What it means to learn a word

What it means to learn a word

To learn a word is to understand it, recognise it by ear, spell it correctly, use it and recall it when you need it. Each action strengthens a connection in memory. These five connections develop at different speeds, so WordsTool trains them with different tasks and tracks them separately.
I understand
I recall
I spell
I know by ear
I use
01 — 10

Why different tasks matter

Recognising departure among four options is not the same as recalling it when you need it. Recalling a word is not the same as spelling it without a mistake. Some tasks check meaning, others check sound, spelling or use. An answer can train several connections; its result also depends on the prompts that remained.
I understand
This skill is the link between the word and its meaning.
A correct answer means
that you know what this word means
And it does not mean
that you will recall the word when you need it
I recall
This skill is the link between a meaning and the word itself.
A correct answer means
that you find or recall the word from its meaning with the prompts available in the task
And it does not mean
that you will spell it without a mistake
I spell
This skill is the link between the word and its spelling.
A correct answer means
that you spell the word correctly
And it does not mean
that you will recognise it by ear
I know by ear
This skill is the link between the word and its sound.
A correct answer means
that you recognise the word when you hear it
And it does not mean
that you will understand it in a text
I use
This skill is the link between the word and the context in which it is used.
A correct answer means
that you use the right word in a specific context
And it does not mean
that you know all of its meanings
02 — 10

Read the same, learned differently

Twenty learners read a novel and met 34 unknown words in it. Nobody taught the words on purpose; the only practice was reading. They recognised the meaning of 43% of the words, but could recall it for only 14%, three times fewer. Spelling was learned worse than meaning, although form is usually assumed to come along by itself. The authors' conclusion: reading alone brings a word to recognition and almost never to recall, and form needs practice of its own. That is why we track different connections separately and train them with varied tasks.
Of the 34 words, reading taught…
meaning recognition
43%
spelling recognition
34%
everything at once
28%
part of speech
20%
meaning recall
14%
Pellicer-Sánchez & Schmitt, 2010
18
aspects of a word have to be known to own it: form, meaning and use, each from several sides.
Nation, 2001
60%
A “60% learned” scale does not work: in the data the answers fell apart into “barely know it” and “know it”, with no middle.
Bruton, 2009
03 — 10

How tasks help you remember words

In tasks you try to recall the word rather than just look at it. These attempts check and strengthen memory. Learners were given forty words with translations to remember. Once a pair had been recalled a single time, one group kept being asked and the other was shown the answer again. A week later the first group remembered twice as much.
≈ 80%
remembered a week later among those who kept being asked
36%
remembered among those who kept being shown
and 33% among those only shown, without a single test
The learners were meanwhile sure that looking the words over was more useful. A week later it turned out the other way round. So we ask even when it feels as though everything is already learned.
Karpicke & Roediger, 2008 · Science · meta-analysis by Adesope et al., 2017: 272 comparisons
04 — 10

Forgetting is slower than it is thought to be

Textbooks draw a steep forgetting curve. In our data a word holds level for the first month and only then starts to go, a little at a time.
How many answers stay correct if you come back to the word after… days
the first month is a plateau93.50%91.02%86.89%1–23–67–1314–2930–8990–179180–364
Our data: 2.67M answers, adjusted for word difficulty and learner strength. The reliable stretch is 14 to 180 days
05 — 10

How spaced repetition works

A word is repeated after some time to check whether you can recall it again. The date is calculated from progress in each connection: a stronger connection can allow a longer interval. Even mastered words sometimes need another repeat to keep them available in memory.
How it was · when a word was repeated
the same day · 82.93%
later — 17%: after 1–2 days 4.26%, after 90 days or more 0.93%
An example of spaced repeats · dates vary for each learner
learned
today
repeat
tomorrow
repeat
in a week
repeat
in a month
Our data; repeats inside one exercise were not counted
×3
is how much better a word holds if it is repeated after a gap rather than at once (about +200%). Which schedule matters less; that there is a gap matters.
Karpicke & Bauernschmidt, 2011
⅕
of the horizon you want to remember for is a good gap for a repeat. For a year it is rarer, about a twentieth. Missing it slightly is cheap.
Cepeda et al., 2008 · more than 1350 participants
06 — 10

How hard a task is

One skill can be tested with prompts or without them. Prompts initially help you find the answer, while stronger connections can lead to tasks that require more independent recall. We account for both a correct answer and the support available in the task.
recognise
pick one of four
prompt: the answer is on screen
match
match a whole group
prompt: the answer is on screen, with interference
find
find the form in a grid of letters
prompt: the letters are there, in noise
assemble
build the word from letters
prompt: the parts are given, the order is not
write
type it from nothing
prompt: none
Honestly, there is no even five-rung ladder in our data: the difference between “recognise” and “write it yourself” is large and reliable, while neighbouring rungs are often equal. So the rungs carry no percentages.
Our data: 2.75M answers · share correct: choice 91.96%, matching 86.70%, assembly 78.59%, writing 73.50%, search 69.44%
07 — 10

How a correct answer becomes memory

Answers in your own exercises and a teacher's assignments help assess the connections that were practised.
01
Answered correctly — the connection got stronger
We account for what you had to do and which prompts were available. One question can train several connections, such as recalling a word and spelling it.
02
As a connection strengthens, support changes
As a connection strengthens, tasks can require more independent answers. The next task is not necessarily harder: support depends on progress.
03
The word gets a repeat date
A repeat date is calculated for each connection. A stronger connection can have a longer interval; this is an estimate of when checking memory again would help.
This is how it looks at the end of a session
departure
right the first time · I understand
08 — 10

This is not a game

Five connections, “3 of 5 mastered” and “review today” on a word card show achieved progress and when the next repeat is due.
None of this is here
365days+9,999XP213
day streaks
points and levels
leaderboards
There is only word memory
departure
3 of 5 mastered
review today
five connections, “3 of 5 mastered” and “review today” — achieved progress and a repeat date
Instead of a streak
A reminder at the moment a repeat has come due
Return to the word when its calculated repeat date arrives. The schedule helps keep it available in memory.
Why no games
In rigorous studies games affect neither the wish to learn nor how regularly people study
Of 0.49 across all studies, 0.29 remains in randomised ones — and only on knowledge. Motivation 0.13 and behaviour 0.12: no effect found.
Sailer, M., & Homner, L. (2020). The gamification of learning: A meta-analysis. Educational Psychology Review, 32, 77–112
09 — 10

How you see progress

In this example with the “Full command” goal, “3 of 5 mastered” means three connections have met the criterion for your current learning goal, while two still need work. “Mastered” does not decrease while your learning goal stays the same. The repeat date on a word card tells you when to return; a set’s “1 to repeat” counts words that are due.
today
departure
1 of 5 mastered
review today
two weeks later
departure
3 of 5 mastered
review tomorrow
a month later
departure
3 of 5 mastered
review today
Mistakes and a break do not erase achieved progress. A mastered word can still be due for a repeat: what you have learned and how available a word is right now are different things. Changing your learning goal can change the criterion and the number of mastered connections, so more practice may be needed. These cards are an example, not a shared schedule for everyone.
Bjork & Bjork, 1992 · the lines “… of … mastered” and “… to repeat” come from the product
Start with one set
Do the tasks, watch your progress and return to the words when a repeat is due.