Study Tips — Study Better

Make Your Own Practice Questions

Revision

Writing questions about material forces a different level of engagement than reading it does.

Why this may help

To write a useful question, you have to understand what matters enough to be worth testing. This requires the same kind of thinking that actually answering the question does. The act of creating questions is itself a form of active study.

How to use it

After studying a topic, write five questions that someone who hadn't studied it couldn't easily answer. Try to answer them without looking at notes.

Step-by-step

1Finish studying a topic.
2Write five questions that test the main ideas.
3Put the notes away.
4Answer the questions from memory.
5Check the answers and note any gaps.

Try this

After your next study session, write three questions about what you just covered. Answer them from memory.

Common mistake

Writing only factual recall questions ("What is the definition of...") rather than application questions ("How would you use X to solve Y?").

Easier version

Start with just one question per topic studied.

When it works best

Most effective as a revision tool, particularly for subjects with specific knowledge to be recalled under exam conditions.

Reflection

When you try to write questions about a topic, how much does the difficulty of writing good questions tell you about how well you understood it?

Recall Information Before Checking Notes

Revision

The effort of trying to recall something strengthens memory more than re-reading the information passively does.

Why this may help

Retrieval practice — actively trying to recall information from memory — is one of the more consistently supported methods for improving retention in academic settings. The attempt itself, even when imperfect, is part of what makes the information more accessible later.

How to use it

After studying material, close all notes and try to write or recite as much as you can remember. Then check your notes to see what was accurate and what was missed.

Step-by-step

1Study a section.
2Close all notes and books.
3Write down or say aloud everything you can recall.
4Open notes and compare.
5Note specific gaps and review those points again.

Try this

After your next session, spend five minutes writing everything you remember from it before looking at any notes.

Common mistake

Treating re-reading as revision. Reading familiar material feels easy, but that ease does not always reflect genuine recall ability.

Easier version

Start by recalling just the three most important points before checking notes.

When it works best

For all subjects during revision, and particularly effective a day or more after the initial study of a topic.

Reflection

When you test yourself before looking at notes, what does the experience tell you about what you actually know versus what you only recognize?

Review Mistakes After Practice

Revision

A practice question answered incorrectly is more useful than a correct one if the incorrect answer is examined carefully.

Why this may help

Mistakes reveal the exact points where understanding breaks down. Reviewing them specifically — understanding why the wrong answer seemed right — produces learning that correct answers alone cannot.

How to use it

After completing practice questions, go through every incorrect answer. For each, ask: what did I think the answer was, why did I think that, and what is the correct understanding?

Step-by-step

1Complete a set of practice questions.
2Mark the answers.
3For each incorrect answer, write: what you answered and why.
4Write the correct answer and the reasoning behind it.
5Review these notes before the next practice session.

Try this

After your next set of practice questions, spend at least as long reviewing your errors as you spent on the questions themselves.

Common mistake

Checking answers and noting which ones were wrong without understanding why the wrong answer was chosen.

Easier version

Focus error review on just two or three mistakes per session rather than trying to analyse every one.

When it works best

After every practice session, past-paper attempt, or marked assignment.

Reflection

Looking at your most recent practice errors, is there a pattern in the types of mistakes — the same concept misunderstood, a particular question type misread?

Space Revision Across Several Sessions

Revision

Revising a topic once before an exam and revising it in three shorter sessions spread across several days produce very different results.

Why this may help

Reviewing material at intervals — rather than in a single extended block — is generally associated with better long-term retention than massed practice in many educational contexts. The gap between sessions allows recall to strengthen.

How to use it

After first studying a topic, plan to return to it two or three days later for a shorter review, then again a week later. Each return should involve recall before re-reading.

Step-by-step

1Study a new topic fully.
2Mark a return date two to three days ahead.
3At the return date, recall what you can before reviewing notes.
4Mark a second return date a week later.
5Continue this pattern for all major topics.

Try this

For the last topic you studied, schedule a short review session two days from now and write it in your planner.

Common mistake

Leaving all revision for the days immediately before an exam, when there is no longer time to space sessions.

Easier version

Use a simple calendar or planner to mark review dates. Even one planned return to a topic is better than none.

When it works best

For all subjects with significant content to recall, particularly effective when exam dates are more than a week away.

Reflection

Compare topics you reviewed several times across sessions to those you only studied once. Which are easier to recall now?

Mix Related Problem Types During Practice

Revision

Practising only one type of problem at a time makes that type feel familiar. Mixing types helps prepare for choosing the right approach when exam questions are mixed.

