Learn How to Active Recall with Spaced Repetition

These days, exams test so much content that it feels like your head is going to burst every time you attempt to review 🙄 Unfortunately, it only gets worse when you hear an exam is cumulative; my heart stops, I get nauseous and the tears start rolling. 

But the game has changed and now, I am hopeful when I see the word “cumulative.” Why? Active recall with spaced repetition has got my back 🎉

Here’s how I use these two techniques to get an A+ on my content-heavy exams 🚀

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🔁 Spaced Repetition

So, what is spaced repetition? Spaced repetition is when you review the content frequently with increasing gaps in between each review. Essentially, you are learning the material, giving yourself just enough time to forget it, and then re-reviewing it to reinforce it for long-term memory. 

That was quite a mouthful, so let’s use this graphic:

As you can see in the graphic, an example of a spaced repetition schedule is to review the material:

• 1 day after learning

• 3 days after learning

• 6 days after learning and more!

Each time you review the material, you’re brain has just begun to forget it. This means your brain has to work hard to remember it, which reinforces the connections in your memory!

💨 Active Recall

Now, what is active recall? Active recall is exactly as it sounds. You recall the material you learning actively, instead of passively. 

So, what are some passive techniques to avoid? Some examples include reading textbooks/slides and listening to recorded lectures. These techniques are great for when you are first learning the material, but for review, it simply doesn’t cut it! It gives you a false sense of confidence when you read a slide during review and you remember seeing the content, but you‘re not practicing remembering it! So, when a test comes around and you see a vocabulary word, you may recognize the word, but not be able to recall its meaning. 

Personally, I enjoy using the following active recall techniques when I review:

1. Create a mind map around a key topic from memory alone and double-check what concepts are missing

2. Read the heading of a slide and recall as much as I can about the topic without peeking at the slide

3. Form a study group and take turns explaining concepts to each other and answering questions

   
   

🤝 A Collab between Spaced Repetition and Active Recall

To put these techniques together, I use Google Calendar and Sheets.

On Google Calendar, I indicate which days I’m reviewing certain lectures. I use the following spaced repetition schedule: 

• 1 day after learning

• 3 days after learning

• 7 days after learning

• 2 weeks after learning

• 1 month after learning

Depending on how busy the day is I may choose to forgo some review (if I’m comfortable with the content) or move the review to the next day.

On Google Sheets, I create a master list of all the topics within each lecture and rank my comfortability with the content after each review session. This allows me to make executive decisions to be flexible with my review if I’m having a busy day:

And that’s a wrap on how I study for content-heavy courses!

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I hope these tips that got me through those intense physiology courses is helpful to you! Good luck!

All my best,

N