


The same "learn, pause, learn more" pattern
applies to in-class learning, too. Dr. Bjork recommends against taking notes
during a class lecture. Instead, he suggests writing notes immediately
following the lecture. This delayed reinforcement is more effective in
cementing the material into your memory than what he calls "stenographer
mode" note taking.
Forget about those study carrels in the library, too. Dr.
Bjork suggests that studying in one place is only useful if you are going to
take the exam in that location. Otherwise, he suggests that you vary your study
surroundings to better prepare your mind for recall in the test environment.
Dr. Bjork also recommends against a grueling night of
studying one subject. Instead, he suggests "interleaving" your
studying. That means skipping from topic to related topic, returning often but
never bogging down. He believes that this approach results in better overall
retention than intensive focus on each topic in its turn.
Believing that people have unlimited capacity for memory,
Dr. Bjork says that locating the fact in our memory is the activity that makes
it available to you long term. Even searching for a fact and failing will make
remembering the correct fact easier in the future. Wow, by that theory I should
be a wizard at neural chemistry now, based on my abject failure to recall those
facts in college!
Have you tried any of Dr. Bjork's techniques? Do you study
better with pizza or cookies? Rock music or silence? Do you have a study buddy or a study group? Click on the Comment
button and share your tips.
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