Phoenix Newsletter - October 2025 President’s Message: Enduring Commitments in a Time of Change Read President’s Message: Enduring Commitments in a Time of Change
Self-Assessment Integrating Spaced Repetition into CKSA: FAQs Expand All Collapse All What is spaced repetition? Spaced repetition is an evidence-based learning technique proven to strengthen the retention of critical clinical information over time. Instead of “cramming” or reviewing a concept only once, this method strategically reintroduces topics just as you are likely to forget them. By spacing out these reviews, the brain is forced to retrieve the information more deeply, which significantly strengthens long-term retention and ensures that clinical knowledge remains accessible for daily practice. What is the evidence behind spaced repetition for improving retention and knowledge transfer? ABFM’s recent large scale study (The Effect of Spaced Repetition on Learning and Knowledge Transfer in a Large Cohort of Practicing Physicians) found that physicians who were exposed to repeated questions showed a significant advantage in two key areas: Improvement in Learning: Physicians utilizing spaced repetition demonstrated a 58% learning rate compared to only 43% in the control groups. Enhanced Knowledge Transfer: There was a nearly 6% improvement in knowledge transfer – the ability to apply what was learned to different clinical contexts. What happens if I don’t get any questions wrong? Will I still receive 30 questions in the next quarter? Yes. You will always receive a total of 30 questions each quarter. Even if you answered every question correctly in the previous quarter, you will still receive five spaced repetition questions to ensure you benefit from the reinforced learning model. In these instances, the five spaced repetition questions you receive will be selected from the items that were most commonly answered incorrectly by other participants during the previous quarter. This ensures you are still exposed to challenging, high-value clinical concepts. What happens if skip a quarter? Will I still receive 30 questions in the next quarter? Yes. You will always receive a total of 30 questions each quarter. Even if you did not answer any questions in the previous quarter, you will still receive five spaced repetition questions to ensure you benefit from the reinforced learning model. In these instances, the five spaced repetition questions you receive will be selected from the items that were most commonly answered incorrectly by other participants during the previous quarter. This ensures you are still exposed to challenging, high-value clinical concepts. Does CKSA fulfill my Family Medicine Certification Exam (Longitudinal Assessment or traditional One-Day Exam) requirement? No, CKSA does not replace your exam requirement. Completing CKSA questions awards certification points and CME credits that count toward your certification activity requirements. For more information about meeting your exam requirement, please visit your MyABFM Portfolio. Start Learning Today! Log in to your MyABFM Portfolio and begin this quarters’ CKSA activity. MyABFM Portfolio
Expand All Collapse All What is spaced repetition? Spaced repetition is an evidence-based learning technique proven to strengthen the retention of critical clinical information over time. Instead of “cramming” or reviewing a concept only once, this method strategically reintroduces topics just as you are likely to forget them. By spacing out these reviews, the brain is forced to retrieve the information more deeply, which significantly strengthens long-term retention and ensures that clinical knowledge remains accessible for daily practice. What is the evidence behind spaced repetition for improving retention and knowledge transfer? ABFM’s recent large scale study (The Effect of Spaced Repetition on Learning and Knowledge Transfer in a Large Cohort of Practicing Physicians) found that physicians who were exposed to repeated questions showed a significant advantage in two key areas: Improvement in Learning: Physicians utilizing spaced repetition demonstrated a 58% learning rate compared to only 43% in the control groups. Enhanced Knowledge Transfer: There was a nearly 6% improvement in knowledge transfer – the ability to apply what was learned to different clinical contexts. What happens if I don’t get any questions wrong? Will I still receive 30 questions in the next quarter? Yes. You will always receive a total of 30 questions each quarter. Even if you answered every question correctly in the previous quarter, you will still receive five spaced repetition questions to ensure you benefit from the reinforced learning model. In these instances, the five spaced repetition questions you receive will be selected from the items that were most commonly answered incorrectly by other participants during the previous quarter. This ensures you are still exposed to challenging, high-value clinical concepts. What happens if skip a quarter? Will I still receive 30 questions in the next quarter? Yes. You will always receive a total of 30 questions each quarter. Even if you did not answer any questions in the previous quarter, you will still receive five spaced repetition questions to ensure you benefit from the reinforced learning model. In these instances, the five spaced repetition questions you receive will be selected from the items that were most commonly answered incorrectly by other participants during the previous quarter. This ensures you are still exposed to challenging, high-value clinical concepts. Does CKSA fulfill my Family Medicine Certification Exam (Longitudinal Assessment or traditional One-Day Exam) requirement? No, CKSA does not replace your exam requirement. Completing CKSA questions awards certification points and CME credits that count toward your certification activity requirements. For more information about meeting your exam requirement, please visit your MyABFM Portfolio.
What is spaced repetition? Spaced repetition is an evidence-based learning technique proven to strengthen the retention of critical clinical information over time. Instead of “cramming” or reviewing a concept only once, this method strategically reintroduces topics just as you are likely to forget them. By spacing out these reviews, the brain is forced to retrieve the information more deeply, which significantly strengthens long-term retention and ensures that clinical knowledge remains accessible for daily practice.
What is the evidence behind spaced repetition for improving retention and knowledge transfer? ABFM’s recent large scale study (The Effect of Spaced Repetition on Learning and Knowledge Transfer in a Large Cohort of Practicing Physicians) found that physicians who were exposed to repeated questions showed a significant advantage in two key areas: Improvement in Learning: Physicians utilizing spaced repetition demonstrated a 58% learning rate compared to only 43% in the control groups. Enhanced Knowledge Transfer: There was a nearly 6% improvement in knowledge transfer – the ability to apply what was learned to different clinical contexts.
What happens if I don’t get any questions wrong? Will I still receive 30 questions in the next quarter? Yes. You will always receive a total of 30 questions each quarter. Even if you answered every question correctly in the previous quarter, you will still receive five spaced repetition questions to ensure you benefit from the reinforced learning model. In these instances, the five spaced repetition questions you receive will be selected from the items that were most commonly answered incorrectly by other participants during the previous quarter. This ensures you are still exposed to challenging, high-value clinical concepts.
What happens if skip a quarter? Will I still receive 30 questions in the next quarter? Yes. You will always receive a total of 30 questions each quarter. Even if you did not answer any questions in the previous quarter, you will still receive five spaced repetition questions to ensure you benefit from the reinforced learning model. In these instances, the five spaced repetition questions you receive will be selected from the items that were most commonly answered incorrectly by other participants during the previous quarter. This ensures you are still exposed to challenging, high-value clinical concepts.
Does CKSA fulfill my Family Medicine Certification Exam (Longitudinal Assessment or traditional One-Day Exam) requirement? No, CKSA does not replace your exam requirement. Completing CKSA questions awards certification points and CME credits that count toward your certification activity requirements. For more information about meeting your exam requirement, please visit your MyABFM Portfolio.
Start Learning Today! Log in to your MyABFM Portfolio and begin this quarters’ CKSA activity. MyABFM Portfolio
