Exploring the Necessary Conditions for Observing Interleaved Practice Benefits in Problem Solving

Previous research has demonstrated benefits of interleaved practice over blocked practice for learning basic skills and formulas in math. This series of experiments tested whether the benefits from interleaved practice would generalize to more complex problem-solving contexts where the problem type must be inferred from information in the problem. Experiment 1 replicated the interleaved advantage found by Rohrer and Taylor (2007, Experiment 2) for volume of solids problems in a new sample. In Experiments 2 and 3, participants learned how to solve probability word problems through worked examples and practice problems either in a blocked or interleaved order, or hybrid orders that included both kinds of practice, and completed a delayed test one week later. The results of these studies suggest that interleaved practice can lead to learning that is robust over time even for more complex problems, and that both fully interleaved and hybrid practice schedules can lead to greater benefits than a fully blocked practice schedule.