The exams provoke anxiety because the result of the evaluation can condition the qualification to study another subject. For that reason, it is convenient that you begin to study well in advance. We present a series of effective study techniques to increase your performance in the study. Make the most of the time spent on the review. Apply!
Far from being a universal method, the following tips do work better than others. They are part of a new book by Peter C. Brown, Henry L. Roediger III, and Mark A. McDaniel, of the prestigious Harvard University. It is titled “Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning”, and focuses on how to learn how to retain important data that we will need sooner or later.
Effective study techniques
Those responsible for the text condemn techniques such as underlining, highlighting with fluorescent colors, and non-stop repetition as useless and counterproductive techniques. In exchange for criticism, they point to the following effective study techniques as 100% useful:
-
Make notes by hand
Yes, we already know that writing on your laptop, on your tablet or on your cell phone is a thousand times faster. But guess what? Harvard specialists say that the extra time it takes you to write by hand influences how much you manage to retain knowledge. Writing with pencil and paper requires more time but forces you to reflect on what you do. That first instance helps you think and visualize the information; On the contrary, when you only transfer the information to your electronic device, you do not analyze it while doing it.
-
Take time to study several subjects at the same time
You have to learn to organize yourself so that you can learn different subjects at the same time. The authors claim that this way of studying alternating between a subject and promotes retention and facilitates the understanding of what was read. At first, it may make you think that you studied less than you really did, and you will be pleasantly surprised when you realize how effective this method is.
-
Allow time between your study hours
Learning all at once in an eternal session of 9 hours in a row does not work. That information will disappear days or hours after the exam. To retain what you have learned, you have to let a couple of hours go by in your study moments to let the information rest and avoid unnecessary bingeing.
-
Do not read things a thousand times
Do not get confused: spending hours and hours rereading the same textbook will not record the lines in your brain. It is better to devote less time to reading and more too mental recollection; in this way, you can focus on the retention and you will remember it later.
-
Face challenges
Always study effective study techniques and familiar exercises more comfortable. But the real way to learn is when you are forced to solve a problem or answer a new question. In this way, they will facilitate learning later. For this, it is very useful to study in a group to ask each other questions to remember what they have learned.
