How I STUDY for EXAMS as a MATHS student at Oxford (Active Recall, Spaced Repetition, Past Papers) 📓
Summary
TLDRIn this video, a fourth-year mathematics student at Oxford shares her study methods and exam strategies. She emphasizes the importance of finding a study method that suits individual learning styles and needs. Her preferred approach combines active recall, spaced repetition, and practicing past papers. She explains how to break down material into manageable sections, review them at increasing intervals, and prioritize topics based on difficulty and recency. The video offers practical tips for memorizing proofs and definitions, as well as problem-solving skills, aiming to help viewers adapt these strategies to their own studies.
Takeaways
- 📚 **No One-Size-Fits-All Study Method**: Every student has a unique learning style, and what works for one might not work for another.
- 🎓 **Active Recall**: Engage with material by actively trying to recall it without looking at the source, which strengthens memory and understanding.
- 🔄 **Spaced Repetition**: Review material at increasing intervals over time to prevent forgetting and promote long-term retention.
- 📈 **Adapt Your Study Plan**: Tailor your study schedule based on the number and difficulty of your exams.
- 📅 **Start Early**: Begin studying well in advance to allow for thorough coverage of material and multiple review sessions.
- 📝 **Break Down Material**: Divide large amounts of material into manageable chunks to make studying less overwhelming.
- 🗓️ **Revision Timetable**: Use a timetable to organize study sessions and track your progress and confidence in each section.
- 🧠 **Memorize Key Concepts**: Focus on memorizing important definitions, proofs, and theorems for exams that require bookwork.
- 📑 **Redo Problem Sheets**: Practice problem-solving by redoing all problem sheets to reinforce understanding and application of concepts.
- 📝 **Note Key Ideas**: Write down the key idea of each solution in problem sheets and past papers to simplify revision before exams.
- 📚 **Past Papers**: Practice with past papers to encounter new ideas and improve problem-solving skills, aiming for at least four per module.
Q & A
What is the main challenge students face when searching for the best study method?
-The main challenge is finding a study method that resonates with their unique learning style and needs, as there are numerous methods circulating online and in universities, leading to overwhelming and contradicting advice.
What is Yuanna's educational background and the focus of her video?
-Yuanna is a fourth-year mathematics student at the University of Oxford, and her video focuses on discussing her study methods and strategies for exams.
What does Yuanna suggest as the key to success in finding a study method?
-Yuanna suggests that the key to success is finding a study method that resonates with one's unique learning style and needs, and it's important to explore and adapt strategies from others to one's own needs.
What are the components of university-level math exams according to Yuanna?
-University-level math exams consist of bookwork, which includes memorized material such as proofs and definitions, and new material where students need to apply the concepts learned in lectures in a new context.
How does Yuanna approach the preparation for her exams?
-Yuanna prepares for her exams by ensuring she has covered all her courses in detail, memorized all definitions, proofs, theorems, and counterexamples, and then moves on to problem sheets and past papers.
What is the timeline Yuanna follows for starting her exam preparation?
-Yuanna starts her exam preparation in mid-March if her exams are at the beginning of June, but she emphasizes that the timeline can be adjusted based on individual needs and the number of exams.
What is active recall and how does Yuanna use it in her study strategy?
-Active recall is a method that involves actively retrieving information from memory rather than passively reviewing it. Yuanna uses it by writing down important things from memory after reading through lecture notes or slides.
Can you explain the concept of space repetition as described by Yuanna?
-Space repetition is a technique where information is reviewed at increasing intervals over time, based on the forgetting curve, to prevent forgetting and promote long-term retention of information.
How does Yuanna apply space repetition in her study routine?
-Yuanna applies space repetition by reviewing material after 2 days, then 3 days, 4 days, 5 days, and so on, with each review session occurring at strategically chosen times based on her confidence level and the forgetting curve.
What is Yuanna's approach to problem sheets and past papers?
-Yuanna's approach is to redo all of her problem sheets to ensure she knows how to solve all questions and to do as many past papers as possible to practice and learn new ideas and methods.
What is Yuanna's top tip for studying problem sheets and past papers?
