Forward Testing Effect

The forward testing effect, also called test potentiated new learning, is the finding that testing a learner on information already studied can improve how well they learn new information that follows. This differs from the more familiar benefit of testing on later recall of the same material that was tested, since the forward testing effect proposes that the act of being tested carries its own separate benefit for learning whatever comes next, distinct from the practice effect produced by simple repetition and restudy. The earliest documented study of the effect was conducted by Tulving and Watkins in 1974, and the finding suggests that encouraging students to study using testing techniques, rather than only restudying material repeatedly, can aid learning of subsequent material.