The Leitner System
What is it?
The Leitner System is a popular method of studying with flashcards using spaced repetition. It was developed by the German commentator and author Sebastian Leitner who described it in his best-selling book Learning How To Learn
How does it work?
The idea is that the easier it is to recall the material on a flashcard the less often that flashcard will be repeated in the future. The reverse follows. The harder it is to recall the material on a flashcard the more often it will be repeated. The repetition of each flashcard is scheduled, or spaced, in such a way that the learner spends most of their time studying material that is more challenging. Material that has been retained well is studied only occasionally to ensure it has not been forgotten.
The Leitner System's implementation of spaced repetition works like this:
- A container called a cardbox or a cardfile is set up to hold the flashcards. It is divided into multiple individual compartments. FlashcardDB calls the groups of flashcards in each compartment decks.
- All flashcards start in deck 1.
- When the material on a flashcard is recalled correctly it is moved forward by one deck. (See the green arrows in the diagram above). If the flashcard was already in the last deck then it remains there.
- When the material on a flashcard is not recalled it is returned to deck 1: regardless of what deck the flashcard came from. (See the merged red arrow(s) in the diagram).