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July/August 2001
Memorization Tips: Keys to learning
The University of New Brunswick's on-line Writing and Study Skills
Program (W&SS) has some great memory/learning information on their web
site. Included below are some key points, but you may want to visit
their web site for additional details.
"Repetition is usually a key part of keeping information in your mind.
Actions you repeat become so familiar that you may be oppressed by
them. Keen squash and tennis players can play out whole games during
sleeping and waking dreams; video game addicts are often haunted by
screen images and the need to respond to them. Some of this can be
useful, it stimulates preparation. Certainly it demonstrates the power
of repetition. Repetition is not enough, however; it is quite possible
to read the same chapter repeatedly and yet learn nothing. Your
approach to study should be guided first of all by your knowledge of
yourself, but also by your understanding of a few basic
characteristics of learning."
"Knowledge of a given body of material declines from 90% to 10% within
a week. If you review the topic before forgetting, the review will be
brief and the benefits pronounced. Each time you return to the
material, both your short and long-term memory of it will improve. If
you review only after you have forgotten the material, you will
absolutely lose your labour; you will be re-learning rather than
reviewing."
"Learning advances more quickly in many short sessions than it does in
a few long ones. This is especially true of definitions, lists, and
vocabulary."
"Create your own examples, relating difficult material to your own
experiences, thus facilitating understanding and remembering."
"Testing yourself has a far greater impact than simply reviewing.
Testing focuses your attention on specific elements (areas of
ignorance), turning a passive review into a motivated search for
answers."
"Habit is everything. The more conscientiously you adhere to a
specific system, the more likely you will be to perform what you
intend."
(*Note: Reference to this site is being made simply to point out the information
contained there. SoftLore, LLC does not have an affiliation with this site, or
any other site that we refer to in our "Memorization Tips", nor does this
reference imply an endorsement of any products, services, or theories associated
with the site)
Do you have some favorite tips and techniques for memorizing? Please
feel free to share them with us.
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