What students actually mean is that they have not found an easy and effective method of revision, which requires minimum effort for maximum reward. Unfortunately, that magical bullet does not exist, revision is laborious, hard work and boring – but so necessary.
Getting started
Revision works best when it is little and often.
It should be built into study habits from day one. Reviewing and revising each topic as they are learnt ensures that everything is properly understood and firmly stored in long term memory. If information has not been understood it cannot be retained.
Knowing what to revise is vital for success.
Download the subject specification this can then serve as a knowledge checklist. Rating topics and sub topics as red, amber or green (RAG rating) (green = secure knowledge, amber = OK, but needs a quick recap and red = needs a lot of work), helps to prioritise topics for revision.
There is no point wasting valuable revision time on ‘green’ topics, focus should be on red and amber.
Draw up a revision timetable
This needs to be realistic and to build in breaks. The average 16-year-old has an attention span of between 30-45 minutes so timetables should have short breaks (5 minutes roughly every half an hour), but this is obviously very personal some will be able to concentrate for longer and indeed need to as most exams are 2 hours long.
Use the expertise of your teachers and tutors
Ask them what they feel the best revision strategies are for their subject and individual students, they know you best.
Effective strategies
Everyone is different in what works best for them; I would advise trying lots of different strategies and see what is the best fit. However, revision needs to be active, simply re-reading notes and highlighting them will not be successful.
Exam paper practice is vital.
Download:
- Past papers
- Mark schemes
- Examiner’s reports.
Use them to understand what is required to be successful. Get used to the wording used in questions, many questions do repeat over the years with slight variations.
Most subjects will have a list of command words used in exam questions on their website. Command words are the words and phrases in an exam question that help you understand how to answer the question to get the best possible marks. So, words like analyse, compare or describe. Make sure you understand them.
Revise skills as well as content
Many students make the mistake of revising the content and neglecting the skills.
In most subjects these are the skills of application, applying your knowledge to novel scenarios and evaluation, the ability to critically assess and analyse information. The best way to practice these skills is by working through past paper questions and checking answers against the mark schemes.
Types of Revision
Revision can be really effective with friends as you can test each other and will have different areas of strengths and weaknesses. But you need to remain focused so that it does not simply become a social activity and an excuse to hang out.
Spaced Revision
- Choose a topic – use the specification and RAG rating to identify areas of weakness
- Review the topic.
- Transformation activity e.g. flash cards, posters, mind maps, Cornell notes etc.
- 2-hour break – might be revising another subject!
- Quick quiz – if less than 70% go back to step 2. Lots of online quizzes available in most subjects
- Exam questions, check using mark schemes
This is an effective strategy because you are testing whether the information has been transferred to your long-term memory.
Cornell Notes
Cornell notes can be an effective strategy and are an excellent skill to perfect for taking notes at university. It is a method for taking, summarising and organising notes and selecting key information. It was invented by Professor Walter Pauk of Cornell University in the 1950s.
This short video explains the process: –
Mind Maps
Are a great visual tool for revision. However, you must regularly interact with them by updating, rewriting, colour coding them etc. in order for them to be effective. They do not work for everyone, but if they do work for you there are a number of online versions you can download for free and then populate with your revision notes.
Folding Frenzy
Day 1 A3: Write all you notes on a topic in depth, you can include diagrams and pictures
Day 2 A4: Reread all your notes and condense them down to fit on one side of A4
Day 3 A5: Reread all your notes and condense them down to fit on one side of A5
Day 4 A6: Reread all your notes and condense them down to fit on one side of A6
It should get to the point where just a word of phrase will trigger all the information associated with it in your memory.
Flashcards
Making flashcards can be really helpful as they serve two purposes. The process of making the flashcards involves actively engaging with the material to be revised and the flashcards once made can be used to test knowledge and understanding. One side of the flashcard could be a question and the other the answer.
Summary
These are just a few suggestion of effective revision strategies. Try different ones and see what works for you, mix it up, different things work best for different subjects, there is no one size fits all.
Little and often works best, cramming is rarely effective.
Exam stress is real, but stress is the enemy of effective revision. Remember to take breaks, keep hydrated, eat healthy food and take regular exercise. Time off is important, take time to enjoy social activities and hobbies, balance is important to maintain good physical and mental health.
