The Bottom Line
- Practice testing is a learning method, not just assessment.
- Your loop must include retrieval + feedback + scheduled retest.
- The goal is durable discrimination under time pressure.
What most people get wrong
They do questions, then ‘review’ by reading explanations, then move on. Without retest scheduling, the learning signal is weak and short-lived.
Test-enhanced learning is the engine underneath high-performance exam prep: retrieval strengthens memory traces and exposes what you *think* you know. The system below is deliberately simple—because complex systems don’t survive NHS rotas.
1
Choose a weekly cadence (and protect it)
Example: 3 short retrieval sessions (20–30 min) + 1 longer timed block (60–90 min).
2
Run retrieval properly
Timed, no notes, no pausing. Treat it like an exam rep—because your brain learns the conditions you train in.
3
Review using the ‘discriminator’ template
For each miss: (1) why I was wrong, (2) the key discriminator, (3) the minimal rule I will use next time.
4
Schedule retests (72h and 7d)
Put retest tickets into your calendar or spaced repetition list. A miss without a retest plan is a donation to forgetting.
5
Track only two metrics
<strong>Accuracy</strong> (overall) and <strong>confusion clusters</strong> (topics you repeatedly miss). Ignore vanity metrics like ‘hours studied’.
A practice-testing loop that works
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Practice
Test your knowledge
Apply this concept immediately with a high-yield question block from the iatroX Q-Bank.
SourceRoediger & Karpicke: the ‘testing effect’ (practice testing improves long-term retention)
Open Link SourceBEME systematic review: test-enhanced learning in medical education
Open Link