Impact of Spaced Learning on Educational Outcomes in Science Teaching

Recent research highlights the importance of effective teaching methodologies to enhance scientific learning from the earliest years of schooling. The present study investigates the effects of the Spaced Learning (SL) methodology in science education in Italian primary schools, with particular attention to scientific knowledge and students’ scientific reasoning skills. The study involved 401 third- and fourth-grade pupils (aged 8–11) from three primary schools in Palermo, Italy, during the 2024/2025 school year. A quasi-experimental design was adopted, with classes assigned to an experimental group that adopted SL or to a control group that followed traditional teaching. The intervention lasted seven months and was supported by continuous teacher training and collaboration with university researchers. The data were collected through a pre-test/post-test questionnaire developed and validated by experts in physics education. The tool assessed the students’ general scientific reasoning skills through multiple-choice items inserted in everyday life contexts. Descriptive statistics were calculated and between-group comparisons were made by Student’s t-test or Welch’s t-test when the assumption of homogeneity of variances was not met. The results indicate that students exposed to the SL methodology achieved higher post-test scores than those who received traditional education, suggesting a positive effect of time-distributed, movement-integrated learning on science learning outcomes. Such results support the effectiveness of SL as a promising teaching approach to promote meaningful and lasting scientific learning in primary school.