Active Study

"Active studying encourages a deeper engagement with the material. This includes discussing concepts with peers, analyzing information, and applying knowledge through practice. Active studying focuses on thinking critically, debating, and doing something with the information to deepen understanding. It is beneficial to vary your study methods to avoid mere memorization and foster a more comprehensive grasp of the subject."

-Active Studying Handout

Ways to use Active Study Strategies:

Study Guide

Rewrite study guide
Give yourself main headings and fill in the details
Give to a friend and have them quiz you
Recreate study guide from memory
Cut it up and lay it out in a new order to answer from memory

Concept Maps

Redraw concept maps
Give yourself the structure (empty nodes) and fill in words / Give yourself words and recreate the structure
Explain why each node is connected
Redraw from memory
Cut up into pieces, mix up, and arrange in correct order, explaining as you go

Flash Cards

Read aloud the front and back
Test yourself out loud “what is on the back of the card?”
Sort cards by which need more practice
Create a concept map/timeline/matrix from cards
Grab two cards and find a connection between them
Sort cards by categories (after answering the back out loud), then explain connections between all
52 card pick up – literally throw them in the air, then gather them as they landed, regardless of front of back up, then answer whichever way was face up
Have a friend quiz you on the cards

Self-tests

Answer questions
Rewrite answers
Recite answers from memory
Identify how questions could be combined and adjusted

Summarize Chapters

Rewrite summaries
Condense summaries into smaller and smaller paragraphs
Explain the summaries to a friend
Identify how chapters are connected
Identify how a specific topic connects from chapter to chapter (pull the thread)

Summarize Notes

Rewrite summaries
Condense summaries into smaller and smaller paragraphs
Explain the summaries to a friend
Identify how topics are connected

Create Problem Sets

Work problems with assistance from notes/textbook
Work problems without assistance
Identify challenging problems and refer to notes/textbook, use T-notes if needed
Identify how problems could be combined and rework
Work problems in a different direction (solve for something else)
Explain why you perform each step in the solution
Connect theory to practice by explaining theory/concept related to problems as you work them
How? Why? What If? questioning

List Steps in a Process

Recite/rewrite the steps
Give yourself the steps out of order and put them in the correct order
List steps from memory
Explain why each step can’t be in a different place
How? Why? What If? questioning

Matrix/ Comparison Chart

Rewrite matrix
Give yourself a half-completed matrix and fill in the empty boxes
Recreate blank matrix from memory
Identify unique or different values in each column
Identify similar values across rows
Create “flashcards” for each answer box, mix them up, then place them in the correct spot based on the order they are in your hand

Outline

Rewrite outline
Give yourself headings and fill in details
Recreate outline from memory
Give to a friend and have them quiz you, explaining topics as you go

Rewrite Notes

Add any extra information needed from other sources, text, charts, diagrams
Create outlines or summaries of notes, condensing as you go
Identify topics in notes that overlap with previous notes
Explain notes to a friend

Timeline

Rewrite timeline
Give yourself the values and put them in order
Recreate timeline from memory
Explain what happens between each value (that leads to the next value)
Hopscotch – pick a starting place, then have someone tell you to go X events forward or backwards and then explain the event from memory (repeat multiple times)

Flow Charts/ Hierarchies

Rewrite flow chart/hierarchy
Give yourself the structure and fill in the values
Recreate the flow chart/hierarchy from memory
Explain to a friend

Pro/Con List

Explain why each value is in the list
Identify values that could be argued from a different perspective
Write an argument for each side
Explain to a friend

Essay Prompts

Determine themes from class and find several examples of each
Practice writing about each theme from memory with at least 3 bullet points per theme (mini-outline)
Create several practice prompts and under timed conditions try to answer them using your practiced mini-outlines

Maps/Diagrams

Redraw map/diagram
Give yourself the structure and label the parts
Recreate map/diagram from memory
Explain each area/part/step

Answer Questions at the End of the Chapter

Rewrite the answers
Answer questions without assistance
Identify questions that could be combined or adjusted and answer again
Explain answers to a friend

Examples:

Active Study Examples All.pdf

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