Can testing yourself actually make you learn and remember more? The short answer is, "YES!."

This article in the Science Section of the New York Times discusses research which shows that being tested on material is one of the best ways to study and REMEMBER new material.

Notice that retrieval practice works best for both direct and inference questions. This shows that retrieval practice not only helps us remember facts, but it helps us UNDERSTAND how those facts relate to each other and to our wider knowledge.