Many students find it really difficult to cope with the memorisation that can be needed for tests and exams. Of course you can’t just rote learn and regurgitate, you need to be able to apply the skills of what you have learnt. However there is also a certain amount of memorisation of content, formulas and definitions for example that will be necessary. So how can students make this process easier?

• Make your notes as brain-friendly as possible, point form, tables, diagrams and no big long sentences or paragraphs.
• Start the memorisation process of your notes early, don’t wait until just before the test or examination.
• Memorisation involves testing yourself over and over and over and over. So read a section, then see what you can say or write down without looking. Then go back and see what you got wrong or didn’t know. Put a pencil mark next to these bits.
• Now focus on the bits you didn’t know. Say them out loud, repeat them to yourself, write them down a few times.
• Then test yourself on those bits again and see if you remembered more this time.
• Do this over and over and over again. Then do it one more time again.
• Make flashcards or use a flashcard App on your phone to create flashcards on the parts you find hard to remember. Review these every day before the test.
• Make a list of the key concepts you find hard to learn and each night read through them just before you go to sleep and first thing when you wake up as these are powerful memory times.
• Do lots of practise questions without looking at your notes or the answers to see if you can a) remember and b) apply the information. Review the things you did not remember again.
• Your job is to keep testing yourself in order to find out which bits have not stuck in your memory yet so you can review these until they do.

Learn more this year about how to improve your results and be more efficient and effective with your schoolwork by working through the units on www.studyskillshandbook.com.au . Our school’s access details are:

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Sarah Cooke

Careers Advisor