The Best Techniques for Studying Effectively

(Photo by Kyle Gregory Devaras on Unsplash)

No matter what level of education you’re in, studying effectively is a highly important skill to learn. The Best Techniques for Studying Effectively, It will serve you throughout your time as a student and is also extremely useful when it comes to courses to further your career and prepare for interviews. Studying can be difficult, and it’s often seen as a tedious chore that most people would rather avoid.

While there’s no secret to making studying so much easier, there are techniques you can use to ensure the time you spend is effective. Additionally, studying doesn’t have to be boring. In fact, making your time studying more interesting can help you learn. Here are some tips to help improve your effectiveness and focus while studying.

Using Flashcards

Flashcards are a pretty widely known studying technique, but there are still a lot of people who don’t use them. They’re often seen as time-consuming to make, but they don’t have to be. You can now create them online extremely easily. There are lots of guides that show you how to make flashcards, and it’s a lot simpler than you might think.

Flashcards are cards which contain a question on one side and an answer on the other. You can use them to test your knowledge and key subjects, and they’re suitable for carrying around and using throughout your day. You can use them often to help memorise key facts, increasing your understanding and helping you pass vital tests.

You can also use these flashcards to make studying more fun, keeping track of your scores and turning it into a game. Give yourself rewards for hitting certain scores, and check your progress to see how well you’ve been doing. Using bright colours and pictures on the cards also makes them more fun to use.

Study in Different Ways

Simply reading your textbooks might seem like the best way to study, but it’s definitely not the most effective. If you want to improve your retention of knowledge and make studying more interesting, you need to vary your approach. Most people respond to a particular style of learning more than others, so studying from a book may not be the most effective.

You can mix up your studying process by listening to podcasts, taking part in study discussions with friends and watching videos. This will not only make the act of learning more enjoyable, but it also ensures you use all the different styles of learning, including audio, visual and practical.

Take Breaks

Sure, you might have a test in a few weeks, but spending every waking moment studying for it isn’t the best way to improve. While you might think that more is better, you need to balance your time between studying and taking regular breaks. Your mind is only capable of taking a certain amount of information in at once, and continuously studying can be very stressful.

Use the Pomodoro method for the most effective studying, which means you study in blocks of 25 minutes, with a five-minute break between each block. This will give your brain enough of a break and will help you feel more relaxed and productive. While it may seem counter-intuitive at first, it makes a real difference to how effective your studying is. This method has been used and recommended by many experts and educators around the world.

Create a Plan for Studying and Notes

Armed with your new knowledge of studying techniques, you should be ready to set up an effective study plan. This is a schedule of when you’re studying and the topics you’ll cover. Be sure to go over your weak points, and leave enough room for breaks, outdoor time and exercise to keep yourself healthy.

Your plan should also cover note-taking, which needs to focus on the main points that will help you learn and memorise the topic. Note-taking is an important part of the studying process. Not only does it help you summarise points and revise later, but the act of writing down these points can also help you retain them. Make sure your notes are useful and that you regularly go over them.

Minimise Distractions

While you might have the best plan for studying and a great system for taking notes, it’s never going to be effective unless you avoid distractions. It’s easy to get distracted by notifications on your phone, noises from outside, or just daydreaming about what you’re going to get up to on the weekend.

To increase the effectiveness of your study sessions, you need to avoid these distractions as much as possible. This means putting your phone on silent and keeping it in another room if necessary. Make sure you have a comfortable and quiet space to study in, and keep your focus on the task at hand.