h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I find it always helps to take 2 or 3 sources on the same subject(Books, notes, etc). And try and rewrite it into your own version, which isn't just copies of bits of the other 2 or 3. Sometimes it's not possible, but the attempt helps to clearly frame it in the mind.

Take a break every 20-25 minutes.

Some music without lyrics helps (film scores, etc), but not music with lyrics.

In technical subjects, look through the notes and find and note every point where there are wordy explainations, these are usually the basis for wordy questions in the exam.

Create examples, analogies and comparisons of your own to real life to help understanding.

Well, I find these help me.

Researcher PSG

Reading is good. Always read around the subject to get a more thorough learning. A teacher gave us a completely mis-leading summary of Deborah Tannen's work on 'Language and Gender' this year, I read her book and its all completely different.

That is typical of a certain class of lecturer. I had one that explained a complex electronic idea, so badly, it took me ages to write my own version (as I suggest) from the books, and when I got it I thought "Why didn't you just say that!?" as it turned out to be easy.

I have just remembered one thing I used during my GCSE's, I found a song that stuck in my head, in a really annoying way, the X files theme. And as it is in 4 repeating sections, I read aloud some equation triangles for physics along with it, 1 per section, V A R [Voltage Amps Resistance], P V A [Power Voltage Resistance],
E P T [Energy Power Time, I think, it has been a while], C A T [Charge Amps Time, I think]. So every time I heard the song I remembered all 4 equations, so in the exam all I had to do was as soon as the exam started was recall the song, and write the equations on the scrap paper.
And I got an A!
I learned later it was because I was encoding it with vision, with sound, and associating it with a strong memory trace.

Researcher PSG

Researcher PSG

I don't go in for those memory-association things... (ROY G. BIV and all [though I've heard that he's lost an eye now, as Indigo is no longer considered]). I either learnt the reasoning behind the equation, or just didn't learn it at all.

But then I didn't get the A* I was predicted, just an A..

I remember there was some Science thing that you had to figure out by holding your hand in some weird position (the 'left hand rule' or summin'), so there was all these people in the exam hall doing funny things with their fingers.. (no not that!)

The left hand rule is about determining current direction, I think, in physics.

Sorry to be a smart Alec, but the left hand rule is about magnetism as used in electric motors.
Thumb direction - magnetic force
first finger - current
second finger - direction of magnetism from magnet
And each is at right angles to the other, I think that is how it goes.

Researcher PSG

Hey - I got the current bit right, didn't I?

Alright, I'll condone your mark this semester.

The best idea....study all through the semester...that way the "CRAM" is a refresher course....this idea increses in logic the farther you get into you college career....if you are a freshman....you wont be good at this, but....as a senior...it will come easier....All the best. - GTR

I didn't learn it on the grounds that it looks stupid and I could never get my head around it anyway. You were given diagrams in books which were suppossed to represent the directions, but drawing in 3D on 2D paper is very difficult.

For science based courses: my tip is problems problems problems. You can't do too many problems, and often working through problems is a great way to understand what they were blathering on about in the book. It's also one of the best ways to cement equations in your head, and after all, since your memory of those equations will more often than not be tested in a problem rather than in a request to state it, you're doing yourself a favour by starting off there, anyway.

Here's my other tip. Read for understanding. You can read something and make notes about it ad nauseum, but if all you do is memorise notes you don't understand, you might as well never have bothered. (Unless all you have to do is recite the book, then just go for it). If you work through the notes/text until you really understand what they are talking about the FIRST time, while it's a very time-consuming way to read your notes, it saves you time in the long run. Also, if you can, if the texts give you sample problems, try and use what you just read to work out the answer yourself, before looking at how they did it. Because I personally take so much more in by working through something than watching somebody else do it.

Your quite right, people think they should memorise text rather than understand it, and it's completely the wrong way to go.
At the top I say how I increase my understanding by taking the view from several sources on a subject and put it in my own words.

But I also think it is useful to have little memory tricks to help you access your knowledge, associate it with a song, or with a bit of a comedy program [believe me it's possible].

Doing problems is a good method, but it as with everything it is only as good as the use it's put to. If you waste time doing problems on a bit your fine with, you could fall on your face if they ask on other things.

Researcher PSG

I guess this ties up several things, but the best way to advoid exam stress is to revise really well. The best way to get a good mark is also to revise, so that makes sence?
You are right, multiple sources are essential, as is multiple ways of revisiong, I put some notes on tape for my A levels, and listen to them, read others, have others on my computer screen. Revision should start on the first day of the course, which should take a lot of stress out of the few revision weeks at end of the course. understanding the logic behind stuff rather than hjust memorising it, that way it becomes second nature, rather than something you can't remember very well remember, and probably can't remember at all after the exam.Oh; never do any more than about 30 minutes revision at a time; but I do read for up to an hour, when reading chapters of books/papers etc. But no more than half an hour reading notes I have taken, or rewritting notes; which is a good way, write, rewrite, and rewrite again, eventually even the boaring stuff sticks in.

Also past papers are very useful, as an recent exam of mine proved.
There was a few questions I didn't know on the past paper, I found out the answers, and by luck the questions turned up again in my exam.

Yeah, I would have said that, had I remembered. I used to practise questions an awful lot from past papers. I found it a good idea to revise an area from an exam-essay title, and then time how long it took me to write an answer, and see how good my answer was. Some lectureres were very helpful, and would even mark attempts at questions on past papers, which was handy. But I always tried to avoid just revision from past papers, as the areas looked at in lectures gives an idea as to what is being concentrated on that particular year. Oh, and its a good idea to find out if the exam format, or lecturers for a course have changed, so as to know how relivent past papers are going to be to the exam you are about to do.

My Uni is quite good about exam format changes, they tell you and give you an example paper of the new format.
Your right, I wasn't advocating just revising the past paper, more like look at the sort of questions they ask, and what aspects of the course they ask them on. And also use them for dry runs.
It was just pure luck a couple of questions recurred, and I happened to remember the answer from the past paper.

Researcher PSG

I had an entire paper repeated once!

I think some, if not most of my lectureres on my BSc were lazzy; on at least two occasions the paper for the exam was identical to one of the past papers over the last three years!!! Which made it easy, not that I was complaining!!

shhh!
We probably better not mention this, or they might be forced to come up with entirely new exams.