Class Action: organising your revision notes
I am taking public exams this year. I have piles of revision notes and don't know where to start. Any advice?
In a previous article, I wrote about creating a revision timetable based on breaking down your courses into topics. Once this process has been completed, you need to assemble your course notes, study guides and textbooks.
Traditional note taking consists of creating pages of liner summaries of your work. There is a value to this technique, but we are going to enhance it. Unless you are blessed with a photographic memory, the chances are that you remember the colours and images you have seen in your textbooks rather than the lines of text.
Having a topic overview which is clearly visible is much less daunting than a stack of A4 notes
The right side of the brain processes visual memories, and by engaging this capacity we can improve the efficiency of your revision.
Although it may seem like stating the obvious, before you do any work you need to make sure that you are in a quiet, clutter-free space.
Some people are inspired by seeing others working, so their study zone may be in a library surrounded by other students. If you are distracted by those around you, find a quiet space at home.
Remove temptations by turning off your phone and disable internet access on your computer. Equip yourself with pens, pencils, highlighters, and A3 and A4 paper and index cards.
The first thing we need to do is to move past the feeling that there is too much work to manage.