Test Taking Cements Knowledge

I read an interesting article about a study which showed that taking a test did more to help students remember something than other popular methods.  Specifically, the test showed a benefit of 50% compared to other popular methods of studying. From the article:

These other methods [the methods the researchers compared testing to] not only are popular, the researchers reported; they also seem to give students the illusion that they know material better than they do.

By contrast, in talking about the struggle students go through using the testing method, the article stated:

“The struggle helps you learn, but it makes you feel like you’re not learning,” said Nate Kornell, a psychologist at Williams College. “You feel like: ‘I don’t know it that well. This is hard and I’m having trouble coming up with this information.’ ”

I think that most students who don't study smarter, not harder fall into the trap of doing things which produce the illusion of learning instead of doing things which actually produce learning.  I see this idea relating heavily to my idea that one ought to do all of one's homework problems alone; the struggle of doing that helps one learn much faster than asking for help.