How to revise effectively

Although exams can be a cause of worry for many students, this page will give you some practical and tested ways to minimise exam stress and to maximise exam success.

Introduction

Preparing for your exams can be time-consuming and challenging. Exams will often cover material from the whole semester or year, so there is often a lot of material to work through. 301 provide workshops to support the exam planning, preparation and revision process, which you can access via the following links.

The Exam Revision Planning workshop will introduce some key principles, look at how to make the most of revising across learning styles and provide opportunities to share and discuss methods and ideas for effective revision.

Book a place on an Exam Revision Planning WorkshopThe Memory Techniques for Revision workshop will introduce several established techniques for memorising and remembering large volumes of information. It will provide opportunities to try out a number of strategies and to evaluate how and when they might be used as part of your approach to exam revision or preparation for academic assignments.

Book a place on a Memory Techniques for Revision Workshop

Mapping your exams

Exam revision can sometimes feel like a task with no endpoint. How will you know when you have done enough? There is no easy answer to this question, but what you can do is make sure you have a plan in place and work through it systematically. That way, you will know that you have made positive progress and can go into your exams with confidence.

An important first step is to know exactly what is coming up and when. Have a go at filling in an exam mapping template to get all the basic information in place.

Access the exam mapping template (googledoc)

Once you know exactly what you are preparing for, you can begin drawing up a realistic revision timetable, working backwards from your exam dates and building in some contingency time for the unforeseen.

Don't forget to incorporate plenty of time for breaks including whole days off, so that your revision is focused and you have opportunities to reflect. It is also a good idea to think carefully about how you can reward yourself during these breaks to ensure you stay motivated.

The Get Revising provides an online revision planner that you might find useful.

Access the Get Revising Revision Planner (external link)Alternatively, you might prefer to create a timetable that you can print and display above your workstation. Calendarpedia provide a wide range of templates that you can select from as a starting point.

Access Calendarpedia (external link)

Generative AI can help you to plan a realistic and manageable revision timetable. Provide as much detail as possible in your prompt to ensure that the suggested timetable is as specific and relevant as possible to your exam programme. For example (the text in bold should be edited to suit your specific circumstances):

[PROMPT] You are a [first year undergraduate] student planning for exams. Create a revision timetable with dates and times. Start the timetable from [Monday 15th April 2024]. Exams start on [Monday 20th May] and there are exams for [Physics 101, Physics 102, Physics 103]. You have [2] hours available each weekday [avoiding 9am - 5pm] and [4] hours available for each day of the weekend. [Do not schedule any revision between 10am and 4pm on a Saturday due to work commitments]. Focus more time on [Physics 101 as this is a challenging topic worth 50% of marks for the year]. Plan the schedule to include a maximum of [30] minutes of working followed by a [10] minute breaks. Present the results in a table format for each week.

Visit How to use Generative AI for revision for further information.

Ways of learning

A good starting point when planning your revision is to consider how you learn and develop varied and appropriate revision strategies.

VARK is a model for thinking about how you learn based around four 'styles' of learning, visual, auditory (listening), read/write and kinaesthetic (practical or hands-on). Take the VARK questionnaire to help evaluate which learning styles appeal and may work best for you.

Take the VARK Questionnaire (external link)

An awareness of your preferred ways of learning can you to identify relevant revision techniques and try out new ways of revising, for example:

Visual: Try mind mapping, colour coding, using diagrams, creating flow charts and time lines.
Auditory: Try reading notes aloud, recording key information and listening back, working with others to explain topics to one another.
Read/write: Try rewriting notes, condensing notes onto flash cards, writing sample answers.
Kinaesthetic: Try using card sorts, watching videos (visit Kaltura for some ideas), practising and applying techniques.

But don't forget: variety is the spice of life! There is more than one way to revise well. Try out different things to see what works for you and try to avoid getting stuck in a rut in your revision.

By mixing it up, using a variety of techniques, and drawing on different methods and approaches to learning, you will help to keep it interesting and sustain your motivation through to the exam date.

This short video provides some ideas on how to make the most of your revision time:

Watch the Top Exam Revision Tips video (1.36 minutes)

Revision strategies

Alongside careful planning, the use of appropriate revision strategies can help you to make the most of the time available, giving you the opportunity to prepare thoroughly and get the most out of yourself on the day.

The following suggestions should help you to make the most of your revision time.

Be selective

You may not have time to revise everything on a module in great depth, so be selective about what you study; revise the things that are most important and that you have least knowledge of.
Try to distil your notes to flash cards, sets of keywords, phrases or terms and consider which topics apply to more than one module.

Revise with others

Explaining and discussing subject content with your course mates can help to reinforce your own learning.
Try preparing quizzes for one another, take it in turns to summarise key areas, or simply arrange a time to study with others (whether physically or online) to provide extra motivation.

Use past papers

Past papers are a useful study resource that you should be able to access on Blackboard.
Try to brainstorm answers or make outline plans for as many questions as possible – even time yourself writing some of these answers.
This can be particularly useful in helping you to think critically about the information you are learning and how you might present it in a clear way under exam conditions.
Self-mark your own work and see if you can identify all of the marks that are allocated for each answer in your work.

Spaced repetition

Looking over materials more than once will help to make sure that you retain the information you have learned.
Condense your notes as much as possible and then return to them at intervals throughout the revision period.
Try to increase the interval and test yourself before checking in to see if you have remembered the material correctly.

Practise handwriting

In preparing for an exam, don't forget that your paper will be handwritten, so practise this skill and make sure that your writing is legible. Examiners will not award marks if they cannot read your work.

The Pomodoro Technique is a time-management strategy that uses a short interval timer to encourage focused bursts of concentration on a task, broken up by regular short breaks.

The original technique worked on a basis of 25 minutes on, five minutes off, with a longer break every 3–4 cycles.

Try using this technique with an online timer (external link) to make sure you aren't distracted by your smartphone or emails during your focused activity. Reward yourself with a short break on a regular basis.

This process of effort and respite will allow you to make the most of your ability to concentrate and allow time for your revision to sink in during the breaks.

Revising for Resits

While having to take resit exams can be frustrating and disappointing, it’s important that you stay calm and take some time to prepare yourself as best you can. You now know what to expect from the exam process and there are several steps that you can take to secure your success the second time around!

In addition to working through the steps outlined above, it’s a good idea to build, or maintain, healthy habits that will help you to succeed. This includes eating a balanced diet, getting enough sleep, ensuring that you have a quiet place to work, and building in time to relax. If you are tired, stressed out and overwhelmed, you won’t be able to retain the information that you need to pass your exams.

SSID can offer advice on the practicalities of retaking an exam or repeating an assessment.

Visit SSiD Resits and Assessments

Top tips and resources

Think positively and avoid the company of those with a negative outlook. You probably know more than you think you do!
Take care of your body and don't forget to build in plenty of time for breaks and relaxation.
Don't try to cram at the last minute - a good night's sleep will be far more helpful!
Visit SSiD's Exam information pages for any timetabling questions or concerns
View Digital Learning's guidance on completing a Blackboard Test (login required)

If you are feeling anxious in the run-up to your exams, don't forget that there is support available. Visit SSiD's Exam worries pages for more information.

StudySkills@Sheffield