Please feel free to share this post with students if you feel it is helpful! They should choose 1 or 2 options to prepare for their exams. Just like any habit, it takes a little time to adjust their study practice and have it feel comfortable.
Cramming & Studying Notes
Let's talk about two study strategies that are favorites of students, and why they are less effective:
Cramming
Research has shown that cramming is not an effective study strategy for educators' long-term goals - students mastering and remembering the material. We know that students will need this knowledge for their future school endeavors. Unfortunately, cramming has some benefit when the goal is getting a better grade on a quiz or test. But, the Ebbinghaus curve tells us that information learned in this way will soon be lost, and this loss negatively impacts students in the next unit or year of their course! At some point for many, this strategy becomes unusable due to the vast amount of material being covered in college & grad school courses.
Studying Notes & the Textbook
You may be surprised that looking over your notes and re-reading the textbook aren't found on the list of effective study methods. Both of these activities have proven to have little value when students are trying to learn the material. Reviewing notes and textbooks are believed to be ineffective for several reasons:
Last but not least, a very simple blog post by a college student on how to focus when studying for finals!
- Stuffing information into your brain isn't the way your brain wants to think. Using a Retrieval practice strategy pulling information from the brain is far more effective!
- Too much time is spent going over material you already know, and not enough on the material yet acquired.
Last but not least, a very simple blog post by a college student on how to focus when studying for finals!
Below are tips for students to follow, or you to help:
When to Study
Spaced Practice - Top Study Strategy!
Spaced practice(1) refers to studying material over a period of time. If you are going to prepare for a test for 3 hours, it is much better to study for one hour over 3 days than study in a single 3-hour chunk! Spaced Practice is the exact opposite of cramming!
Spaced Practice, along with Retrieval Practice, are the top two study strategies that show the most positive impact on learning!
Spaced Practice, along with Retrieval Practice, are the top two study strategies that show the most positive impact on learning!
Teacher action:
If you are holding review session(s) or providing review documents, structure them so students space out their review.
Student action:
Don't Procrastinate!
Plan your study time for each subject several weeks in advance, and work your plan. Note that this is in addition to any homework assigned by your teacher.
Sleep works magic for learning!
Jenkins & Dallenbach ran an experiment asking subjects to learn nonsense syllables, then tested them on the knowledge 1, 2, 4, or 8 hours later. The test was run when subjects were both busy and asleep between tests. Subjects did much better when they slept between tests, indicating that being busy had 'interfered' with their learning!
Immediate Review
Review course material as soon as possible after a class. We forget most of what we learn as soon as we learn it, so reinforcing material soon after helps cement it in our brain. (Better yet, use a Retrieval Practice Method by writing down/sketching everything you remember from the class!)
The Ebbinghaus Curve hypothesizes we forget much of what we learn soon after we learn it. In the Bahrick Study, three groups of people were tested on their Spanish knowledge. Group 1 had just finished taking Spanish, Group 2 had taken Spanish 2-3 years ago, and Group 3 had taken Spanish 40-50 years previously. Interestingly, Group 1 did much better than Group 2, but Group 2 and Group 3 performed about the same, even though the number of years since taking Spanish differed significantly.
Student action:
Study right before bed and right when you wake up. Do a last minute review!
Immediate Review
Review course material as soon as possible after a class. We forget most of what we learn as soon as we learn it, so reinforcing material soon after helps cement it in our brain. (Better yet, use a Retrieval Practice Method by writing down/sketching everything you remember from the class!)The Ebbinghaus Curve hypothesizes we forget much of what we learn soon after we learn it. In the Bahrick Study, three groups of people were tested on their Spanish knowledge. Group 1 had just finished taking Spanish, Group 2 had taken Spanish 2-3 years ago, and Group 3 had taken Spanish 40-50 years previously. Interestingly, Group 1 did much better than Group 2, but Group 2 and Group 3 performed about the same, even though the number of years since taking Spanish differed significantly.
Student action:
Review class notes or write down/sketch everything you remember during a free block, Directed Study, lunch, or after school. This will help cement the information in your brain!
What to Study
Interleaving
Interleaving(1)* and Spaced Practice are related. If Spaced Practice defines when you study, Interleaving defines WHAT you study. Research studies show increased learning if you study a topic actively for a period of time and then switch to a different topic. The topic can be within the same class - for example, you were studying World War I, and now you move to World War II. In math classes, rather than practicing problems of one specific type, practicing on a mix of problems is more effective. Or it can be across disciplines - you were studying World War I and you begin studying Biology for 20 minutes!
Scientists believe this strategy works because of the 'compare and contrast' work your brain does, allowing the information to be more clearly defined.
My husband introduced me to an effective strategy I have been using at home. Set a timer for 25 minutes, focus on your task, then take a 5-minute break. This strategy might dovetail nicely with Interleaving study topics!
Scientists believe this strategy works because of the 'compare and contrast' work your brain does, allowing the information to be more clearly defined.
