How to Study Well for Exams Without Forgetting
So, you have an exam coming up huh? This time you want to actually know what you’ve studied for so you don’t run into blanks just starting at your test. Some students are afraid of that. I get it, you have tons of assignments to work on, projects to complete, places to see and people to meet. Yeah, your typical student life. All these activities can deprive you of quality time to study and retain the information. However, I am here to help you. Here are 10 tips on how to study well for exams without forgetting it.
1. Be organized
Being disorganized is the main enemy for good memory. You need to keep your study place organized. You should have a well-planned out schedule. This will ensure that you will know what to study next and when to study. Your notes also should be organized. This will allow you to effectively and efficiently revisit your study material so you don’t waste valuable time looking for them.
2. Have a positive attitude
If you start studying with a negative attitude, you are already presetting you mind to not study. So, whatever you’re trying to study would be a waste of time. Approach your studies with enthusiasm so that it’s easier to grasp whatever you learn. Besides, if you are excited about reading a particular subject, you are most likely going to remember most of the things during the exam.
3. Make short notes
Writing is one of the best ways to make something stick in your mind. Consider writing down every important point that you come across because it helps reinforce the information in your mind. For instance, at the end of each chapter, write a few bullet points that summarize what you have learned. You can use shorthand to speed up the process but make you are able to read what you have written. This way you can study well for the exams without forgetting it.
Check out: How to read faster and retain information
4. Switch between topics
Sometimes you may find yourself overwhelm with one topic. This may exhaust the mind because you may start to lose interest on the topic. The best thing to do is alternate topics. For instance, you can spend about 30 minutes studying one topic. Take a ten-minute break and switch to another topic. This is an effective strategy to use because you are not overwhelming your brain with the same information and having the breaks in between will allow your brain to rest. When it’s time to study again, you’ll regain your concentration and focus again.
5. Change your study methods
Having the same study method can be boring sometimes. It is important switch it up and try something different such a reading out loud or creating mental pictures of what you studied. This will help you learn faster and not forget the concepts. The best way to do this is read each topic out loud and create mental pictures of it. Once you are done, take a short break. Afterwards, test yourself to see if you have actually memorized and retained the material.
6. Teach others
Each time you review a topic, find out whether you have fully understood it by explaining it to someone else. This way, you will be able to have a grip on the information. It will increase your learning efficiency and move the information from short term memory to long term memory. In addition, it might help you reveal new information that you maybe have skipped while studying. This will greatly help you on exams when trying to recall the material.
7. Test yourself
Don’t just read your class notes and try to cram everything in. Test yourself to see how much of the information you were able to process. After reading a certain concept, take time to quiz yourself on it. For instance, you can write study questions and do them or do the exercises provided at the end of each chapter in the textbook. You can also ask your classmate or study buddy questions to reinforce the study material. This way, your brain will be forced to consolidate the information and make it easier to remember later during the exam. That’s one important way to study for exams without forgetting.
8. Study in a quiet environment
A noisy environment will make it hard to concentrate. Find a calm place to study where it is free of distractions. If there are other people around such as family or friends, kindly ask them to give you some time so that you can study. A quiet and comfortable environment will help you understand and retain the information, as well as, mimic the quiet classroom setting when taking the exam.
9. Review the information periodically
It is known that if you read a topic once, you will have forgotten some of the information the next day. It is difficult for the brain to retain all that information without revisiting it. The best thing to do is to keep reviewing the information until it becomes concrete in your mind. The more you familiarize yourself with the concepts of a particular topic, the easier it will be to remember them during the exam. For instance, if you read a certain topic today, do a review of it the next day. You can wait for about two days and quiz yourself. Then a day before the exam, review it again. When the exam day comes along, you won’t have a tough time trying to remember it because you will already have a concrete understanding of it.
10. Get enough sleep
Some students probably don’t get a lot of sleep because they have way more interesting things to do than studying. A lack of sleep will impair your cognitive function. In addition, your mental processing power won’t be as powerful as it’s supposed to be, the longer you stay awake. But when you do get enough sleep, you will feel energized and focused. To retain the information better, one thing you can do is briefly study at night just before going to bed. This will allow the brain to process and consolidate the information during sleep. Just make sure to not overdo it by staying up all night. Also, a side note. If you can, sleep for at least seven hours every night so your mind can rest and properly store the information.
Check out: How to fall asleep when you’re not tired
In general, you should know by now that cramming everything in the last minute of the exam day will do you no good. Studying does take a lot of time and energy, but like everything else, if you take the time and work hard at it, you’ll succeed. So there you have it 10 easy tips on how to study well for exams without forgetting.