How to revise well – making the best of a revision session

Organising when you work and what you work on is an essential starting point. Before diving into your revision, take time to plan what you’ll cover. Use benchmarking to break down the subject into topics and specific subtopics, and rate these based on your confidence with the topic. This will allow you to identify your weakest areas and prioritise them. This targeted approach prevents aimless reviewing and ensures you address what truly needs attention. It’s easy to cover what you already know, and this isn’t going to be what helps you the most!

You will need to read the notes you’ve taken or the coursebook you are using to review the topic section you are studying. You’ve already covered this knowledge in lessons, so this isn’t the main part where the retention happens.

Use Active Learning Techniques How to revise; revision planning

2. TRANSFORM:

Next, actively engage with the material to deepen understanding and make it stick. Transform the knowledge by:

• Creating practice questions and answering them
• Teaching concepts to someone else (or explain them aloud)
• Drawing mind maps to create links between concepts, or organise the flow of information
• Using flashcards for key definitions and formulas

3. RECALL:

Finally, strengthen your memory by recalling the information without looking at your notes. This is where the real retention happens.

• Test yourself regularly: self-testing is crucial for effective revision. Create practice exams under timed conditions to simulate the real testing environment. This not only reinforces learning but also builds confidence and reduces anxiety.
• Implement spaced repetition: rather than cramming all at once, space out your revision sessions over time. This approach leverages the psychological spacing effect, which enhances long-term retention. Review material multiple times with increasing intervals between sessions.

The brain needs rest to process information effectively. Consider using the Pomodoro Technique: split one hour of study into three 20 minutes sections of focused study. These intervals keep your mind fresh and maintain concentration.

At the end of each revision session, take a few minutes to reflect on what worked well and what didn’t. Adjust your approach for the next session accordingly. This continuous improvement process helps refine your study techniques over time.

Your study environment significantly impacts your productivity. Honestly, you don’t sit exams in a horizontal position, so don’t study in this format too. Find a quiet, well-lit space with minimal distractions, sat on a chair at a table. Consider what works best for you; some people thrive in absolute silence, while others benefit from light background noise. Have all your stationery to hand to avoid unnecessary interruptions, and place your phone out of reach or on ‘do not disturb’ for the duration of study.

Remember that finding what works best for you may require some experimentation. You might find some techniques work best with specific subjects as you develop and refine your personal revision strategy.

Keep your motivation high by promising yourself a reward after your study session — something you genuinely enjoy, such as a walk in the park, a gym session, your favourite snack, or a bit of screen time.