A lot of people are so focused on getting the information into their heads, they don’t pay enough attention to keeping it there. And let’s face it, there’s no point in learning something unless you’ve then got it accessible to you later on.
Especially if you’re learning it in order to pass an exam and perhaps use the information in the future.
What’s the best way to hang on to what you’ve learned?
Practice accessing it.
i.e. retrieving it.
Recent research seems to indicate that it doesn’t even matter quite so much if your memory is perfectly preserved or not, as long as you follow this routine:
- Answer the test question you’ve devised for yourself, which by answering it, pulls the information out of the dark recesses of your brain, and into your awareness.
- Then, and only then, look at your revision notes to check if you did indeed remember everything you intended to.
Eh voila! Every time that memory is retrieved, especially if you had to work hard to do so, it becomes connected to new sensations and contexts. And the more connected it is, the easier it’ll be to recall another time, for example in an exam, or when you want to impress your teacher, an examiner or your girlfriend!
In most educational establishments, students are just left to get on with it, instead of being taught what they have to do to really learn stuff.
I’m on a mission to change all that, so as I develop Genius Material, using some fab, state of the art and addictive technology, I could really do with some advice and feedback from the very people who’ll be using it…
Teachers at school and uni, HR, people responsible for training and compliance in organisations who are spending a LOT of money getting staff through exams…
IT, Law, Accountancy, Medical, Military etc etc – maybe you know someone who’d be willing to give me a little of their time to enable me to develop what they actually need rather than my best guess?