Rote learning and memorization might suit the short-term requirement for your exam. But if you are preparing for a big exam and want to ace it, this technique will be an ultimate failure. Learning aims to comprehend concepts and ideas. The moment you try forcefully putting information in your brain, you will not benefit from studying. And studying by repeating the contents over and over again will only make you dull and bored. This habit can even make you develop a distaste for learning.

You might be wondering what can be the best methods to retain information if not by this technique. Well, we are here to solve this for you. These are some of the methods you can implement to remember the studied materials. Before you use any of the retention techniques, try to understand the concepts you study. Ensure that you enjoy learning instead and knowing new facts instead of learning for the sake of exams. When you learn for fun, only then will these techniques bear their fruits for you.

• Modify Feynman’s Technique – According to this method, you will be required to reiterate what you have studied in the simplest of terms. This technique not only helps students grasp concepts well but also remember them in the simplest way possible. You can modify this technique further by explaining what you have learned to someone else. Through active reiteration, everything you have studied will get embedded in your mind. Hence, by telling it to someone else, you will force yourself to understand topics. You will need to condense facts and summarise them, which will help you remember all the points.
• Make some spaces between your repetitions – When you are studying, it will be easier to remember everything immediately. But when someone asks you to recall everything, you will forget some points within a few hours. You will only be able to retain a small part of it. Hence, spacing out your repetitions can help. Keep going back to the same portions and reviewing them intermittently. This habit will ensure that you are constantly polishing what you have already learned and secure you from forgetting materials as time passes by.

• Make use of the Italian Tomato Clock Technique – This method modifies the Pomodoro Method. In the previous approach, students need to break the period of their studying into 25 minutes chunks. Here, students can extend the 25 minutes to 30 minutes of intensive studying and then take breaks of five minutes each. During break time, you can walk around, go and have a good snack or listen to music while you move your body for five minutes. This technique not only decreases distraction but also increases productivity and the retaining capacity of the students. As the brain starts getting distracted after thirty to forty-five minutes, this method makes the best use of those thirty minutes by remembering everything.

• Make use of the Blank Sheet Method – Using this technique will ensure that you can retain everything during your exam week. All you need to do is study the important questions and the topic well. Then take some time off, and scribble down everything you can retain without looking at the book, your notes, or additional resources. Try to write details of everything you recall on the blank sheet of paper. Afterwards, using your book and resources, add all the missing points with a different coloured pen. Do this regularly, and soon you will see the number of points you missed get lesser in number. And right before your boards, this technique will help you retain everything.

• Try not to study on your phone and laptop – In the age of digitalization, students find most solutions and notes online or keep them together in their drives. Although this helps with easy management of your notes, staring at the screen is not a convenient method of concentrating and studying. This habit automatically leads to a lesser concentration span, attention deficit, and lowered retention capacity. On the other hand, if you print out your notes, write additional comments on the corners or columns of the paper, it becomes easier to keep your focus intact. It enhances spatial memory, which helps in the easy retention of concepts. It will also ensure that the students do not get distracted by mindlessly scrolling their social media platforms and remember what they study. Any information the students write at the corners of the pages will get stored in their visual memory.
• Drawing a concept map can help – Visual memory is better than your usual memory. Hence, after understanding any topic, try to visualize it first. Then take a paper and map your idea out. Use boxes and arrows and link them together. As you draw accurate information and make an entire structure – it helps you memorize the whole concept immediately. Secondly while revising these concept diagrams help you recall everything faster and will come in handy last minute.
• Use flashcards for studying – These are always a fun way to learn and recall all your studied materials. When you have to memorize huge chunks of information, create flashcards. The flashcards will help you remember big pieces of facts after you have completed studying. They also enhance your revision technique.

When you are studying, make the most out of the time. Stay focused and learn everything related to one topic. Go through your online resources, notes, and the textbook. Afterwards, see which techniques work the best for you to memorize and retain what you have studied. These techniques are not only beneficial for your class tests or small exams. They also come in handy for your crucial exams. You can build habits using these techniques that will take your preparation to the next level. These methods will surely help you ace your exams!