Interleaved practice produces better long-term learning than blocked practice.

Is it true that Interleaved practice produces better long-term learning than blocked practice?

Partly. The retrieved items give only partial, narrow coverage: one small study of low-achieving Korean adolescents found hybrid practice beat both blocked and interleaved practice for long-term retention, and a year-long Nigerian math evaluation found interleaving improved short-term scores but showed no long-term retention benefit. A metacognition paper states that effective strategies such as interleaving enhance long-term learning, and a German spelling experiment examines interleaving's long-term effects without reporting results here.

Verdict: CONTESTED PARTIAL · 2 sources for, 2 against · Last checked 2 Oct 2026

The private library was unavailable for some searches in this check. Missing library results are not evidence against the claim.

Klimovich, M. & Richter, T. (2025). Spelling Acquisition in Children through Interleaved Practice: The Role of Instructional Guidance. eric.ed.gov. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41235-025-00680-z

Hwang, H. (2024). Undesirable Difficulty of Interleaved Practice: The Importance of Initial Blocked Practice for Declarative Knowledge Development in Low‐Achieving Adolescents. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1111/lang.12659

Erdem, O., Wisnu, W., Felicitas, B., M., J. E., & H., d. B. A. B. (2022). Growing out of the Experience: How Subjective Experiences of Effort and Learning Influence the Use of Interleaved Practice. eric.ed.gov. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-022-09692-3

Haar, L. v. d., Gray-Lobe, G., Kremer, M., & Laat, J. d. (2023). The Long-Term Distributional Impacts of a Full-Year Interleaving Math Program in Nigeria. EdWorkingPaper No. 23-876. eric.ed.gov. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED672238