Techniques to strengthen memory in examinations

Competitive examination such as UPSC demands some extraordinary preparation. Candidates, who enter in the ground of tough targeted examination, must use a few strategies to improve their memory of important topics or study areas. If we look at the literature or consult experts, we find numerous tested techniques for improving memory. These strategies have been established within psychology literature and offer a number of great ways to improve memory, enhance recall, and increase retention of information. Candidates appearing in UPSC must choose the best of them, which suits to them to improve memory for tough subject matter and groom themselves to crack UPSC examination.

The first and important tip is that candidate must focus his attention on the materials he is studying. Attention is one of the major components of memory. In order to memorize facts, he needs to actively attend to this information. Try to study in a place free of disturbance such as television, music, and other diversions.

The next tactic is to avoid cramming by establishing regular study sessions. Many experts in psychology have stated that studying materials over a number of session’s gives the time to adequately process the information. It has been established that students who study regularly remember the material far better that those did all of their studying in one marathon session.

The third effective guideline is to organize the information, which is to study.

It is better to group similar concepts and terms together, or make an outline of notes and textbook readings to help group related concepts.

Another way to improve memory is to utilize mnemonic devices to remember information. Mnemonic devices are a technique often used by students to aid in recall. A mnemonic is simply a way to remember information. For example, candidate can relate a term he needs to remember with a common item that he is very familiar with.

Candidate should elaborate and practice the study material. In order to recall information, candidate can encode what he is studying into long-term memory. One of the most effective encoding techniques is known as elaborative rehearsal. In this technique, candidate must read the definition of a key term, study the definition of that term, and then read a more detailed description of what that term means. After repeating this process a few times, he will be able to recall the information in a better way.

Next effectual way to memorize the matter is to relate new information to things, which is already known to candidate. It can be understood with example. When he is studying unfamiliar material, take the time to think about how this information relates to things that he already knows. By establishing relationships between new ideas and previously existing memories, he can clearly increase the likelihood of recalling the recently learned information.

Memory and recall can be improved by visualizing the concepts. Candidate should pay attention to the photographs, charts, and other graphics in his textbooks. If he doesn’t have visual cues to help, try to create it in unique way. Draw charts or figures in the margins of notes or use highlighters or pens in different colors to group related ideas in written study materials.

In memorizing concepts and tough material, one of the successful ways is to teach new concepts to another person. If Reading materials is reproduced in front of another person, it will definitely improves memory.

It is important to pay extra attention to tough topics in study material. It has been noticed that information at the beginning or end of a chapter is easier to remember.  The position of information can have a great role in recall, which is known as the serial position effect. While recalling middle information can be difficult. It can be overcome by spending extra time rehearsing this information or try restructuring the information so it will be easier to remember. When candidate come across an especially difficult concept, devote some extra time to memorizing the information.

At last, reschedule study routine from time to time. It has been observed that candidate studying for long hours at night may feel monotony and at some stage, he feels that study material is vast and he cannot memorize. This indicates that he needs to change his study time. If he is accustomed to studying in one specific location, try moving to a different spot to study. In this way, candidate can put maximum efforts and significantly improve long-term recall. Writer wishes all candidates for steep success in their career.