06/02/2026
Our top three studying tips from an A* student:
1. Using active studying methods. This is the most important concept for any successful studying strategy. ‘Active’ learning means you are actively processing the information whilst studying. This can take a variety of forms; flashcards, questions, exam papers, blurting, or converting notes into questions. It requires more brain power than passive learning, and because of this it is noted that students *feel* as though they have learnt less than if they were passively engaging with content, but it is proven that memory retention is far better using these methods. So stick with it and you’ll see your grades improve dramatically!
2. Take advantage of memory theory using ‘spaced repetition’. When reviewing content at temporally spaced intervals, you refresh your memory on it and increase the amount of time for which you are able to recall that piece of information (see the graph below). For example, after learning a definition, recalling it at intervals e.g. 2 days after, then a week, then 2 weeks, then a month, etc. Anki is a very clever app which applies spaced repetition to your flashcards automatically (linked below).
3. Blurting. Choose a topic you want to revise, take a piece of scrap paper and pen, and in one colour write down everything you remember about the topic purely from memory (tip: you could organise subtopics using a mind map). Then, take a different colour pen and using your notes, add anything you missed. This is a process using active recall which highlights the gaps in your knowledge and produces a useful revision resource you can later refer back to.
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Anki - https://ankiweb.net/decks
