It’s that time of year that every student loves to hate, the Christmas holidays. You get two weeks off to spend time with your family and friends and indulge in the festive celebrations. However, January fast approaches, exam season.
Everyone learns differently and it is important that you engage with the best revision strategy for you. Advancements in technology have provided us with new and innovative ways to revise, through video content or online quizzes.
The most effective way to revise is to find out what type of learner you are through various online quizzes. This increases the likelihood of you retaining all of the information that you revise, thus getting better exam results.
Old But Gold Revision Strategies
Quizzing
This method of revising has been around for centuries, a robust revision strategy that relies on students testing their own knowledge and improving their memory. Create your own questions and answers and use them to test yourself, the results of your quiz will show you the gaps in your knowledge.
A good tactic to get the most out of quizzes is to come up with questions that have similar answers, ensuring that you have to focus more to get the correct answer. Try revising with friends to have more fun, or doing an online quiz to save yourself time.
Flashcards
Flashcards are for testing what you know, not summarising.
- On the front of the card, write a key term or question.
- On the back of the card, answer that question or write a definition for the term.
- Try to guess the answer/definition on the front before checking the answer on the back.
Use this technique in conjunction with another revision strategy to massively increase your retention of any topic. Flashcards are useful for learning the relationship between two pieces of information.
Mind Maps
A tool that boosts your memory and makes studying more creative and enjoyable. A mind map is a diagram that represents all the information you need to learn, present or analyse in a visual way.
Mind maps allow you to organise information better visually, they encourage idea generation, allow organisation of masses of information and they will encourage you to focus on the ideas and facts that really matter.
New Revision Strategies
Watch Youtube Tutorials
300 hours of video are uploaded to Youtube every minute, therefore it provides a huge opportunity for educational content. There are thousands of educational walkthroughs that pretty much cover all topics, delivered in an engaging way. Youtube videos provide you with a personal tutor at whatever time is convenient for you. Use the hashtag #education to find the videos.
Make PowerPoint Presentations
This technique uses your creative skills a bit more, and it allows you to present it as many times as you want, so it is retained in your memory better. Why not present it to family and friends to showcase your amazing work?
Make Memes
Who doesn’t love laughing at relatable memes? In this modern world, with so much free software, have a try at creating funny and educational memes that link to your revision. The jokes will be memorable and you will retain it better.
Educational Apps
The top 5 best revision apps for students:
GCSEPod – Education on Demand – create mind maps and flashcard, then watch them back to retain your knowledge.
Gojimo – provides access to over 40,000 practice questions for free, it tracks progress, strengths, and weaknesses across each topic.
Quizlet – A study and flashcard app, allows you to create quizzes with your own information.
BBC Bitesize – for 14-16 years olds, it helps students break their revision into manageable “bite-sized” chunks, aiding planning and time management.
Keep – All about organisation, reminders, and checklists.
Rap it?
Love listening to Stormzy? Professor Green? Alex from Glasto?
This revision tactic will excite even the most boring topics, who doesn’t want to rap about Pythagoras theorem? Have fun while revising is the key to success in exams.
Tips for Exam Revision
- Start early
- Make a revision timetable
- Give yourself regular breaks
- Revise with friends
- Change up your revision strategies
Most importantly, do not let exam results define who you are. Everyone has different strengths and it is important to follow your passion.