Ms. D is a first-year university student, studying a medical subject. She never skips class. She gives her focus in class. A week before the exam, she would study intensively with all her effort. However, during the first-semester exam, facing the many questions in the exam, she couldn’t write down anything she had learned. After that, she sought help from her secondary school biology teacher, who reminded her to resurrect two revision methods she used in secondary school. As a result, by the second semester, her grades improved. What is the secret?
As new knowledge enters the brain, whether through lectures or textbooks, it dissipates rapidly within the next twenty-four hours. More than half would be forgotten in that period, and the rest would fade out with time. Therefore, you must revise as soon as possible after class. There are two keys to achieving optimal effectiveness: The first is to space out the revision time systematically. Let’s say you have to memorize a section of lyrics in a new song and recall it after seven days. Would you listen to this section four times in a row today? Or would you listen to it once before bed for four days? The latter approach would produce a higher chance of success.
The second way is to retrieve the memory in your mind as you revise (retrieval practice), not just read what you’ve learned. This means giving yourself revision exercises. The more times a memory is retrieved from the mind, the stronger it becomes.
During Form 5 and 6, for biology class, Ms. D followed the teacher’s instructions and read through the class notes the same day after class (not the next day). About three days later, she would take out this note and look at it again. One week later, she would do some revision exercises on related topics. Every month, the teacher would give a quiz covering what has been taught in the past month. Maintaining these two good habits of revision after class requires self-discipline. The good news is that studying hard according to the laws of brain functioning will definitely pay off.
Written by: Dr. William Chui
Originally posted on: HKEJ Health
Translated by: Cheuk Long Chan
