Reading/Test-Taking
If you get stuck on a test question and have no idea how to answer, you should do this.
What is circle it and/or move on?
This memorization strategy involves writing the question/word on one side of a notecard and the answer/definition on the other and testing yourself or having someone test you
What are flashcards?
While possibly effective in the short term, this way of studying results in information being forgotten right after the assessment.
What is cramming?
When taking notes off of slides, you should aim to get down this rather than copy down the slide vertatim.
What is the main idea?
What is procrastination?
When you first receive a test or quiz, you should do this in order to give your mind some context about what to expect.
What is read through the questions?
One of the "Big Six", this strategy is the umbrella term for recalling information from memory in a variety of ways (flashcards, braindumping, Quizlet)
What is retrieval practice?
This strategy, part of the The Big Six, involves scheduling shorter study sessions a day or so apart rather than one or two long sessions.
What is spaced practice?
After taking class notes, a good way to review is to do this using different highlighters or pens for questions, conclusions, and facts.
What is color coding?
What we end up having to do before a test if we don't schedule our studying effectively.
What is cramming?
Doing this in the margins or top of the test when you first receive it takes some burden off of your working memory.
What is writing down memorized information you need to know for the test?
This memory technique uses a model of a familiar place and assigns elements you want to memorize to a specific room or location.
What is the memory palace?
This study strategy involves alternating between different topics or subjects in a single study session.
What is interleaving?
When taking lecture notes, aim to write down these instead of trying to get each word down precisely.
What are questions and conclusions?
The most commonly reported and most ineffective method of "studying"
Before reading a text, doing this gives you context for what you are about to read and makes understanding the reading more likely.
What is reading the chapter headings/captions/any questions at the end?
This kind of memory is known as your mental workspace or "desk".
What is working memory?
This Big Six study strategy involves asking and answering questions about a topic and making connections between topics.
What are Cornell Notes?
Using effective study strategies like the Big Six will likely feel this way at first.
What is harder/more difficult?
What is process of elimination?
Sleep and retrieval practice are necessary to move information from working memory into this.
What is long term memory?
The Big Six Strategy of Dual Coding involves combining words with these.
What are pictures/visuals?
Teachers will often do this when they want students to write down something they have said (and the answer is not "write this down").
What is repeat?
What is anxiety/fight or flight/caring too much?