Fischer (Eds.), Psychologie für den Lehrberuf [Psychology of the Teacher] (2nd ed. pp. 71–90). Berlin: Springer.
Roelle, J., & Richter, T. (2025). Üben aus lernpsychologischer Sicht: Wie kann Üben das nachhaltige Lernen fördern? [Practice from the perspective of the psychology of learning: How can practice promote lasting learning?]. Unterrichtswissenschaft, 53, 179–204. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42010-025-00227-7 (open access)
Schindler, J., & Richter, T. (2025). Does text generation improve learning from expository text? A conceptual replication attempt. Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, 10, Article 34. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41235-025-00645-2 (open access)
2024
Klimovich, M., & Richter, T. (2024). Metacognitive training can reduce mindless reading. Journal of Educational Psychology, 116(5), 836–852. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000884 (open access)
Schindler, J., Richter, T., & Mar, R. (2024). Does generation benefit learning from narrative and expository texts? A direct replication attempt. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 38(4), e4230. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/acp.4230 (open access)
2023
Glaser, J., & Richter, T. (2023). The testing effect in the lecture hall: Does it transfer to content studied but not practiced? Teaching of Psychology, 52(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/00986283231218943 (open access)
Schindler, J., & Richter, T. (2023). Text generation benefits learning: A meta-analytic review. Educational Psychology Review, 35, 44. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-023-09758-w (open access)
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