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Pupils using a revolutionary style of learning that combines intensive study with short bursts of physical exercise, such as juggling or team games, have succeeded in passing a GCSE module after just an hour of teaching.

The results of the trials among 48 pupils at Monkseaton High in North Tyneside are revealed in The Times Educational Supplement and offer a powerful insight into the workings of the memory that could revolutionise classroom practice.

Paul Kelley, head of Monkseaton, said the “spaced learning” technique was based on neuroscientific research by the Douglas Fields of the US National Institute of Health into how the brain creates memories.

Pupils in the trial scored up to 90 per cent in a GCSE science paper after one session involving three 20-minute bursts of intensive teaching with slides, interspersed with 10-minute breaks for physical exercise.

More than a quarter of students got higher scores after an hour of spaced learning than they achieved in traditional classes after four months.

The technique works by stimulating the brain cells three times, with a small break between each one, which helps to to embed memory.

The repetition is key as “cells only make permanent changes when a particular stimulus ‘proves’ its importance,” Mr Kelley said.

“This is hard-nosed scientific research that we have done to help improve learning for everyone in every year,” he added. “Results appear to show that it is a very powerful tool for learning a lot very quickly.

“It is an exciting development, and other schools should trial it.”

Lucy Barratt, 16, one of the pupils who took part in the trial, said likened the process to “seeing a movie in my mind that I had seen before”.

“I didn’t try to learn; I didn’t write anything down; and I didn’t review. Even when the information was being repeated, I didn’t consciously think about my first presentation,” she said.

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