The more you recall, the more you remember: study methods that work

In Part 1, we looked at study methods that feel productive but don’t work well: rereading, summarizing notes, and highlighting. In Part 2, we’ll look at the methods the book describes as highly effective. Two of them form the core: active recall and spaced learning.

1. Active recall: practice remembering

Active recall means pulling what you’ve learned out of your head without looking at anything. The book presents it as absolutely essential to learning.

For example, after reading a page of your textbook, close the book and write down what you remember. Or look only at the front of a flashcard and say the meaning out loud. Both of these are active recall.

There’s a well-known experiment, also introduced in the book. In this 2006 study, college students read a passage and were split into two groups: one read it again, and the other tried to recall it and write it down. On a test five minutes later, the rereading group scored higher. But two days later, and again a week later, the group that had practiced recalling remembered more.

In other words, how well you seem to be doing in the moment and what stays with you over time are two different things. That struggle to remember is exactly what makes a memory stronger.

2. Spaced learning: repeat with gaps in between

The second method is spaced learning, also called spaced repetition. For the same total study time, spreading it across several sessions with breaks in between helps you remember better than doing it all at once.

What you cram the night before an exam is gone almost as soon as the exam is over. It’s more effective to recall it again just as you’re starting to forget: the next day, a few days later, a week later. For language learners, spaced repetition apps like Anki handle the review timing for you.

3. Combining the two: successive relearning

The book also introduces successive relearning, which combines active recall and spaced learning. You practice recalling until you get it right, then repeat that process over several days.

Don’t call it done the first time you get it right. Come back a few days later and try again. It’s simple, but very powerful.

Three more methods worth trying

The book also introduces these methods:

• Interleaving: Mix different types of problems when you practice. With grammar, instead of drilling one point over and over, work on problems that mix several points.
• Self-explanation: Explain what you’ve learned in your own words. Talking as if you were teaching someone shows you exactly which parts you don’t understand yet.
• Elaborative interrogation: Ask yourself, “Why is that?” Learning the reason along with the fact helps it connect to what you already know.

What you can start doing today in language learning

• Don’t just look over your vocab book. Cover the answers and try to recall them.
• After reading an article, sum it up in three English sentences without looking back.
• Retest the words and phrases you got wrong the next day, three days later, and a week later.
• Write out a grammar point you’ve learned as if you were explaining it to a friend or an AI.

Studying that works is a little hard

The most effective study methods have one thing in common: in the moment, they feel a bit tough, and you often feel like you’re not getting it. Rereading is much easier, and it feels better. But the moment you get stuck trying to remember is exactly when your brain is working hardest.

Yasukawa himself writes in the book that he was never especially confident in his memory. That’s what makes his message so convincing: results come from method, not talent.

Before you add more study hours, why not try changing how you study?