Why this may help

In many exams, questions from different topics or methods appear in any order. Practising mixed types trains the additional skill of identifying which approach applies, not just applying it once identified.

How to use it

Instead of doing twenty identical problems, mix problems of two or three different types in the same session. After each problem, note which type it was and which method you used.

Step-by-step

1Gather practice problems from two or three related topics.
2Mix them without sorting by type.
3Attempt each problem, deciding the approach first.
4Review errors with attention to whether the wrong approach was chosen.

Try this

In your next mathematics or science practice session, mix two different problem types rather than completing one type at a time.

Common mistake

Practising twenty identical problems of the same type and concluding that the concept is understood without testing whether it can be identified in a mixed set.

Easier version

Start by mixing just two problem types before building to three or four.

When it works best

Most useful for subjects with multiple problem types or methods: mathematics, chemistry, physics, and economics.

Reflection

In your last exam, were there questions where you knew the content but chose the wrong method? Mixed practice is designed to address exactly that.

Related: Review Mistakes After Practice

Explain a Topic in Simple Language

Revision

If you cannot explain a topic clearly to someone who knows nothing about it, there is something in it you do not yet fully understand.

Why this may help

Explaining a concept in plain language removes the support of familiar phrasing and forces genuine understanding. Gaps that are invisible when reading a textbook become apparent when trying to construct an explanation from scratch.

How to use it

After studying a topic, try to explain it as if to a younger student or a friend from a different subject. Use simple words, avoid technical terms where possible, and include a concrete example.

Step-by-step

1Close your notes.
2Choose a concept to explain.
3Speak or write an explanation using simple words.
4Note any point where you stumble or resort to vague phrasing.
5Return to the notes to clarify those specific points.

Try this

Choose one concept from your current subject and write a five-sentence explanation as if for someone two years younger.

Common mistake

Using technical terms to fill gaps in understanding. If an explanation relies on jargon without clarifying what the jargon means, the understanding may be shallower than it appears.

Easier version

Try explaining just the main point of a topic rather than the full detail.

When it works best

Particularly effective for abstract or conceptual topics in science, mathematics, and social sciences.

Reflection

Where in your explanation did you find yourself uncertain or vague? That is the part that most needs further study.

Identify What You Do Not Understand

Revision

The topics students avoid revising are often exactly the ones most likely to appear in exams. Identifying gaps early allows time to address them.

Why this may help

It is natural to spend more revision time on familiar, manageable topics. Deliberately identifying and addressing weaker areas produces more balanced preparation and reduces unpleasant surprises under exam conditions.

How to use it

Before planning revision, list every topic in the subject. Mark each as: confident, uncertain, or unclear. Prioritise revision time on uncertain and unclear topics.

Step-by-step

1Write out all major topics or chapters.
2Mark each honestly: confident / uncertain / unclear.
3Prioritise "unclear" topics for the first revision sessions.
4Allocate extra time to "uncertain" topics.
5Use "confident" topics for maintenance review only.

Try this

List every topic in one of your subjects and mark each with a confidence level. Identify the two least confident topics.

Common mistake

Marking topics as "confident" after only a single reading without testing recall.

Easier version

Start with a simple two-category system: "can recall" or "need to work on."

When it works best

At the beginning of any revision period, and again midway through to reassess progress.

Reflection

Are the topics you have spent most revision time on also the ones you were least confident about? If not, what does that suggest about where to focus next?

Related: Review Mistakes After Practice

Use Past Work to Find Weak Areas

Revision

Previous marked assignments and returned tests are often the most specific guide to what deserves more attention — and among the least used.

Why this may help

Feedback on past work identifies specific content and skills that were not demonstrated adequately. This is more targeted than general topic revision because it reflects actual performance rather than assumptions.

How to use it

Gather marked assignments, tests, and any returned work with comments. Look for patterns in where marks were lost. Use those patterns to identify topics or skills for focused revision.

Step-by-step

1Collect all recent marked work from a subject.
2Go through each piece and note where marks were lost.
3Identify if the losses cluster around certain topics, question types, or skills.
4Add those areas to your revision priority list.

Try this

Take your most recent marked assignment or test. Identify the two most significant reasons marks were lost.

Common mistake

Filing returned work without reviewing it, missing the most specific available guidance on what needs improvement.

Easier version

Even noting the single biggest source of lost marks from one piece of work provides useful direction.

When it works best

At the beginning of revision planning and whenever preparing for a similar type of assessment.

Reflection

In your most recent marked assignment, were the lost marks in topics you expected to struggle with, or did any surprises appear?