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Last time I tried the Feynman technique I was escorted from the building for impersonating a professor.
Seriously though, back in college I used the Leitner system until I was comfortable enough with the info that I could explain it in layman’s terms. Though back in the day I just called the Feynman technique the rubber duck method thanks to my brother who was in IT and actually got everyone rubber ducks one year as a gag stocking stuffer.
Absorption method:
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open textbook
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place forehead on paper
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fall asleep
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absorb information while unconscious
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I was the top of my class during college and I wouldn’t be without my study group. I got all the concepts easier than them, but having to force myself to explain it to them and take care that they understood it really cement the concepts. I’m doing an online MBA now, and I struggled during the first months because I had no study group, fortunately an extrovert adopted me into her chat group and with them I was able to come back to my Feynman method of study.
I don’t see the manic-panic-cram it technique listed here.
misstakes
I don’t usually point out spelling errors but I’m enjoying the casual irony
Supplementary tips:
- Study under similar conditions as you will be tested (mimic lighting florescent/LED/Incandescent? Dim/Bright?, ideally study in the same room or in similar seats/room, sitting ofc, if you drink alcohol studying, drink for the test too - bad idea tho), ever leave a room and forget what you’re doing? This effect applies for studying too
- avoid listening to music with lyrics (or anything with talking in it except study partners/TTS Textbooks etc.), significantly hampers brain efforts
- Associate your studies with a scent (ie: a cologne you only use for this purpose) and have that scent on you when you are being tested, scent is primal portion of brain strongly associated with memory
- be gratuitously friendly just before studying and writing a test (pay someone a compliment that makes them smile, hug a friend or willing colleague, etc…) this reduces stress and allow your brain to be less fight or flighty
- similar to previous, avoid caffeine. Ideally you should be well rested for both study sessions and the test, but if you insist (I understand completely if you do trust me) use it for both per the first point.
- be well hydrated for both studying and the test (don’t forget to urinate before it begins though :P)
Ah yeah I used to get high as shit before tests to replicate the same conditions I studied in.
Be cool if y’all did an ADHD version.
Take Adderall. Study for 18 hours straight.
The peer review technique: try to cram it all the day before, fall miserably, use your sharp sense of observation to poll what others are answering. Also know as the Linguee protocol.
I’m kinda old-fashioned, I just remember things.
I remember things too but the Feynman technique helps you spot your knowledge gaps. Not many people have a truly photographic memory.
Wish I could do that.
I’ve had to come up with a spiderweb-esque system where each thread leads to the knowlegde, notes, calendar items, google searches etc.
Oh man, my nested bookmark folders that I would rarely go back and look through, but searching, reading and deciding if I wanted to save it was basically studying.
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If you don’t mind, please explain the Anki-Fy method to us.
No OP, but Anki is an app that you can use with your own custom flashcard packs, or find them online. You review a card and mark how well you remember it, with the hardest ones resurfacing more quickly and easiest ones more seldom.
Spaced repetition is more efficient because it is based on refreshing something in your memory at the (theoretically) optimal intervals to transfer it from short-term to long-term memory. So at any time, the app should surface the cards you need to see the most.
It does actually work and isn’t pseudo-science. It got me through the bar exam after law school.
Thank you for taking the time to explain it to us!
It seems like a great step up from just physical flashcards!
It helped you study for the Bar; great to hear that you made it!
Anki is a digital flash card app for phones, so I guess they convert whatever they’re learning to the Anki format.
Thanks for the quick yet simple explanation!
Another strategy: don’t write notes during class. Actually listen super intently to the instructor, and always ask questions when something isn’t clear. Sit near the front. Notetaking can be a distraction, even though it might feel productive at the time. It’s mentally exhausting if you’re in classes back to back, but I found that really intently focusing on what they’re saying and realizing when you get lost helps a ton. Because once you get lost, the rest of the lesson becomes a lot less helpful and you have to spend time studying by yourself or in a group later without the ingrained context of the rest of the subject when it was originally presented.
Obviously doesn’t work if the instructor is bad at teaching or you’re in a really huge class.
If you do this (and it’s a good idea) also record it, replay and make notes later. The more forms you learn in, the better the recall and understanding.
I found (and I’m sure a study found) that making notes in your own vernacular makes you better at remembering the contents of the lecture. Also I found it easier to be immersed in the content.
Ofc not every brain is alike, your mileage may vary.
A bit dated descriptions FYI. The Flashcards should follow time based boxes and Pomodoro technique shouldn’t be time based but goal based - interrupting mid chapter is worse than not taking a break.
That being said both flashcards and pomodoro breaks are still some of the best control techniques when done correctly! Been working remotely for almost 20 years now - tried everything :)
