Making Learning Stick: Key Strategies for Improving Student Knowledge Retention   
A highlight of the symposium was a presentation by Paisios (Travis) Hensersky, M.A., Assessments Analyst, who discussed ways for educators to combat what he described as the “student memory crisis.” In his opening remarks, Hensersky noted that Gen Z is the first modern generation to do worse on every measure of cognitive performance, due to factors like increased misuse of technology in the classroom and forced at-home learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Since so many students are coming into higher education unprepared for it,” said Hensersky, “the burden falls on those of us in higher education to structure our instruction in ways that science shows us improve long-term memory.”
Key Takeaways 
Reinforce Handwritten Notetaking with Lecture Worksheets 
A 2024 meta-analysis demonstrated that students retain more information when taking notes by hand, versus typing them. Handwriting forces students to paraphrase content, which stimulates deep processing in the brain and improves memory. The speed at which students can type allows them to take a large volume of notes verbatim, missing that deep processing. To help students keep up with content coverage while processing the information, educators can provide lecture outlines and handouts to fill in during the lecture. 
Structure Courses to Employ Frequent Recall 
Although it’s tempting to spend more study time rereading information, it’s optimal to spend at least 60% of study time paraphrasing content in your own words. Schedule practice tests regularly throughout the course, rather than sporadic pop quizzes and large exams, and use a testing schedule of pre-test, lecture, post-test. This allows students to identify holes in their knowledge, fill in missing information during the lecture, and cement that knowledge with the post-test.
Structure Practice and Testing to Employ Content Variety
Studies show that mixing up questions, rather than focusing on one topic only, leads to denser neuronal connections and higher-resolution memories. The variety forces concentrated effort from the student, and the more effort the student expends, the more durable the memory is. 
Have Students Read Out Loud and Paraphrase Verbally
Since the 1970s, researchers have known that reading material aloud improves later recall, termed the Production Effect. When reading silently, only the visual processing part of the brain is active. When reading aloud, the visual auditory, and muscular systems of the throat and face are all activated—so even the act of reading content out loud verbatim creates stronger memory traces. 
To learn more about this session and all of the presentations, head to the Educator Symposium page.