Stavya Week 15: Memorization Techniques
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The standard method that I have stuck to my whole life for memorization has been reading information again and again until I think I will finally be able to remember it. AP exams are coming up in May, so I wanted to learn a bit about how I could improve my learning approach over these next few weeks through the use of more effective memorization techniques.
According to this article published by the Learning Center of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, one effective memorization technique is linking the information you learn to something else. For example, if you have to remember a specific number, such as the boiling point of water (212 degrees Fahrenheit), you could link it to a number you are familiar with, such as the first three digits of your friend’s phone number. This works especially well because it leverages the fact that our brains are wired in such a way that all information is linked together. Therefore, if we manually try to link new information to old information, there is a much better chance that we will remember it.
Another technique is interleaving. An example of this technique would be studying for a chemistry test you have coming up for 20 minutes, immediately switching to the math test that you also have to study for, going back to studying for your chemistry test, and so on. The reason that interleaving is so effective is because it forces you to go back to things you previously learned after a short period of time, which helps strengthen memory associations. The idea of mixing in practice with other subjects additionally makes interleaving a highly time-efficient technique.
Lastly, a technique that I found especially interesting was sleeping right after learning. I have noticed that I am always able to remember information better after reviewing it right before sleeping: it feels so fresh in my head after waking up. The reason for this is that our brains are extremely active, even when we are sleeping. In fact, our brains make more memory associations while we are sleeping than while we are awake.
I’m sure a lot of you are also looking for better ways to retain the information that you learn, so I hope you try these techniques on your own while studying for AP exams and see if they work for you.
Hi Stavya! I will definitely try all of these techniques while studying for my AP exams and future tests. I always use the first technique that you describe when studying; relating information to other weird things I know helps me a lot. The tip that I find the most interesting is interleaving. Often times, like many others, I get more than one important test on a single day. I really hate when this happens, and it gets pretty stressful for me. Normally, I study one subject at a time, trying to remember as much information as I can. I never knew that switching between each subject would be more beneficial to me, since studying each subject at a time keeps me more organized in a way. Obviously, this technique may not work for me, but I would love to try it out. Thank you for writing such an informative blog!
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