-Yuanna's top tip is to write down the key idea of the solution below every question in the homework and past papers, so that during exam time, one only needs to revise these key concepts.
Outlines
📚 The Quest for the Perfect Study Method
The paragraph discusses the overwhelming challenge students face in finding the ideal study method. It mentions various techniques like flashcards, mind maps, highlighting, and marathon study sessions. The speaker, Yuanna, a fourth-year mathematics student at the University of Oxford, emphasizes that while there's no one-size-fits-all approach, it's crucial to find a method that aligns with one's unique learning style. She shares her preferred strategy, which combines active recall, spaced repetition, and practicing with past papers. She clarifies the goal of university-level math exams, which includes memorizing proofs, definitions, and applying new concepts in unfamiliar contexts. Yuanna also discusses her personal exam preparation timeline, suggesting starting early but acknowledging the need for adaptability based on individual needs.
📈 Mastering Active Recall and Spaced Repetition
This section delves into the specifics of active recall and spaced repetition as study techniques. Active recall involves actively trying to remember information without looking at the source material, which strengthens neural connections and aids long-term retention. The speaker uses a notebook to write down important points from her lecture notes after reading, comparing her recollections with the source to correct any mistakes. Spaced repetition is introduced as a method to review information at increasing intervals over time, based on the forgetting curve, to prevent forgetting and promote long-term retention. The speaker explains her personal spaced repetition schedule, which involves reviewing material at 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, and 10-day intervals, adjusting based on her confidence level and the recency of the material.
📘 Tackling Problem Sheets and Past Papers
The final paragraph focuses on the practical application of study strategies for problem-solving skills in mathematics. The speaker advises redoing all problem sheets to ensure mastery of the material and doing as many past papers as possible for practice. She suggests writing down the key idea of each solution to facilitate quick revision before exams. The speaker shares her top tip of focusing on key concepts during exam preparation, which allows for efficient review without the need to rewrite entire solutions. The paragraph concludes with a summary of her study strategy for exam success, which includes active recall, spaced repetition, and working through past papers, and she encourages viewers to adapt these strategies to their own needs.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Active Recall
💡Space Repetition
💡Study Method
💡Bookwork
💡Revision Timetable
💡Forgetting Curve
💡Problem Sheets
💡Past Papers
💡Key Idea
💡Exam Strategy
Highlights
Finding the right study method is essential for academic success.
Different students have different preferred study methods, such as flashcards or mind maps.
Active recall and spaced repetition are effective study strategies.
Active recall involves actively retrieving information from memory.
Spaced repetition reviews information at increasing intervals over time.
University level math exams require memorization and application of new concepts.
It's important to start studying for exams early, especially for difficult subjects.
Breaking down courses into manageable chunks helps with study planning.
Using a revision timetable can help track study progress and confidence levels.
Reviewing material at specific intervals based on the forgetting curve improves retention.
Prioritizing newer topics and those not yet mastered is crucial during revision.
Practicing problem-solving is essential for math exams.
Redoing problem sheets and past papers helps reinforce learning.
Writing down key ideas of solutions can aid in exam preparation.
Adapting study methods to personal needs and preferences is important.
The speaker shares their personal study strategies used at the University of Oxford.
Engaging with material actively leads to more effective learning.
Spaced repetition and active recall are game-changing study methods for the speaker.
