One of the most important tactics for passing any examination is to learn to read the course materials and totally understand the topics that have been recommended for the examination.
Moreover, in order to do so effectively, you must be able to learn and remember information from the books you will be reading.
Students frequently express their frustration by saying, “I don’t grasp this textbook or course notes.” However, there are several tactics that you can use to help you read and understand more efficiently. These tactics are as follows:
1. Concentration is key.
When it comes to studying, this is the most crucial thing you can do. You will not be able to carry out your plan if you do not concentrate.
While studying, there are numerous distractions that arise, causing you to lose concentration. The primary sources of diversions are as follows:
- Noise: When you wish to study, try to avoid being in a noisy setting as much as possible; this will assist your brain focus and pay more attention to your book. Unless, of course, you’re the type who can read in any situation.
- Phone: This is the primary source of distraction for students these days. keep your phone somewhere safe when studying, remember you that you will be “tempted” to use your phone during the course of the study session. Therefore, keep your phone far away from you. Alternatively, if you are using your phone to study a material, try to turn off your mobile data connection as much as possible to avoid receiving message notification notifications. Or you can easily mute your notification.
- Mind: When your mind is not with you for one reason or another, whether it is an emotional problem or you have been thinking too much, you will be unable to concentrate on what you are reading. Your attention must be focused on what you are doing, which for the time being is reading. Furthermore, read when you are in a calm mindset rather than when you are under time constraints. This goes to say that you have to prepare before your examinations are close.
2. Time management
After an hour or so, your capacity to grasp and retain what you’ve read begins to deteriorate rapidly.
So keep in mind that developing a thorough grasp of a book will take some time.
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For this reason, it is important to know how many hours you intend to devote and to set a time limit.
Setting a time limit implies that you should be aware of when you should begin reading and when you should stop reading.
Instead of reading a book in one extended marathon session, you should break it up into multiple little sessions of one to two hours each.
If you have 6 hours to read a particular text, you can divide the 6 hours into four fractions of 1 hour 30 minutes each, giving you a total of 6 hours 30 minutes.
Don’t just sit and read for the entire six hours without taking a break; you won’t retain much information if you do this.
It’s important to remember that before you begin the following session, you should begin by asking yourself what you remember from the previous reading, what you think of it so far, and what you still need to learn about the subject.
3. Read Multiple times
This is intended to assist you in retaining the most important information while reading.
During the first session, you should utilize it for overview and discovery, the second session for detailed information and understanding, and the third session for note-taking in your own words.
Taking notes allows you to engage another portion of your brain that will aid in your knowledge of the material.
4. Consistency and Persistence
If you wait too long to return to your reading material, you may not gain much knowledge.
For example, suppose you pick up your notebook or textbook today and it takes you more than two days to return to it.
Your retention level would have suffered as a result of this lapse. It is beneficial to visit your book(s) on a daily basis, even if it is for no more than one hour.
Perseverance pays off when you believe you are not receiving adequate comprehension. You must continue to read the book’s contents until you have grasped the overall theme of the book.
5. Rehearse what you have read
The importance of rehearsal in learning and memory cannot be overstated.
If you have read anything, you can explain it to a friend, test your knowledge of it by quizzing yourself on its contents, or say what you have read to yourself.
When you are practicing, adopt a variety of different patterns of thinking and acting.
Reading, writing, speaking, listening, and visualizing are the modes of communication.
Visualizing is similar to mind mapping in that it involves creating a mental picture of everything you need to know in a very clear and organized manner.
Finally, it is critical to concentrate on the sections that contain a lot of information because, no matter how attentively you read, you will not recall most of the things you have read.
What you can do is keep the major things in mind and write them down.
And in order to perform exceptionally well in any exam, you must be able to read and understand what you are reading.
Quick Recap on Read and Pass Exams Successfully.
It is very important that you do not beat yourself up if you are not yet understanding what you are reading.
Remember that reading under pressure is no reading at all; you need to settle every matter on your mind and keep an open and calm mind when you are getting ready to read.
In summary, you can read, understand, and pass your exams effectively if you utilize the below strategy:
- Be focus
- Manage and Maximize your Reading Time
- Read repeatedly
- Be consistent and persistent, and finally
- Rehearse what you have read.
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