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Effect of Retrieval Practice on Students’ Retention of Anatomical Terminology

Abstract

The study examines the effect of retrieval practice on students’ retention of anatomical terminology, with emphasis on the use of repeated active recall to strengthen students’ ability to remember and accurately recognize terms used in human anatomy. Anatomical terminology forms an important foundation for understanding anatomical structures, positions, relationships, and clinical descriptions. However, students may experience difficulty retaining large numbers of unfamiliar anatomical terms, particularly when learning depends mainly on passive reading and repeated review. The study will assess students’ retention of anatomical terminology before and after exposure to retrieval practice activities. The specific objectives will include determining students’ baseline knowledge of selected anatomical terms, assessing their ability to recall and correctly identify terminology following retrieval practice, determining changes in retention over the study period, and examining students’ performance in recalling terms from different anatomical regions and categories. A quasi-experimental research design will be adopted for the study. An appropriate sample of undergraduate students will be selected and exposed to structured retrieval practice activities involving repeated recall of anatomical terms through quizzes, flashcards, short-answer exercises, and other appropriate recall-based tasks. Students’ retention will be assessed using standardized pre-test and post-test instruments containing anatomical terminology from selected regions of the human body. Data obtained will be analyzed using descriptive statistics such as frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation, while an appropriate inferential test will be used to determine changes in terminology retention following the intervention. The study is expected to demonstrate improvement in students’ retention of anatomical terminology following exposure to retrieval practice. Students may show greater accuracy in recalling, recognizing, and distinguishing anatomical terms, particularly terms that are frequently revisited through active recall. Differences may also be observed between commonly encountered terminology and unfamiliar or closely related terms, with some terminology potentially remaining more difficult to retain. The findings will be useful to anatomists, anatomy educators, medical educators, curriculum developers, and students by providing information on the usefulness of active recall in learning anatomical terminology. The findings may support the integration of retrieval-based activities into anatomy teaching and revision programmes, particularly for terminology that requires repeated memorization and accurate recall. Such activities may complement lectures, textbooks, practical sessions, and other conventional anatomy learning resources. The study will conclude by determining the effect of retrieval practice on students’ retention of anatomical terminology. It is recommended that structured retrieval practice should be incorporated into anatomy learning and revision activities to provide students with regular opportunities to recall and reinforce anatomical terms. Further studies involving larger and more diverse student populations may be conducted to examine the longer-term retention of anatomical terminology following repeated retrieval practice.

Keywords: Retrieval practice, anatomical terminology, terminology retention, anatomy education, undergraduate students, active recall, anatomy learning, anatomical terms, memory retention, anatomy revision, anatomical knowledge, learning strategies, practical anatomy, medical education, knowledge retention.