Blog · · 2 min read
Study With Your Notes Closed
Turn your notes into short questions, answer from memory, and check what you missed with a retrieval practice plan for this week.
Use this
- Write short questions in your own words.
- Close your notes before answering.
- Check each answer against the source.
- Mark missed questions and ask them again later.
1. Recall before you reread
Practice testing means trying to recall an idea with your notes closed. Start with a question, put the notes aside, and answer from memory.
Dunlosky, Rawson, Marsh, Nathan, and Willingham (2013) rated practice testing as high utility and rereading as low utility in their review of ten study techniques. Use your next study session to practice answering, rather than only reading the material again.
2. Do not judge studying by how easy it feels
Roediger and Karpicke (2006) compared restudying a passage with practicing retrieval. On a test a week later, students who had practiced retrieval remembered more. During learning, restudying felt easier, and students did not expect retrieval to win.
When rereading feels easier than answering a question, do not use that feeling alone to choose your method. Try the answer with your notes closed, then check it.
3. Turn your notes into questions
Choose an idea from the material you need to study. Write a short question about it in your own words. Ask yourself to explain the idea, not just look at it again.
Keep the questions together so you can return to them. You can use Recallory as a place to keep the questions you write.
4. Answer, check, and mark the miss
Close the source and answer one question from memory. If you cannot recall the answer, make an attempt before opening your notes.
Compare your answer with the source. Mark what you missed or got wrong, and use the source to correct it. Return to the marked question later and try again with your notes closed.
5. Follow this plan this week
Today: Choose material you need to learn and write a few short questions in your own words. Close your notes, answer each question, and check each answer against the source. Mark the misses.
At your next study session: Ask the marked questions again before opening your notes. Check your answers and keep any remaining misses marked.
Later this week: Return to your question list for another closed-notes attempt. Check against the source again and carry unanswered or incorrect questions into your next session.
Sources
- Dunlosky, Rawson, Marsh, Nathan, and Willingham (2013). Strengthening the student toolbox. American Educator.
- Roediger and Karpicke (2006). Test-enhanced learning. Psychological Science.
These notes describe published study methods. They are not a promise about a grade.
