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You Are Here: Home - Newsletters - "Organized For A Living" - Article
If you are a student who is studying for an exam or if you need to learn some material for a presentation, you may be wondering what is the best way to review the material in order to REMEMBER it successfully. Is it best to study large chunks of the information at a time, or should you try to master small bits of it? Should you review the material again the next day? Or is it best to let a few days go by? Learning experts have proposed several different SCHEDULES for reviewing study materials, but the following is one that works well for most people.
SETTING UP A ROUTINE
First, study what you can thoroughly learn in a 40-minute period. During this time keep your mind actively ENGAGED in the material by making notes, asking yourself questions about it, speaking out loud, and making learning maps. Then take a five or ten minute break to do something completely different, preferably something which includes PHYSICAL exercise and deep breathing. After your ten-minute break, go back and review your original material and your written notes. Review for about five minutes. The next day review the material again for five minutes. A week later review it for five minutes. A month later review it for five minutes. If you need to remember the information longer, review it for five minutes after two months, and then again after six months.
WHY IT WORKS
Each time you repeat the same physical action, or review the same study material, there are CHEMICAL changes that take place at the synapses between your brain cells, making it easier for the signal to go through the next time you repeat that thought or action. That is why review and repetition help fix acquired skills and knowledge in your brain. People who have sustained some brain damage due to advancing age, brain injury, or because of alcohol or drug use may no longer have the ability to easily refresh their knowledge by quickly reviewing material again. These people may have to spend much more time and effort on reviewing material, and still have a lower rate of recall. For the majority of people however, the above schedule is a time-effective way to keep information easily AVAILABLE to your memory.
IMPROVE YOUR STUDY HABITS
When we are faced with a study project that seems exceptionally difficult and overwhelming, it can be difficult to maintain a high level of interest and MOTIVATION for the duration of the learning process. You can improve both your motivation and your performance by breaking up the project into smaller sections, and then giving yourself a series of well thought-out, well-timed REWARDS each time you complete one of the parts.
BITE SIZED IS BETTER
The first step is to break up the project into manageable CHUNKS. If you have a deadline looming, use this information to decide how much of the project to tackle at one time. Let�s say you have six weeks to master the content of a difficult text. Looking through the book you realize that if you study one chapter each night, you can get through the book in 28 days, leaving two weeks in which you can again review the material. With this knowledge you can PACE yourself. You know what your assignment is. You know how much you need to read every night. Concentrate on the immediate task at hand. You don�t need to feel overwhelmed by the entire book at one time.
GIVE YOURSELF A PAT ON THE BACK
Next, work out a system of rewards for yourself. Give yourself a series of small rewards each time you master one chapter, and a larger reward for completing the entire book. For rewards to work they must be IMMEDIATE, and personally meaningful to you. There is no point in rewarding yourself with a new fishing rod if you hate fishing. The reward should be PROPORTIONATE to the effort you have put into the work. Buying a new car as a reward for finishing the textbook is probably too much. Getting a gold star is probably too little. Take some time to think of rewards that will really inspire you. In general, you should avoid using rewards that involve food or money. Rewards don�t need to be MATERIAL objects if there is something else that would really motivate and inspire you. How about attending a special concert, or taking a special trip? You decide. Get creative and think of something that will spur you to take action.
DON'T WAIT
It�s very important that the reward take place soon after the work has been accomplished. This creates a sense of positive REINFORCEMENT. Give yourself a small reward every time you finish a small part of the job, and a bigger reward when the project is completed. If there is too long a gap between the activity and the reward, it will not have the effect of reinforcing the desired activity. After all, you wouldn�t train a dog by giving him a treat two days after he learned to roll over! You might not like being compared to a dog, but as silly as it sounds, our brain also responds to simple, positive reinforcement. Use this tendency of the brain to help yourself ACCOMPLISH more of what you want.
LOOKING INWARD
If you don�t believe in the concept of rewarding yourself for work you should be doing anyway, you don�t need to do it. But feel free to experiment to see what works for you. This technique might be very helpful. Besides motivating yourself with a series of external rewards, learn to motivate yourself INTERNALLY. Tell yourself you�re a good learner. Tell yourself you enjoy learning. Tell yourself you enjoy giving your brain a good work out. Congratulate yourself for your efforts. Tell yourself you love acquiring new knowledge. Be proud of yourself for the work you do to gain more knowledge. Don�t just say the words to yourself. Take the time to actually feel the sensations of PRIDE, happiness and accomplishment within you.
This article is from the new downloadable book by Royane Real titled "How You Can Be Smarter -- Use Your Brain to Learn Faster, Remember Better and Be More Creative". Royane Real is the author of several excellent downloadable ebooks including "How to Be Smarter" and "Your Guide to Finding Friends, Making Friends and Keeping Friends". You may visit her website at www.royanereal.com. Want to receive these kind of articles via e-mail each month? Sign up for a free subscription. Click here to return to "Organized For A Living" -- November 2005... Add this page to your Bookmarks!
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