Blocking vs. Interleaving: Single-Session Effects Within Middle School Math Homework
Ostrow, K., Heffernan, N. T., Heffernan, C., & Peterson, Z. · 2015
grade Crctindependentfailed
Sample
Middle-school students, online homework
Population
Middle-school students; single-session online math homework; short delay (~2-5 days).
Design
Classroom RCT inside the ASSISTments platform. Brief single-session dosage — the regime where blocking can match interleaving.
Key findings
A classroom RCT that did NOT find an interleaving benefit — a brief single-session manipulation with short delay, the regime where blocking matches interleaving. Tempers 'interleaving always wins'; the effect is conditional on delay and dosage.
Genetic confound
Domain-skill outcome.
Replication notes
The one prior math study finding no positive interleaving effect (Rohrer 2020 attributes it to short delay).
DOI / URL
10.1007/978-3-319-19773-9_34
Effects
| Outcome | Metric | Value | Measure | Timing | Vs | Horizon | Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interleaved vs blocked, short-delay test | direction | NULL — no interleaving benefit | researcher-designed | immediate/short; classroom | active-alternative | end-of-treatment | domain-skill |
| Low-skill students | direction | some benefit on learning gains / reduced hints | researcher-designed | immediate | active-alternative | end-of-treatment | domain-skill |
Cited by
- Interleaving (mixing problem types vs blocking)moderate supportconf: mediumgc: low