Transcripts
in the vast landscape of Academia where
every student is on the Quest for
knowledge and success they realize a
forever daunting challenge finding that
one study method that works best for you
with so many different methods
circulating online and in the H of
universities it's incredibly easy to
feel overwhelmed and lost in the vast
sea of contradicting advice one student
swears by flashcards while another by
mind maps we have already cancelled
highlights Ing and reading stuff over
and over but how about those Marathon
study sessions maybe the benefits of
short focused bursts of learning are
exceeding them but who knows but am miss
the noise and confusion one truth
remains finding that one study method
that resonates with you and with your
unique learning style and needs is
essential for success and you are the
one and only that can explore this hi
everyone I am yuanna I am a fourth year
mathematics student at the University of
Oxford and in this video I'm going to
talk to you all about my study methods
and strategies for exams as I've said in
the intro there isn't one universally
best study method so if something works
for me it doesn't really mean that it
will work for you but that being said I
think it's also very very important to
see if there is anything that we can
steal from someone else and adapt to our
own needs so without further Ado let's
talk about my preferred study strategy
which is pretty much a combination of
active recall with space repetition and
of course doing past papers but wait
before we jump into the actual methods
we need to make it clear what we are
working towards so uni level math exams
in my case are a combination of book
workk so stuff that we need to have
memorized from the lectures such as
reproducing proofs and definitions and
new material where we need to apply
these um Concepts that we learned in
lectures in a new context that we
haven't seen before so in my preparation
for exams I need to make sure I have
covered all of my courses in GR detail
and memorize all of the definitions the
proofs the theorems the counter examples
and all of that but as a disclaimer this
is mad so when it comes to proofs for
example you only really need to memorize
the idea behind it or the outline as
everything else follows logically from
the step above but nonetheless the same
strategy applies in every case I think
after I have a solid understanding of
all of these I will want to read you the
problem sheets which I have four of per
course and jump into past papers to see
new ideas in Play If I have my exams at
the beginning of June I will start my
studying for exams in midm March or so
again disclaimer this is the case for 8
to 10 difficult exams like I had in the
last two years so the timeline can
always be adjusted to your own needs for
example this year I only have three
exams so I don't really need to start
studying this early but yeah again very
adaptable very much up to you all right
now enough about logistics and let's get
going with the actual strategy to tackle
all of
[Music]
those as mentioned before I use active
recall and space repetition to memorize
the important things in the lectures or
what we call book work so what is active
recall active recall involves actively
retrieving information from memory
rather than passively reviewing it so
instead of Simply rereading or
re-watching material active recall
requires you to actively engage with a
content by attempting to recall it
without looking at The Source obviously
there are plenty of benefits of doing so
for example actively recalling
information from memory strengthens
neural connections making it easier to
remember and retrieve later engaging
with material through um active Reco
enforces compreh and understanding
leading to more effective learning it's
clearly true that it does take more time
and more effort than just rereading the
material but it also yields greater
results in terms of long-term retention
and can be applied to various stud
material such as textbooks lecture notes
and problem sets personally I use this
for lecture notes to be able to retrieve
the bookwork parts in the exam now a
60-page document containing a ton of
mats can be very overwhelming so I
always start by breaking down each
course into more manageable chunks
usually between four and eight such
sections per subject depending on its
length and its difficulty I then shove
all of the titles of these sections in a
spreadsheet that will eventually
constitute my revision timetable I only
study one of these chunks per day here's
where active recoil really comes into
play instead of relying on flash cards I
use a trusty notebook after reading
through everything on the current page
or slide I try to write down all of the
important things on that page or on that
slide from memory so when I learn a new
proof for example I would try to write
it down completely from memory and then
compare it with the actual thing the
actual Source material and see in step
by step if I have made any mistakes and
correcting them in a case when I don't
perfectly write something down the first
time I will do this until I'm
comfortable enough with the material and
can actually move on after a study
session like this is over I return to my
revision timetable write down the date
on which I learned the section and give
it a color corresponding to my
confidence in the material so we have
green for good yellow for okayish and
readed for tiny bit struggling obviously
when you revise such a chunk of the
material two months before the exam you
would for sure forget it by the time of
the exam and this happens really to the
best of us so how do we prevent this
well here is where space repetition
comes into play so space repetition is a
technique that involves reviewing
information at increasing intervals over
time so instead of um simply cramming
all of your study sessions into a very
short period space repetition spreads
out your review sessions over longer
intervals with each review session
