With finals week coming up, you’ve probably already hunkered down into your pre-finals routine and stocked up on coffee and late night snacks. But have you ever wondered if you could be doing it better? By now, most of us have found what works best for us. Whether it’s you and five other people or just you and some classical music, all that matters is that it works. However, after reading these tips, you may find your study routine could use a little touch-up. Here are four scientifically-proven ways you can better prepare yourself for finals week.
1. Write it down!
Admit it: you love your computer. Everything you need is always at the tip of your fingers (Facebook). This week, however, I’m going to ask you and your computer to take a little break. Don’t worry, you can still see each other — just not all of the time. When it comes to taking notes or making study guides, your computer isn’t exactly your best friend. Research shows that hand-writing has a multitude of benefits over typing. For one thing, it stimulates something in our brain called the Reticular Activating System. Essentially, this makes us remember the information we write down even better. A study by Dr. Virginia Berniger also showed that your brain is more actively engaged when hand-writing versus typing. I’d say actively engaged equals prolific study session.
2. Sleep on it
When faced with a tough decision, surely someone in your life has told you to ‘sleep on it.’ As it turns out, there was some truth to what they were saying. The information that you intake one hour before going to sleep may actually be remembered the best. During this time there’s less likely to be interference of study materials and outside distractions. Also, when we sleep, our brain actually organizes our newly-studied memories, so when you wake up you may have a better understanding of the material than before. But don’t stay up too late; sleep deprivation disrupts this organizing process.
3. Start Early
I know this is the last thing you want to hear, but cutting the procrastination can make a big difference. If you start studying earlier and more often, you are going to better absorb information. Make a schedule a week before, and set aside an hour or so each day to study. When it comes time to cram, you won’t know what to do with your prepared self. Think about it this way: the total time spent studying will still be the same, you just space it out differently. Not surprisingly, this phenomenon is called the spacing effect.
4. Say it Like You Mean it
Rewriting your professor’s lectures slides isn’t going to cut it. Rehashing the same thing word for word isn’t putting much meaning into your study materials. Start off by putting things into your own words. Make yourself think about it. Then associate specific clues with the things you’re trying to remember. For example, if you discuss a topic with a friend, you’re probably going to remember it in that context and remember it better. Give yourself these clues, which are known as retri