1. Exam Revision Strategies
This workshop will...
Identify ways to enhance your memory skills
Introduce a variety of revision methods
Offer practical tips on effective preparation for exams
Louise Livesey
Academic Skills Adviser
11/19/2018
Academic Skills Advice

2. Academic Skills Advice
Share the plan with attendees
The Plan…
How you remember
Types of revision session
How to use notes to revise
Tips for successful revision planning
11/19/2018
Academic Skills Advice

3. Academic Skills Advice
1.How your remember
Oh, what a beautiful morning!
11/19/2018
Academic Skills Advice

4. Academic Skills Advice
1.How your remember
Memory is a process
11/19/2018
Academic Skills Advice

5. Academic Skills Advice
1.How your remember
Taking information in:
maintain attention to remember. So we should…..?
Direct attention consciously and purposefully
Focus in a relaxed way - not with hard concentration
Take breaks
Link the information to what you know
Give names and labels to information
Deliberately arrange or adapt information
B. Retaining information long enough to remember it:
rehearsal to remember things in the short term. So we should…..?
Repeat the information
Start repeating within a few seconds as information fades quickly.
CLICK FOR B ANSWERS
11/19/2018
Academic Skills Advice

6. Academic Skills Advice
1.How your remember
Activity 2:
C. Encoding information:
working with information so it can be moved into long-term memory.
So we could use the following strategies…
Using your environment
Use clothes
Use parts of the body
Use motor memory
Use auditory memory
Use visual memory
Use colour
D. Recalling information: linked to your attention and awareness and bringing
the information to mind.
So we could use the following strategy…
Be organised
Put your notes into patterns using ‘chunks’
CLICK for second set of C ticks
Click for D ticks
11/19/2018
Academic Skills Advice

7. Academic Skills Advice
2.Types of revision session
TALKING POINT
Activity 3: C. Writing Answers’ Practice
B. Topic Coverage
Why do this session?
Questions may be similar in exam
What you need to know?
Previous exam questions
How does this help?
Will have information to answer question
What strategies do I need to use?
Answer each question in turn using blank postcards/index cards.
Why do this session?
Where to improve and boost confidence
What you need to know?
Length and type of exam
How does this help?
Not waste time, and gets used to writing for length of exam and new environments. Improve concentration.
What strategies do I need to use?
Work out time have to answer each question. Practice in strange environment. Practice writing.
Click for B answers
Click for C answers
11/19/2018
Academic Skills Advice

8. Academic Skills Advice
3.How to use notes to revise
Review
Sift through all the initial information (class materials and notes), and look for any gaps in your understanding or questions that need answering
Augment
Focus additional reading from lecturer recommendations or the reading list, and then move onto other sources. Take notes from these. Create a set of ‘key notes’ for that unit.
Condense
Do a reduction of the unit information – reproduce key info that is to prompt the remembering of details. Aim to get the key notes set down by 50%.
Transform
Using this condensed version, turn the unit into a new format.
Click for B answers
Click for C answers
11/19/2018
Academic Skills Advice

9. Academic Skills Advice
3.How to use notes to revise
Transforming notes means you engage with the material and perform ‘multiple encoding’
Click for B answers
Click for C answers
11/19/2018
Academic Skills Advice

10. Revising for exams is not about learning your entire subject;
3.How to use notes to revise
Revising for exams is not about
learning your entire subject;
it is about remembering topics
relating to questions and recalling them.
11/19/2018
Academic Skills Advice

11. Academic Skills Advice
THE REALITY!
If you have attended all teaching sessions, passed your course work and revised adequately, you are extremely likely to pass.
The questions will relate to topics taught
The pass mark is 40 for undergraduates. You are not expected to know everything.
Other people are nervous too.
Failure, though unwelcome, can often be overcome
– Resits, repeat years, other options!
11/19/2018
Academic Skills Advice

12. Academic Skills Advice
References
Cottrell, S. (2007) The exam skills handbook. Basingstoke, Palgrave.
Cottrell, S. (2013) The study skills handbook. 4th ed. Basingstoke, Palgrave.
Illumine Training. (2013) Mind mapping tips and tricks. Windsor, Illumine Training. Accessed 10 October 2014.
Inspiration Software (2013) Thinking and planning graphic organizer and outline examples. Portland, Inspiration Software, Inc. examples Accessed 11 March 2014.
Post-it.(2014) Revision helper. Bracknell:.3M. Accessed 14 October 2014.
Potter, C. (2013) Week one: straight back into the fray. Dundee, ‘Calum Potter’ Wordpress. Accessed 11 March 2014.
University of Roehampton (2013) Unit 5 – essay planning. Roehampton, Studentzone Accessed 5 March 2014.
web.stagram.com (2014) Exam plan. San Francisco, Pinterest. Accessed 14 October 2014.
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Academic Skills Advice

13. Academic Skills Advice Service
Where are we? Chesham Building B0.23. Give us a call or come speak to us Monday-Thursday 10am-12pm and 1pm-4pm
Who am I? Louise, the dedicated workshop adviser.
Who can help me with study and writing skills? Lucy and Russell run Instant Study Skills Advice sessions Monday-Thursday and Writing Skills Clinics twice a week. You can also access self-help resources on our webpage.
Who can give me maths advice? Helen and Michael specialise in Maths support for students though clinics and pre-booked appointments.
How do I get in touch? Telephone:
19/11/2018
Academic Skills Advice

14. Academic Skills Advice
Any questions?
11/19/2018
Academic Skills Advice