The Iglu Guide | Blog
7 revision techniques you just can’t live without
Mid-year assessments and exams are fast approaching and that means it’s time to get down to business. If the thought of cramming alone at your desk is putting you off, think again. Exam prep is not about working hard – but working smart.
Here’s how to max out your time with revision that actually counts.
1. Get involved early
Effective revision takes thought and planning. If you want to get good grades, consolidated revision is not something that can be rushed out the night before. The earlier you begin to plan for exams and assignments, the more on top of your work and the less stressed you will feel.
Identify and focus on the areas where you feel least confident, rather than going over topics that you are already familiar with. Organisation and efficiency go hand in hand – this is how you will make the most progress, and get to that HD grade.
2. Schedule your time – and stick to it
Look back over your syllabus and put together a revision timetable that includes every topic you will need to cover. Plan out your sessions by subject with a realistic time period allocated to each one. Don’t be afraid to work across multiple subjects each day – this actually helps keep your mind interested and engaged.
If it all feels a bit overwhelming, try something new like the Pomodoro technique. A popular time management system, it suggests stacking four lots of 25-minute study sessions on top of each other with a short break in between each one. At the end, you benefit from a longer break. The idea behind Pomodoro is that it increases your productivity and maintains motivation using bite-sized study chunks – a more attractive prospect than long unstructured revision periods.
3. Be strategic
Most students find a method that works for them – but in reality, there are plenty of time-tested methods that will work well for most. The trick is to engage in active revision techniques that have you really digging deep into your topic. Here’s how to get started:
- Summarise your notes – collate all the key points and then learn them
- Create flashcards – test your memory and find out what you really know (or don’t)
- Discuss and debate your ideas with a study-buddy
- Practise past papers
- Keep doing it!
4. Test yourself
Making notes and condensing information is a great way to revise for an exam and consolidate knowledge. But to understand whether you are truly taking on the information, you need to put yourself in a test situation.
You can create this yourself using resources like quizlet, a free website that provides learning tools for students. You can also make your own flashcards, create mind maps and get stuck into online quizzes. Don’t stop until you’re getting a hit rate you’d be happy to see as an exam result.
5. Teach someone else
Pick one of your topics and try and teach it to a friend. You’d be surprised at how difficult this can be – and how much you really need to understand your subject to be able to explain it. It’s a good way to spot gaps in your knowledge, as well as practising how to translate your ideas effectively.
Teaching others is a way to make sure that you really know what you’re talking about. It also helps you make new connections within your own work and gain a deeper familiarity with the topic. If you can’t happily explain it to someone else, it’s time to go back to your notes and begin again.
6. Take regular breaks
Strange but true: not studying can actually help you learn. But before you pack your books away, there’s a big difference between taking scheduled breaks and getting distracted during a study period. Time with the books needs to be invested, focussed and worthwhile. Regular breaks are an important part of the process because they allows your brain time to absorb all the new information.
Scheduling in physical exercise also has many health benefits that can directly impact the effectiveness of your study. Your stress levels will benefit from all the happy endorphins swimming around your system, and the increased blood flow has been shown to improve your brain power. Regular exercise will stimulate the growth of new brain cells and help establish new neural pathways. Overall, you’ll improve your concentration, motivation, memory and mood. What’s not to love?
7. Practise makes perfect
Transitioning specific knowledge to an exam paper on the big day is a different story to studying in a familiar environment. There is an environment of anxiety and stress that builds up around exam periods which can adversely affect your performance.
If you can become familiar with those feeling in advance, it will help avoid that issue and give you an advantage on the day. Get hold of some past exam papers and get a sense of what the questions are going to look like as they are often designed to trip you up. The more you can familiarise yourself with potential content, the more confident you will feel on the day – and the better results you will achieve.
And finally…
Don’t forget to treat yourself! Hang out with friends, go to the movies, jump onto Tik Tok – whatever it takes to regularly reconnect with the world. The happier you feel on the inside, the more productive you will be.
Photo by Firmbee.com on Unsplash
