This is not taught in school: how to learn new information so that it stays with you for a long time?
The start of the school year is almost here, and we decided to inspire you. Change up your usual study routine and introduce better memory techniques into the process. Down with cramming – give a conscious approach
Effective: Clarifying Survey
A method whose purpose is to understand the background, causes, and structure of an event. Instead of studying bare facts, you need to ask clarifying, open-ended questions (that is, those that cannot be answered with “yes” or “no”) that will reveal the essence of the event.
For example, we have a fact – “The Earth makes a full revolution around the Sun in 1 year.” Asking questions:
- Why does the Earth complete a revolution around the Sun in 1 year?
- How does the Earth make a full revolution around the Sun in 1 year?
- How long does it take for the Earth to complete a revolution around the Sun?
By answering these questions, you will build a web of associative answers in your head that will give a complete picture of the phenomenon.
Effective: Self-Explanation
This method also asks you to answer a lot of questions to get to the bottom of the problem. However, self-explanation works better with larger topics: we try to find relationships and links not in external resources but within the phenomenon itself.
You must answer questions gradually and refute previous answers with any new information. From answer to answer you will go further and further towards what can be called the truth.
During job interviews where abstract thinking is required, you are often asked a question that is meant to demonstrate the logic of your reasoning. For example, they ask you: “I threw a book into the water. How quickly will it reach the bottom? This is what your chain of reasoning through self-explanation looks like:
- What information do I need to understand the problem? (book weight, book volume, water depth)
- Where can I find this information? (on the Internet or from general knowledge. Let’s assume that the readings are average – a book weighing a kilogram and a lake 100 meters deep)
- Has anyone already solved this problem? (yes, there are many physics problems on this topic with ready-made equations)
- Is all the information I have accurate? (for example, will the density or salinity of the water affect the rate of fall? If so, then we need to go back to the beginning)
- What is the next step? (collect all more or less specific information and calculate)
- Does this sound logical? (look at your final answer and calculations from afar and think about how plausible it is)
This method also perfectly helps to structure the composition of your own answer. For example, you need to write a long essay on the topic “The Fall of the Roman Empire.” We ask ourselves questions:
- What information do I need to understand the problem? (history of the Roman Empire)
- Where can I find this information? (in textbooks, the Internet, videos)
- Has anyone already solved this problem? (yes, different authors have several theories about the fall of the Roman Empire)
- Do I have all the information I need? (yes, but I can take a manual from a friend or consult with a teacher)
- What is the next step? (collect all information and distribute by points)
- Does this sound logical? (quite right, that’s how reports are written)
Effective: Tests
Yes, those multiple-choice quizzes you hate actually turn out to be a good way to study the material. But it is important to consider a few points. Firstly, it is not necessary to conduct tests on a large topic – there is a chance of getting confused and lost. It’s better to do small tests on small topics.
Secondly, choose tests not with multiple-choice answers, but with free reasoning. This way you stay within the criteria and give a clear answer, but still use your imagination and memory. This strategy can also be applied outside the classroom, as seen in the live betting advantages where strategic thinking and quick decision-making are crucial.
You don’t have to write tests: you can work with cards, play quizzes with friends, draw cards with open-ended questions, and fill them out as you study.
Effective: Time Distribution
Research has proven that the time spent learning accounts for 10-20% of the time we will remember this information. If you want to know something throughout the year, you need to return to the materials every month. To remember a topic for five years, you will need to repeat it every 6 months, or every 12-24 hours for a week.
Therefore, the best way to remember something is to “spread” the repetition of material and new knowledge over time. At the same time, consider how long you will need the knowledge. You will prepare for the secondary exam at university by simply repeating weekly lectures and 3-4 days of intensive study before the exam.
But if this is a specialized subject with which your future profession is connected, you will have to constantly update your knowledge. However, all scientists agree on one thing: cramming the night before an exam will not leave you with knowledge in your head.
Effective: Practice Alternation
We have always been told that it is better to study tickets in thematic blocks. It turns out that the opposite is true: the more varied the topics, the more effective the memorization. Of course, within the same discipline: it is unlikely that you will be able to learn musical notation and traffic rules together.
By looking at a subject from different angles and answering unrelated questions, the brain itself begins to “bridge” between topics and draw parallels. Accordingly, you will remember more, and the information will be more voluminous than when memorizing one thematic block.
Interleaving practice works especially well on cognitive tasks (such as math) and practical skills (sewing, and playing the guitar).