Q1: What Study Techniques To Use?
a. Active Recall:
Active Recall is a technique that involves asking ourselves questions instead of just memorising directly from notes 📝. We usually do this by using the toggle feature in Notion 👩💻; Before clicking the ▸ button, only the question would appear such that it allows you to recall the information first before knowing the answer after clicking the button.
why active recall works is because it forces your brain to pull the necessary information you store unconsciously when you study. Not all information must be kept, and sometimes your brain does just that- allowing you to study actively.
There are lots of active recall techniques you can use, such as Blurting (jotting down on scratch paper and discover the gaps in your knowledge), summarising the material in your own words, or teaching it to someone else.
b. Spaced Repetition:
Spaced Repetition is used together with Active Recall. It is essentially the key to defeat forgetfulness, since no one in this world can remember anything they learn once - unless they have photographic memory 📸 ! This study technique involves you to revise the material at specific intervals in order to retain the memory for a long time! Watch Ali Abdaal's video on spaced repetition to learn more 📽. ( We are humanly beating the forgetting curve by doing spaced repetition!)
Forgetting curve and the effect of spaced repetition. From "In defence of learning words in word pairs: But only when doing it the 'right' way!," by R. Waring, 2004. Copyright 2004 by Rob Waring
c. Rewrite notes:
Wait a sec 🛑! I DON'T mean you should rewrite/retype all the notes many times and exactly the same. By rewriting notes, I mean to open the syllabus, open textbook (e-book 💻 works too ofc!) and REWRITE the notes based on them. The purpose is to make the notes as concise and clear as possible, where only necessary topics are inside and It's essentially what you need to skim through/ memorise once near the exam. 🕊
d. Flashcards:
I found this technique particularly useful to memorise stuff that is generally difficult for you to retain. I definitely recommend Quizlet! It's easy to use and helpful, especially when you need a last-minute revision on a topic. ⏳
flashcards are particularly helpful for quickly memorising terms, definitions, vocabularies or reviewing mistakes from papers!
e. Practice makes perfect:
This method I cannot stress enough because of how important it is! Note that first time, questions are ALWAYS HARD to tackle ⚔️ , but as you practice, the question will get easier and easier! It might not be like that when you're reading this, but trust us; by practicing, you'll eventually get used to the questions and learn how to solve them instintively 💡. Here's what we can help: as the school semester progresses, remember to practice topics that you find challenging. Try topical past paper questions from Exammate! It helps you to organise the question by topic and provide the answer key along with it ✨.
Q2: are there any apps you use to overcome distractions?
Certainly! we used an app called Flora 🌱. It's essentially a study timer ⏱; you can set focus time (determine how many minutes you want to focus) and a break time. This app is particularly useful for high-level procrastinators who wanted to break the cycle as the timer can be set with no option of pausing, so if you stop, you KILL A TREE! 🌳
Remember, It's not always easy to focus for long periods of time, and It's perfectly fine 🤗. Take a short timed break, find your motivation (be it watching or drawing) and once the timer is over, put EVERYTHING DOWN and study! Engrave in your mindset the time to study and to play, so it can help build your discipline when it comes to studying. Goodluck! you can do it 🍀!
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