Engaging in a test over previously studied information can serve as a potent learning event, a phenomenon referred to as the testing effect. Despite a surge of research in the past decade, existing theories have not yet provided a cohesive account of testing phenomena. The present study uses meta-analysis to examine the effects of testing versus restudy on retention. Key results indicate support for the role of effortful processing as a contributor to the testing effect, with initial recall tests yielding larger testing benefits than recognition tests. Limited support was found for existing theoretical accounts attributing the testing effect to enhanced semantic elaboration, indicating that consideration of alternative mechanisms is warranted in explaining testing effects. Future theoretical accounts of the testing effect may benefit from consideration of episodic and contextually derived contributions to retention resulting from memory retrieval. Additionally, the bifurcation model of the testing effect is considered as a viable framework from which to characterize the patterns of results present across the literature. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved).

Peer instruction is an evidence-based pedagogy that has been extensively studied in various science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines. In this essay, the authors review and summarize the research literature on the effectiveness and intricacies of implementation of peer instruction. A research-based how-to guide and suggestions for future research investigations are provided.

This study is a quantitative approach to unravel the effect of pause procedure on two dependent variables (student performance and student satisfaction). The purpose of this action research study is to explore two aspects: Do students in accounting class where the pause procedure is applied (experimental group) perform better compared to another accounting class (control group) where pause procedure is not employed? Do students in accounting class where instructor uses pause (experimental group), experience greater course and teaching satisfaction compared to the students of (control group) where pause was not utilized? The results of this study is quite staggering, as findings indicate that in accounting class where instructor gave two eight minute pauses during each ninety minute lecture, showed greater student performance and satisfaction compared to control group where pause procedure was not employed. Therefore, this study provides strong support for incorporating strategic pauses during accounting lectures to enhance student satisfaction and overall class performance.

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