Best revision techniques for students
Best Revision Techniques for Students
Preparing for your exams can be stressful, but with the right planning and revision techniques, you can feel more confident walking into the exam hall this year.
Dealing with exam stress
It’s normal to feel a bit of pressure during exam season - it’s only natural to want to perform your best. But sometimes, a high level of stress can hinder your ability to retain information effectively, and this can impact your exam success.
One of the best ways to handle exam stress is by preparing yourself as best as possible. Part of this prep is adopting thorough revision techniques. Before we explore the best revision techniques for students nowadays, let’s first take a look at what exam stress looks like and how you can manage it.
What does exam stress look like?
Exam stress can look different for every student, but there are some common signs, such as:
● Feeling anxious
● Struggling to concentrate
● Not sleeping well
● Getting irritable or angry
● Changes in eating habits
● Losing interest in hobbies
● Feeling physically unwell - like getting headaches or feeling nauseous
● Excessive worrying about the future
Stress is your body's natural reaction to pressure, and although it can help you focus in the moment, it can also feel overwhelming sometimes.
Tips for dealing with stress during exams
There are a couple of things you can do to manage your stress during exams:
● Practice relaxation techniques every day, such as yoga, meditation or regularly
taking deep breaths
● Eat well and stay hydrated: good nutrition plays an important role in regulating your
stress hormones
● Exercise regularly even if it’s taking a walk and getting some fresh air
If you’re experiencing regular, overwhelming panic attacks or prolonged symptoms of stress, we recommend speaking to a medical professional as soon as possible. You could try chatting with your GP, texting Shout for support, completing a self-referral through the NHS or calling 111 for non-emergencies.
Another way to deal with stress during exams is to prepare as far in advance as possible. By adopting effective revision techniques as well, you can make the most of your prep.
Revision techniques
When it comes to nailing your revision techniques, don’t be afraid to test a few to find out what works for you. To suit the kind of learner you are, there are passive and active revision techniques.
● Active revision techniques consist of testing your memory
● Passive revision techniques are typically just reading and writing
Let’s take a look at some of the most popular revision techniques for students.
Flashcards
Flashcards are one way of revising bite-size pieces of information. On one side of the card, you write the question or key term, and on the other side is the answer, fact or definition.
As an active revision technique, you can shuffle and use flashcards at random to test your knowledge or get a friend involved to test you. They’re easy to carry around, and you can jump into revising in a flash.
Study groups
Getting a group together to study can be really beneficial and highly motivating. You can take turns testing one another and helping each other break down and understand the work.
Make sure to choose the right people to study with - you don’t want anybody who might distract you.
Pomodoro method
The Pomodoro method is an effective time management trick you can include in your suite of revision techniques. It typically involves revising for 25 minutes and then resting for 10 minutes. You then repeat these intervals four times before taking a longer break or moving on to a different topic.
Fun fact: ‘Pomodoro’ means tomato in Italian and was the shape of the kitchen timer Francesco Cirillo used when he started the Pomodoro technique.
Memory techniques
Training your memory when revising is one of the best ways to retain information and forms part of effective active revision techniques. Since everyone learns differently, figuring out which memory technique works best for you is a good start.
You can create a ‘memory journey’ by linking information to certain items or landmarks to create a well-known journey you can travel through when revising.
Alternatively, you could use visual or word mnemonics. For a visual mnemonic, you create an image to help you remember certain pieces of information.
Similarly, with a word mnemonic, you can associate certain bits of information with a single word or sentence - there are no limits on creativity so feel free to create a song or rap.
Practice papers
If you have access to old exam papers relevant to the subject you’re revising, then you can use them to test your knowledge. Completing past papers offers a realistic run-through of what your exam might look like. Plus, you can practice finishing the exam paper in an allocated time to prepare even better.
Revision tips for students
The best revision techniques for students often depend on their unique studying style. Perhaps you’re a visual learner, where mindmaps and diagrams are an effective way to retain information, or you may like just reading and writing everything out on flashcards, for example.
Another way to prepare for your exams is to create a revision timetable. This timetable can map out when you’ll revise and what exactly you’ll cover - simplifying the process so you can focus better.
Whatever revision techniques work for you, remember to trust in your ability and give your exams your best effort.
At iQ Student Accommodation, we understand how important a serene study environment is. That’s why many of our locations have dedicated study spaces, including our building in Shoreditch, London. Take a look around – you could even take a 360° tour online.
