Ethan Nguyen, Week 16 - Memorization
For this final blog, I was not sure what to do. Taking inspiration from the AP tests we are taking, I have decided to talk about memorization, specifically some methods you can use to potentially help with studying. Even though it is a bit late, this could help for finals by offering some ideas for your studies and any other times you need to memorize. Although I will discuss some techniques, this will not function quite like a tutorial or guide. With this note aside, back to the topic of memorization.
The practice of writing notes is expected in high school. Teachers no longer have to remind students when to write note. It helps to engage your brain and reinforce the pathways between neurons in order to better retain the information. The physical action and the mental requirements of writing down the notes is what makes the action improve your recollection of the topics. However, writing notes is not always enough. Some topics require more active engagement.
See, a lot of the times, memorizing is a bit harder than just writing down information you have just heard. Some “hard” topics or just monotonous details require a little more to remember. This is where the active learning techniques come to play. Your teachers have likely made you participate in active learning. The most basic activities like practice problems or the Socratic seminars that require plentiful preparation are just examples of active learning. This method is another method of supplementing the connections between your brain’s neurons by continuing to activate them.
Many results will pop up if you look up “memorization techniques” on your browser of choice. Some popular choices are the use of mnemonic devices or the use of flashcards, a technique that utilizes the idea of “spaced repetition.” Both techniques have their merits, and they are obvious once you try them.
For example, the mnemonic device “CBS-PIN” continues to pervade my memories even after the AP Chemistry exam. For those of you who are not familiar with the acronym/mnemonic, it is just an acronym for the seven strong acids that a chemistry student needs to know. It’s a bit confusing considering that there are only six letters in the acronym for the seven acids, but just bear with me(one letter represents two). Another, more familiar, example would be SOAPS.
Whether it be the flashcards that aid me in my studies for the VFAs, or the mnemonics for a calculus test, techniques to aid my memorization will always be useful. I hope that you all will also be able to remember those pesky overly-specific facts that always seem to slip past your memory and good luck on your endeavors!
https://dres.illinois.edu/research/spaced-interval-repetition-technique/
Hey Ethan,
ReplyDeleteI didn't even realize that this is our final blog until I read your blog. It's so cool to see how far we've all come this year. Your blog is definitely late considering that there is nothing left to memorize this year, but I will be sure to use some of these methods next year. I actually have a really unique way of memorizing things. If given the option, I will pay full attention to a lecture or video without taking any notes. Then I will write down anything and everything I remember. This is called active recall. After doing this, I will go over what I remembered and choose to study the things I didn't remember the first time. This method has helped me efficiently learn lots of things for different classes in the long term. Unfortunately, it did not stop the AP Calculus BC test from demolishing my mind (it was so hard). Thank you for writing this blog, and I wish you the best for next year!
Hi Ethan, I loved the start of your blog as it caught my attention. Writing notes usually helps me memorize most of the information especially with AP Biology. I like how you talked about the active learning that helps people memorize information. Most of the Socratic seminars that we had this year for AP language helped me learn and understand the books that we read. You also explain the science behind this, which gave creditably to your blog. I always use flashcards or Quizlet to help me remember most of the information and I plan to do this again for my anatomy final. Mnemonic is also a useful technique, but I find it hard to find acronyms, so I avoid using that. I loved that you go in detail about two of the many techniques as it made it easier to follow along and understand. Both of these techniques are useful, and I will try them out next week. Thank you for writing this blog and I hope you have an easy time memorizing for your finals.
ReplyDeleteHi Ethan. For this week’s blog, I also wrote about some memorization techniques like mnemonics which you mentioned as well. Mnemonics like acronyms are definitely one helpful and easy way to remember important processes, lists, or orders. Note-taking, and especially handwritten notes, are also another common method to understand information, however, as you mentioned, only using this technique is likely not enough to remember all the information you need to remember. Therefore, methods like active learning and active recall can be more beneficial. For finals that are coming up, I will surely be using many of these methods to memorize what I need to know. Overall, I really enjoyed reading your blog and thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteHey Ethan,
ReplyDeleteFirstly, I enjoyed the start of your blog since it felt helpful to learn about useful strategies of memorization and it captured my attention due to the application of finals coming up soon. I agree that note taking is an effective strategy since I use it often to help myself memorize key information when preparing for a test.
I read an article about active learning a few weeks ago. I found it interesting so I decided to try and implement the technique into my learning however I did not see a major change in my information processing. In my opinion, I feel the best way for someone to learn differs from person to person based on their experiences.
For me personally, flashcard have always been my fastest method of learning. I find it easiest to memorize vocabulary terms and topics when I use flashcards to get them stuck in my head. The different methods of memorization seem very interesting and I will definitely try a new one after reading this. Thank you for writing this blog!