Cramming for exams: 101

Let’s start this post by saying cramming is so not recommended.

Leaving all your study to the last minute is such a bad idea for so many reasons but hey, let’s be real. It does happen sometimes. It might even be plan A for some of us … 🤔

So rather than just pretend that you guys are always getting your study done on time, we may as well give you some tips on the most effective way to cram if you ever get to that point. If you’re reading this post, you might not have a tonne of spare time right now so let’s get straight to it!

1. Find out exactly what you need to know tomorrow

You so don’t have time to be learning/studying stuff that won’t be in your exam tomorrow, we’re going for maximum efficiency here, okay!

That means you need to find out exactly what will be in your exam tomorrow.

It’s probably a good idea to start with your assessment notification or just remember what your teacher told you. Is it an essay? Is it multiple choice? Will there be a prac element? What topics will be assessed?

You need to sort this out asap so you can make sure you’re going to cram the right info!

2. Go to the syllabus to pinpoint the exact topics

So, now you know what topics your exam will be on, time to find out exactly what you need to know in each topic. Go to your syllabus (this should pretty much be the love of your life this year), find the topics that were outlined in your assessment notification and write out the dot points under the topics.

These dot points are going to tell you what questions to expect tomorrow and the knowledge you need to answer those questions. So, that means they’re basically going to structure your intense cram effort for tonight. Let’s get going!

3. Focus on understanding before memorising content

So, start with making sure you understand your dot points.

Yeah, yeah, you are going to go through the content itself a little bit but your priority should be to make sure you understand what each dot point means and what you’re going to be asked.

A good test is to work through each dot point and try to give a quick explanation for it out loud. That will really test whether you have a good grasp on exactly what the dot point means.

For example, on the Economics syllabus under Australia’s Place in the Global Economy topic is the subtopic Free Trade and Protection. So even if you can’t list the exact free trade policies and trade agreements straight away, can you at least give a quick explanation of what free trade actually means and why it might and might not be a good thing?

That understanding will really save you tomorrow!

4. Pull out the bare minimum content

Cool, we don’t have time to go through and become an absolute expert on all of these dot points so just get out the bare minimum.

We’re going to combine the first two steps here: take what you need to know and fill in the bare minimum that the syllabus shows you need: formulas, dates, quotes, facts, essay structure plans. Go through any notes from class, any resources from your teacher or even do a little bit of research/thinking to find this content.

If you can memorise these and you have a decent understanding of the subject and the specific topics, you will actually have a surprisingly good chance of nailing the exam tomorrow!

5. Go through some memory exercises to try and lock it in

The problem with cramming is that you can’t commit everything to memory in one night. Otherwise, everyone would just read over every textbook and article once before they go into the exam!

So, when it comes down to cramming and you’ve picked out the big things you need, it’s time to work through a few memory exercises to make sure you can remember them tomorrow. You can start with something as basic as look, cover, write, check, repeat. You can get amongst a killer mnemonic or you can even beg someone to help you out with some flashcard work.

The worst cramming is just reading over as much as possible because it seriously isn’t going to stick in your mind and the exam will be pretty rough.

Remember

You don’t have time for much of a summary so basically, tonight is all about being realistic and efficient! Find out exactly what you need to know, make sure you understand it all and really lock the basic content into your brain. Good luck and try to make better life choices next time… 👍