5 Effective Study Techniques to CRACK your Next Exams

 Exams. We don't love them but they're inevitable and are there at every stage of life. Or at least that's what I've been told.

Anyway, if your current study technique is repeatedly reading your history textbook and hoping to somehow memorize when King Louis XVI was guillotined, then you'll probably find yourself with a huge amount of information and a ton of stress the day before the exam.

To successfully crack your exams, begin your new year with some useful study techniques that help you retain the most information. This post will give you a few tips on how to come up with a state-of-the-art strategy! 

1. The Pomodoro Technique

The Pomodoro technique is a time management method that really works. It wants you to work for 25 focused minutes with no distractions, no snacking and no talking. Once these 25 minutes are up, you can take a 5-minute break to freshen your mind. You can play with your pets (or siblings- they're basically the same!), go for a walk, talk to your friends & family, read, or anything else, that doesn't involve screens.

Then, after 4 sets of focused studying with short breaks, you can take a long break of 30 minutes at the end of an hour. This technique really works when you have a ton of work with a strict deadline.

2. The Feynman Technique

The Feynman technique is an efficient method of learning concepts quickly and works on the principle of explaining topics in your own words, to make them easier to understand for yourself. It wants you to explain the concepts in your own words, as if you were teaching someone else. Then you need to review what you've written to make sure there are no errors and simplify any complex terms to make them short and simple. This method is exceedingly useful for a particularly tricky chapter with a lot of dates and complicated terms.

3. The Leitner System

The Leitner system is based on flashcards which are useful when there are several specific facts in a chapter. Flashcards have questions on one side and the answers to those questions written in points, on the other. Writing out these cards will help in learning the information and quizzing yourself using these helps in reinforcement. 

This system wants you to keep your flashcards in different boxes to keep track of when you need to study each box. Every card first needs to be placed in Box 1, and if you get the answer to the question on that card right, you move to the next box. If you get it wrong, you either move it to a different box, or keep it in Box 1.

4. The SQ3R Method

This reading comprehension method helps students to identify and retain important information from their chapters. SQ3R is an acronym for the 5 steps of reading comprehension: 

• Survey: Speedread the chapter and take notes on headings, important facts or dates and diagrams.
• Question: Create questions based on the chapter's content, such as, what do I already know about this chapter?
• Read: Now, read the chapter thoroughly and begin looking for answers to the questions that you created.
• Recite: Read the chapter section by section and summarize what you just read in your own words. Try recalling the important points and answering questions from step 2.
• Review: After finishing the chapter, review it once again to fully understand it. Quiz yourself using the questions you created and re-read any difficult sections.

5. Mind Mapping

This method works really well for visual learners and can help your mind click and remember key concepts. First, write a word in the center of a blank page and then write any major ideas and concepts that are connected to that word. Mind-mapping your notes instead of writing them in a long and boring manner can also improve your reading comprehension skills. You can also try using a different color for each branch of the mind map and drawing pictures, if it helps.

I hope this post helps you study better and more efficiently!

Credits: 10 Effective Study Tips and Techniques to Try This Year | USAHS