Show Notes

In this exciting episode of 'The Staffroom', we spoke about retrieval practicewith Pooja K. Agarwal, Ph.D. (@PoojaAgarwal) an expert in the field of cognitive science. Pooja is the Founder of RetrievalPractice.org, a hub of research, resources, and teaching strategies based on the science of learning – check this out!

Pooja’s work is being noticed more and more by teachers around the world as she offers practical tips and advice on cognitive psychological research and strategies can enhance and accelerate student learning.

Here’s our conversation with Pooja broken down with time-stamps:

• Who is Pooja and how did she get involved with cognitive science? (3:35)
• How does Pooja define retrieval practiceand why is it a powerful strategy for learning? (5:50)
• What examples does Pooja use to illustrate retrieval practicein the classroom? (7:50)
• Does Pooja think that it is difficult to engage students in retrieval practicestrategies? Why does she think it is important to keep retrieval practiceas a low or no-stakes approach? (9:40)
• Does Pooja believe retrieval practiceworks better with older or younger students? (11:45)
• How can educators implement retrieval practiceinto their teaching? What techniques does Pooja suggest are most effective? (13:20)
• Why does Pooja believe that feedback is an important part in retrieval practiceprocess? (16:50)
• Does Pooja think that there are any potential challenges for teachers when implementing retrieval practice? Does she believe it impacts on workload? (19:50)
• What is Pooja’s upcoming book called and what’s it about? (22:15)

We hope you enjoy this episode of The Staffroom and found Pooja’s ideas on retrieval practice strategies as fascinating as we did. We gathered lots of practical tips and tricks on how to work smarter not harder – remember: retrieval practice is one of the most powerful strategies to use in your classroom – why not give it a go?

We wish Dr Pooja K. Agarwal all the best for 2018 and her continuing success of RetrievalPractice.org. Remember to buy her book once it’s released in June next year!

Until next time!

Jamie, Michael and Tessa

Twitter:

@XpatEducator

@Michael_Royall

@tessa_johnson2