In the diagram, ‘How human memory works’ (You can learn more about how the human memory works in my article: HOW MEMORY WORKS – USE IT TO YOUR ADVANTAGE) it is clear that ‘Retrieval’ of information is only possible if substantial ‘Revision’ is done on the subject. There are certain Dos and Don’ts that every student must follow during their revision time. These rules certainly help students revise seamlessly and ‘retrieve’ information easily when needed later.
IMPORTANCE OF THE NO DISTRACTIONS POLICY:
Most of our problems when it comes to revision has very little to do with the brain’s capacity for remembering things. Paying focused attention on something is the key to memorising. When you chose to focus completely on your task, you give it a personal meaning which helps your mind recollect facts more easily later.
The 5 No distraction policies includes the following:
- DECLUTTER YOUR DESK: Anything that isn’t relevant to the subject you are studying or revising. Shouldn’t be there on your desk. All irrelevant textbooks, notebooks to go off the study table. It even goes down to the number of stationery items on your desk. If that box of colour pens might tempt you to make a quick drawing on your notebook while you are trying to study, you might want to put those colours away. Tidy up. Organise your study material as per your requirements.
- YOUR PHONE MUST BE SWITCHED OFF: If you find a doubt while studying and are tempted to ring your friend to solve that doubt immediately, please don’t ring them up immediately. A short-intended phone call could result in a longer talk time between you and your friends, which could be distracting.
- UNINTERRUPTION: Request your family to allow you 45mins of uninterrupted study time. They could approach you during your breaktime.
- NO MUSIC: Recent studies by researchers from the applied psychology department of Cardiff Metropolitan University have revealed that students who revised in quiet environments performed more than 60% better in an exam than their peers who revised while listening to music that had lyrics. Playing music while revising will make your task harder, because any speech-like sounds, even at low volume, will automatically use up part of the brain’s attention capacity. However, music is a great stress reliever. You could listen to some soothing music during your breaktime.
- COMFORT: Make sure you are comfortable. Nothing is more distracting if you are uncomfortable in your environment, if you are wearing uncomfortable clothing etc. Keep a bottle of water handy for the times you may feel thirst. Keep a few hand-full of almonds handy if you feel like munching. Avoid making trips to the kitchen or the washroom while you are trying to study/revise as these trips could get prolonged and could be distracting.
Learn about how to overcome the ‘Attention Span Handicap’ in my article BEST STRATEGIES FOR REVISION: HOW TO OVERCOME THE ATTENTION SPAN HANDICAP