DELAY OF FEEDBACK AND ACQUISITION AND RETENTION OF VERBAL MATERIALS IN CLASSROOM

Investigated the effects on learner performance of feedback delays ranging from immediate feedback to 4 days delay. 663 8th grade students served as Ss. Ss read an article and were tested on its contents. Ss then received knowledge of results and of the correct response to each test item after 1 of the 4 delays. Retesting occurred either immediately or 3 days after receiving feedback. A 4 * 2 analysis of covariance design with multiple comparisons was used. All main effects were significant (p < .01). Results question the generalizability of the principle of immediate feedback to school learning of verbal materials, and suggest the existence of an optimal feedback-delay interval. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1969 American Psychological Association.