My husband introduced me to an effective strategy I have been using at home. Set a timer for 25 minutes, focus on your task, then take a 5-minute break. This strategy might dovetail nicely with Interleaving study topics!
Student Action:
Mix it up! Your brain will learn better when you concentrate on a topic for a specific period of time, and then switch to a different topic! Cognitive Neurologists believe this Interleaving helps your brain make better connections that stay with you longer!
How to Study
Retrieval Practice - Top Study Strategy
Retrieval Practice is thinking about everything you know about a word, topic, or lesson and articulating that in some way. You take the information you can remember and pull it out of your brain - the way your brain really wants to learn! (The opposite of reviewing notes or the textbook and trying to 'stuff' the knowledge into your brain!)
With Retrieval practice, 'more pain, more gain' is true. 'The harder the practice, the better it is for long-term learning.'(2). The more connections to a student's experience and previously learned material, the better you will remember the material.
With Retrieval practice, 'more pain, more gain' is true. 'The harder the practice, the better it is for long-term learning.'(2). The more connections to a student's experience and previously learned material, the better you will remember the material.
Teacher Action:
If you are holding review session(s) or providing review documents, incorporate places for students to write everything they can remember about the topic. Encourage them to not only write but create images, tables, whatever else visually helps them with learning (Dual coding theory.)
Student Action:
Some examples of retrieval practice include writing down everything you know, sketching a diagram and adding text about the diagram, taking practice tests, or quizzing friends about class material.
When using flashcards:
When using flashcards:
- Write down the answers - don't check the answers the first time through! Try to think about what the answer is!
- Go through the flashcard deck at least once (some Cognitive Scientists recommend 3 times) before you eliminate a flashcard.
- Change the order of the flashcards!
- Primacy (first) and Regency (last) effects state we tend to remember items at the beginning and end and not much in the middle! Changing the order helps with memory!
Active Listening, Think about Meaning, & Connect to other info
Think about the meaning of the material (Elaborative Rehearsal) rather than simple mindless repetition (Maintenance Rehearsal). Craik and Tluving's Study asked subjects for words to fill in the following sentences:
1. Is _________ printed in capital or lower case letters?
2. Does ____________rhyme with puck?
3. Does the word fit into the sentence: 'I saw a ______________ in the pond yesterday.
Words chosen in question 3 format were remembered better because subjects were thinking about the meaning or context of the word.
Connect the new information to already acquired information from class or your own experience. This activates the concept, which helps you understand and remember the material.
Student action:
Actively listen in class. Try to think about how this material relates to previously learned material and your personal experience. Think about the meaning of the material, don't just look at the word or your notes.
Context-Dependent Memory
Reproducing the original context where the material was learned can facilitate retrieval of the information. In the Schab study, two groups learned the same word list. Group 1 had the smell of chocolate in the room, while Group 2 did not. Both groups were then given a test with the smell of chocolate in the room. Group 1 performed significantly better than Group 2.
Student action:
Participate in an action while studying that can be replicated while taking the test. Listening to music, smelling an orange, drinking the same drink, or picturing the room you studied in can all help to activate your memory!
Eat Fat & Sugar:
Whoa! When was the last time you were told eat fat and sugar? But, scientists do believe the traditional big breakfast with eggs, bacon, pancakes, and syrup provides your brain with needed chemicals for brain power. Fat is needed for optimum brain function, and sugar glucose facilitates memory. In the Gold study, two groups listened to a taped passage. Group 1 drank lemonade with sugar, Group 2 drank lemonade with sugar substitute. Group 1 performed significantly better on the test.
Student Action:
Enjoy your free pass to fat & sugar for the day. (Note: chocolate provides fat, sugar, and a mood boost!)
Dual Coding
When students work with images and text together that are related, powerful connections are made in the brain. Images and text are actually processed by different parts of the brain. Working on both together builds two (or dual) neural paths, giving you access to the material through either path - visual or text!
As teachers, we understand this intuitively. This is one of the reasons we spend so much time on Flipcharts and Slides adding images and simulations!
As teachers, we understand this intuitively. This is one of the reasons we spend so much time on Flipcharts and Slides adding images and simulations!
Teacher action:
Provide students with images from your course content they can annotate by labeling, drawing a process, or add detail to.
Student action:
Draw your own or find images in your course materials or online that support your learning for the test. Annotate or label the image with pertinent information! Google Drawing is a great tool to do this digitally, especially if you are working with content that has intricate images (the human body for example!).
I hope you found this post interesting & helpful. If you share my fascination with learning and the brain, The Learning Scientist website, and podcast (I listen in the car on my way to CCHS!) are great resources. If you were interested in more information about Retrieval Practice in specific, Retrieval Practice.org provides lots of information!
(1) The Learning Scientists Podcast - Episode 14. How Students can Use Spacing & Retrieval Practice
(2)Retrieval Practice.org, Why it Works.
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