occurring at strategically chosen times
based on the forgetting curve and this
is the pattern of how quickly we forget
newly learned information this clearly
helps prevent forgetting and promotes
the so-called long-term retention of
information so obviously this just takes
advantage of the space in effect which
suggests that information is better
remembered when studied over space
intervals rather than in just one single
continuous session so back to my case
the learning stage the initial learning
stage occurs when I do the recall uh
phase that I just described before so
then after exactly 2 days I do the first
review this is when I go over the
material of the corresponding section
again and write down all of the
definitions and theorems from the
section either in a notebook that I keep
only like solely designed for
definitions and theorems or on a piece
of paper that I will then stick uh to my
wall and will inevitably glance at
throughout the day so I would then go
back to my revision Tim table and write
down the corresponding date of my
revision and just give it a color as
before then I will simply go on uh to
review the material again after 3 days
then after 4 and after 5 during these
revision sessions I would simply refresh
my brain about the material in that
section by reading it and reproducing
only the most difficult Concepts on a
piece of paper at this point I will for
sure have mastered your material I'll
have memorized everything thoroughly I
mean I've reviewed it so much I better
just know everything about about it at
this point now if there is still time
before my exam I'll go further with
revision after 7 days then another
revision session after 10 days and so on
but I would definitely involve some
prioritization at this point by which I
mean that I would prioritize newer
topics that are still below that
pre-established 5day revision timeline
that I didn't get to spend that much
time on so if this is confusing by this
I essentially mean that whenever I have
multiple topics to review on the same
day and it will inevitably all get very
very overwhelming I will take a look at
my revision timetable and see firstly
what topics don't have a green color in
the latest revision and then what topics
haven't I revised in a while or are
still below the 5day timeline at that
point I would make sure that I refresh
my mind on these first so this
definitely ensures perfect understanding
of the material and I for sure hope that
I explain it well enough I know it might
be confusing because it's literally a
study method that I designed so it's not
perfect it's not bulletproof it might
not work for everybody and I might have
done a terrible job at explaining it so
please do not hesitate to drop any
questions in the comments below and yeah
now we are ready to tackle problem
sheets and pass
[Music]
papers don't worry this is definitely a
lot more straightforward than the
previous part so for something like
meths where everything is based on
critical thinking and your problem
solving skills practice is essential as
they say practice makes perfect so for
this I do just two things the first one
is to redo all of my problem sheets for
every course this is essentially our
homework and do as many pass papers as I
can this is the second main thing so
whenever I notice that I have done all
of and I have revised all of the
material corresponding to a problem
sheet I redo all of the questions in the
problem sheet so I make sure to know how
to do all of the questions by myself
even if it means looking up the
solutions the first time or asking a
friend or even the professor so yeah
definitely do not underestimate the
value that you might get from the answer
key if it's available to you even if you
know how to do a question definitely go
through it maybe the teacher had a
different method of solving a question
and it's just very very important that
you revise new ideas you learn new
things because after all this is what
math is all about learning new methods
to solve the same problem yeah pretty
much as simple as that for this part but
now here is my top tip So Below every
question in the homework write down the
key idea of the solution this way come
exam time you'll only need to revise
these key Concepts and you'll basically
know how to solve every question without
having to write down anything so the
same strategy really applies to all of
the pass papers I try to do at least
four pass papers for all of my modules
but this is highly dependent on the
availability of the papers because
because maybe one of the courses is a
new one so there are no pass papers
available and so on again if there is a
new idea coming up in one of the
solutions of a past paper question I
make sure to remember it as it may come
in handy during the actual exam and yeah
there you have it my strategy for exam
success during my time here at Oxford so
active recall and space repetition plus
pass papers have been the absolute game
changer for me and I hope that it can
help you to you know just adjust your
own uh study method thank you so so much
for watching everyone I hope you have
found these tips helpful and found some
strategies to try for yourself
as I've said before don't hesitate to
ask me anything in the comments below or
just suggest any new video ideas that
you might be interested in watching
might find helpful might find
entertaining anything at all make sure
to like this video If you enjoyed it and
subscribe to my channel if you haven't
already for more University and studying
and metth content and yeah one last
thing follow me on Instagram if you want
if you want to see more of me definitely
post more there and yeah just have a
lovely lovely rest of your day good luck
if you have any exams coming up I'm
definitely rooting for you and see you
very very soon with a new video goodbye
I'm sick A Day Dreaming I just want to
feeling of you in my bed you in myed I'm
down to just waste time right below your
waistline W you B my head you
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