10 Tips
- Develop a Positive Attitude: If you believe a subject is boring or unimportant, you will have more difficulty recalling the information.
- Memorization Comes After Understanding: The order of study should be: read, recite aloud, write notes in your own words, ask yourself questions about the material, and review.
- Organization: Organize the material into meaningful clusters as this will help with recall.
- Reviewing Notes: Frequent reviewing of notes will decrease the amount of material you will need to relearn for exams
- Commit to Memory: Write it, speak it, hear it, and visualize it.
- Use Imagery to Remember Material: Close your eyes and get a picture of the material
- Make Connections: It is easier to recall new information if it is attached to old.
- Over Learn the Material: Predict exam questions and actually write answers and work out problems.
- Study in Short Intervals: You are more likely to remember the material at the start and at the end of your study intervals
- Use Study Aides: Use note cards for key points, key words, definitions, and equations; explain the main ideas to friends, and join a study group.
Strategies
- Take Practice Tests: Professors may have old tests or sample tests that you might be able to test yourself. Always complete them early so you may focus on the materials that you missed. If these options are not available, consider making your own test and always take the tests under test-like conditions.
- Review after Class: Make sure you understand the topics mention in class and that you are able to perform them based on the learning objectives. Try reviewing your notes after class; make note cards to review terms and concepts; and make your own outline that corresponds to your comprehension and understanding of the main topics.
Article and Student Interviews
Many students struggle with testing themselves with the material they have just learned in class or read in their textbook, and getting themselves prepared for class. Because this is a struggle we have decided to talk to two students who wish to remain anonymous; one who struggles in these aspects and one who excels in these areas.
Student A struggles with retaining information after class and especially after he reads his textbook at night and he also has a hard time getting all of his readings done before each class. Student B is on top of his readings for class and excels at testing himself to be sure that he is understand and comprehending all of the material covered in his classes. Student A says he has a difficult time setting aside time to complete homework, study and read during the day and Student B says he has a set time each and every day that he is able to sit down and complete all of his homework so he can relax at night.
“Self testing, reviewing, and preparing for class the next day is just part of my daily routine. Although this ties into time management I think it is very important to manage your time and to be able to set time aside to sit down each and every day to complete the tasks at hand. Once you set aside this time and you are able to sit down at a convenient time to work on your work it makes it much more convenient to study. At the beginning of the semester it is important to start of strong because everything you learn in the beginning continues to build up as the semester continues. If it helps you to say it out loud to yourself so you can better understand it and visualize it then that is what you need to do.”
Although it can be difficult after each class students should sit down for five to ten minutes and review their notes from that class period and try to go back over any chapters covered. This will help the student to retain the information just learned and also give them time to ask questions of the professor if necessary.
In conclusion, it is important to read all of the required readings for class because they will essentially build on top of one another, review your notes after each class, and maintain a positive attitude while doing so. Without a positive attitude it is very difficult to succeed at anything.
Submitted by: Amber Cook & Jason Benisch