Trying to maintain high grades in school or college, young people spend hours cramming, put 200% of their effort into study sessions, and rid themselves of basic things like sleep or leisure. Without any doubt, modern students are studying hard to achieve success. But are they studying smart?
Despite the common belief, doing more doesn’t always bring better results. Instead of working for wear and tear, you can put less time and effort into your studies and actually achieve more. In this article, we are going to tell you about the best tactics that will help you learn less and, at the same time, know more!
1. Prioritize and Delegate
Many young people feel like getting external help and delegating work isn’t the right thing to do. But the truth is that all productive people delegate. As a student, you can prioritize your tasks and use available tools like term paper writing services to get on the right track with your homework. And this can actually bring better outcomes.
If you can distinguish which tasks can be delegated and which require your immediate commitment, you can optimize your load and save time. The time you save can be used for more important assignments. As a result, you have more energy to handle the most important tasks, you keep your grades high, and you also avoid burnout.
2. Cover More Subjects in One Session
According to surveys, many students tend to devote their sessions to one particular subject at a time. They feel like this tactic will help them master each subject better. But, in fact, covering more subjects every day is a much more productive and simple strategy.
Multiple studies reveal that studying multiple subjects every day is good for one’s focus and actually brings better results than if you’d deep-dive in one or a few specific subjects. The science behind this is simple. When you receive and process a lot of similar information, it can confuse your brain and make it process the material slower. But, if you can split your sessions into blocks for different subjects, you can stay more concentrated, do less work, and, at the same time, know more.
3. Acquire the Same Information in Different Ways
Despite access to a variety of resources and materials, even in 2022, students still tend to focus their sessions on the same sources of information. Most of the time, young people study from textbooks and other “traditional” sources of information. But experts prove that acquiring the same information in a variety of ways is more effective.
According to research, different media engage different parts of the brain. The more areas are stimulated, the faster and easier you process and retain information. So, if you want to study less and know more, the tip is to leverage different sources. For example, instead of just reading a textbook chapter, try also watching videos, reading notes, crafting mind maps, etc.
4. Regularly Review the Material
Everyone who’s been in school or college is familiar with cramming. For some reason, many people find this learning tactic incredibly helpful. But the truth is that it’s not. Cramming can be used to engage your short-term memory. If you want to know more, however, you have to transfer new information from your short-term memory to your long-term memory. And that’s where periodic reviews help more than cramming.
Reviewing the studied material at regular intervals will help you retain it better. The optimal intervals vary depending on a variety of factors, so everyone has to find something that works for them. But once you find the right approach, sticking to your review intervals will help a lot.
5. Sit on the Front Rows
Many of us hate sitting at the front of the class due to many reasons. Most often, students who prefer back rows just don’t want additional attention. But here is a science-backed fact – learners who sit at the front are proven to get higher scores. The research finds that the average scores of students look as follows:
- Front of the class – 80%
- Middle of the class – 71.6%
- Back of the class – 68.1%
Sitting at the front will keep you more focused and attentive. Also, such students typically interact more with the teacher and the rest of the class. So there is no wonder why they receive higher scores.
6. Quiz Yourself
While revising material regularly is good for information retention, quizzing yourself is an even more powerful tool for memorizing the studied material. Many years of research have revealed that self-testing is a vital part of the educational process. When trying to recall what you already know, you engage your memory and brain to the fullest. As a result, you should be able to grasp the key concepts, terms, and facts easier, and also retain them for longer.
According to studies, learners who quiz themselves significantly outperform their peers. Apart from this, self-testing is a very effective strategy for overcoming test anxiety. So there are quite a few benefits.
7. Read Out Loud
Finally, reading out loud is one more science-based learning method that will help you study smarter. Numerous research confirmed that reading information out loud actually helps you to understand and retain it better than if you’d read it silently.
Why does this happen? The reason is quite simple. When reading out loud, you both see and hear the information. That is, you leverage more areas of your brain and ensure better retention.
The Bottom Line
Whether in school or college, modern students have to deal with plenty of information and a hefty academic load. At a first glance, handling it should probably require lots of effort and time. But the truth is that you don’t have to study harder in order to do better. You just need to start learning smarter.
After reading this article, you know about some of the most effective strategies that should help you do less work and ensure greater outcomes. Feel free to try these tricks to perform better academically!
