This week’s study tip is all about the art of “chunking”. Rest assured that this has nothing to do with getting sick or dealing with sickness before a big test, but rather as an alternative to cramming.
I think it is safe to say that in some way or another all students are guilty of occasionally cramming before a big test. Maybe it is because you put off studying until the morning of the test, or something big came up that interfered with your study – sometimes it is unavoidable.
So, if you must cram, consider chunking instead.
What is chunking? It is a simple method of storing 5 to 9 items in your short term memory bank. For example, look through the following list and try to memorize all the grocery items:
• Cereal
• Syrup
• Baking powder
• Bacon
• Eggs
• Milk
• Flour
• Butter
• Blueberries
Most people find it difficult to memorize and recall all 9 listed items through cramming alone. However, if you try categorizing these items and placing them into logical patterns of thought, recalling the whole list becomes much easier:
• Eggs and bacon for breakfast
• To make pancakes, you need flour, baking soda and milk and butter and syrup for the topping
• For cereal, add milk and blueberries
Memorizing these 9 items in a logical order makes them much easier to store and retrieve in your short term memory bank.
So how can you use chunking to help study for a test?
1. Gather all class notes and relevant handouts and textbooks
2. Identify all important terms/vocabulary lists
3. Write a brief definition for each on a sheet of paper
4. Select 5 to 9 of the most important concepts and write these on note cards
5. For each of the concepts selected in the previous step, write a short paragraph defining their most important components
6. Go through your note cards, reading each concept and explanation
7. Once you feel comfortable, get a new set of note cards and re-write all concepts and explanations from memory
8. Repeat step 7 until you can recall all important terms and concepts
Of course, there is always an alternative to cramming and chunking…tutoring. Often it is helpful to connect with a tutor and have them quiz you on your key vocabulary terms and concepts.
To see a list of all instant help tutors, click here.
No Comments have been posted yet