As a student, there is always a lot of information to understand and memorize for tests.
Having a photographic memory would make this much easier, but most of us are not that lucky.
However, there is a way to boost your memory, memorize more facts, and spend less time doing it.
This post will explain the most effective way to improve memory and memorize anything.
Types of Memory
There are different types of memory, including procedural memory, declarative memory, and semantic memory.
Semantic memory is a type of declarative memory that will help you get an A on your chemistry final and score high on standardized tests like the MCAT.
The Forgetting Curve
Looking back over a century ago, the psychologist Herman Ebbinghaus studied his own memory and generated what is now known as the Forgetting Curve.
In its simplest terms, the Forgetting Curve demonstrates that after forming a memory, we gradually forget more and more of it as time elapses.
The Spacing Effect
Repetition potentiates neural connections and allows us to remember information more effectively, but we have far too much information to learn – we can’t repeat every fact we need to know on a daily basis.
Enter the Spacing Effect. By repeated exposures to a piece of information at increasing intervals between each repetition, we can optimize memorization and retain the most information in the least amount of time.
The key here is that you must recall the information, not simply recognize it.
Recall refers to being given a cue and retrieving the relevant information on your own. Recognition refers to seeing a piece of information and finding it familiar, thinking “oh yeah I know that.”
For memory purposes, recall is far superior to recognition.
This is correlate to the testing effect, whereby being tested and having to recall a piece of information strengthens the memory encoding process.
Anki
Medical students are tasked with learning insane amounts of information in a very short time frame.
Through necessity, many have turned to less common study tools to aid them in overcoming this seemingly insurmountable feat of knowledge.
Enter spaced repetition software, the king of which is Anki.
Anki and other spaced repetition software automate the process of scheduling facts that you need to learn in the form of flashcards.
While far from perfect, Anki is the best option we have right now. It’s cross-platform and syncs across all your devices, which is important for reasons we will get to shortly.
Creating Flashcards
Inevitably, many students ask whether or not they should create their own cards or if using a pre-made deck is okay.
If you make your own flashcards, you are implementing a form of active learning, and therefore you will learn the information on those flashcards faster and more effectively. Second, if you create the cards, they are in your own words, and you’ll have no difficulty understanding them. Lastly, you can practice good flashcard principles and best practices, which most students do not follow in creating their flashcards.
Creating these ineffective and “bad” flashcards is the most common mistake and the main reason that students end up dropping Anki altogether.
The main benefit of using a pre-made deck is that you’ll save time on the card creation process.
However, if you are following the principles from this post, you should be efficient enough to create your own cards and reap those additional benefits.
Conclusion
Improving memory and memorizing information effectively is a critical skill for students and professionals alike.
By understanding how our brains store and retrieve memories, we can use the spacing effect and spaced repetition software like Anki to optimize memorization and retention.
Creating effective flashcards and actively learning the information is key to using Anki successfully, but the time and effort invested can pay off in spades when it comes to acing exams and retaining information for the long term.
FAQ:
Q: Can spaced repetition software like Anki help with memorizing languages?
A: Yes, spaced repetition software can be a helpful tool for memorizing vocabulary and grammar in a new language.
Q: Is it better to create your own flashcards or use a pre-made deck?
A: There are pros and cons to each approach.
Creating your own flashcards can be more effective for active learning and understanding, but pre-made decks can save time on the creation process.
It ultimately depends on your individual learning style and goals.
Q: How long should the intervals between repetitions be when using the spacing effect?
A: The timing of repetitions is important, and intervals should increase gradually over time. The optimal interval length will vary depending on the individual and the information being learned.
Q: Is there a limit to how much information can be effectively stored and retrieved using these methods?
A: There is a limit to how much information can be effectively stored and retrieved, and it varies from person to person.
However, by using the spacing effect and spaced repetition software, individuals can optimize their memorization and retention abilities.
