Download Top 10 Memory Techniques-Notes

Memory techniques
So, open that uninspiring textbook... and here we go:
Get active……Get creative
Don’t just read the text over and over. That’ll never work. Let your brain play with
the material, in as many ways as you can. Make notes, figure out the key points and
how they link together. Drawing a spider diagram or mind map can help to clarify how
everything connects. Boil those endless paragraphs into nuggets of information. This
will help you to understand the subject in a deeper way than by just reading it. And
it’s enjoyable, which means you’ll be more energised...
Explain it to someone else...
If you can explain a concept to someone else and field any follow-up questions they
have, then you’ll know you’ve understood it. This also prompts your brain to work with
the material in a new way, which will help to lodge it in your long-term memory. And
if your friend asks you a question you can’t answer, how great to find that out before
the exam...
Test Yourself
Create ways of testing your knowledge as you go along. This forces your brain to
practise retrieving the information from its memory banks. If you’re sitting exams, get
your hands on as many past papers as possible, so that you can put your new
knowledge to the crucial test – do you know enough to convince an examiner?
Rehearse it
Your brain has a massive memory bank, but unlike a computer, it needs you to go over
new information several times for it to really sink in. Creating a new memory involves a
new pathway being laid down between brain cells, but this pathway will disappear unless
it’s strengthened by being thought back over many times. Look back over what you’ve
learned at the end of every study session to consolidate the memory. And have another
quick look the next day, week, and month. Otherwise all your hard study will slip
through your neurons like water through a sieve...
Sleep on it
This is the easy one. Learn the stuff, then go to bed. Or even just take a nap, not
during lessons though! Either way, your brain will rehearse the information but
without any effort from your conscious self... Studies show that recall really does
improve after you sleep and similarly, marks go down if you don’t get enough sleep.
More about what goes on in your brain while you’re learning, watch Meet Your Brain at:
www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/brainsmart/brain
Avoid Cramming
According to Bjork (2001), studying materials over a number of session's gives you
the time you need to adequately process the information. Research has shown that
students who study regularly remember the material far better than those who do
all of their studying in one marathon session.
Chunking
Information is organized in memory in related clusters. You can take advantage of this
by structuring and organizing the materials you are studying. Try grouping similar
concepts and terms together, or make an outline of your notes and textbook readings
to help group related concepts. Chunking breaks up long strings of information into
units or chunks. The resulting chunks are easier to commit to working memory than a
longer and uninterrupted string of information. Often students use Bullet points to
break up information.
Socialise
Study with your friends. Do a “text test” with them, exchanging short questions and
short answers. Students quizzing each other is often much more successful in
memorising for a test. However, make sure you stay focussed, as the social nature of
studying together can deteriorate into hanging out rather than studying, so try and
have a good mixture of fun and learning. In addition to the verbal and interactive
components of memorisation, another person’s perspective on what is important to
remember can be very useful.
Encourage deeper processing
Go beyond simple memorisation! Difficulty with Working Memory can occur because
you have merely heard or seen something without fully processing it. One strategy to
promote deeper processing is thinking aloud. Instead of reading text in your head, find
two or three main points to read out loud. If group studying, discuss these points
with other classmates. Practice this type of “talking aloud” to connect, reflect, and
deepen an understanding of the material you study. Discussion of what someone has
read or heard often stimulates more thinking about it than simply re-reading it.
Association or emotional attachment
Try to connect an emotion to something you want to remember. For example, if
you’re trying to remember information for a history test, consider how you might
have felt if you were in that setting and connect that emotion to what you’re trying
to remember. Studies suggest that if you can make a meaningful connection
emotionally to something, or attach a strongly held opinion to what you are trying
to remember, you are more likely to commit that information to memory.
Sometimes it might be useful to generate an emotional response, such as finding a
reason to be angry about a historical event or to think of something that is scary
about a scientific fact.