Last Friday 10 May, students in Years 10 and 11 had a Study Skills session with Elevate Education. Year 10 also had subsequent sessions providing tips regarding approaching exams and how to move on from an exam. These sessions are timed to occur around three weeks prior to their study day, and around a month prior to the Semester 1 exams.
A key part of the focus on study skills was the importance of spaced repetition, of how knowledge may be moved from the short-term memory into the long-term memory. Cramming the night before is not an effective strategy for remembering key events and dates of World War II, or the three laws of motion.
The importance of spaced repetition draws from research that led to the ‘Forgetting Curve’. This curve, first developed by Ebbinghaus in the late 19th Century, indicates that within 24 hours you forget around half of what you have attempted to learn. This led to his research, and subsequent recent studies, identifying that returning to content you wish to remember frequently over time is an effective way to shift knowledge into the long-term memory and to interrupt the ‘Forgetting Curve.’
Feedback from Year 10 students on the day is important, as it provides us with information about what worked well, and what could be improved. Some of the key takeaways from students who completed the survey include the following:
I feel as though I have a clearer plan on how to approach exams.
Although exams may be stressful there are many ways to cope.
When preparing for each subject, take my time on things, have plenty of breaks and start the hardest things first and ensure my use of time is efficient.
It has made me feel more prepared and less stressed.
I learnt new techniques and methods to prepare for my exams and how I should go about revision, and stress techniques before, during and after the exam, which was helpful for me.
One positive thing I have taken away from the session is to start revising for my tests and exam much earlier than I have been doing.
Short efficient sessions are more effective. If they are more spread out you can beat the forgetting curve.
Elevate are also running a parent information session on Wednesday 22 May. The focus of this hour-long webinar is ‘How you can help prepare your child for exams.’ On Wednesday 5 June there is a further webinar providing some tips on how parents may support their child during the exam period. If you wish to attend one or both of these webinars, then please register via the link here.