How to Understand and Techniques to Memorize what you study

This topic though tackled in many forums is a very vast topic and cannot be comprehensively covered in one blog post or article. That is because all parts of the topic studying effectively, understanding what you study and memorizing what you study each need dedicated explanation.
It seems so easy to remember the latest songs and dialogues of our favourite stars,  but when it comes to remembering things in our study books our memory seems to fail us. In fact, I have had students who could remember complete songs and every dialogue of certain films,, but with regards to studies they were certified low memory. One of them even told me that he had been diagnosed as such. This behaviour begs the question: why does our memory fail us in some work. The catch word is interest. Without interest every effort will probably fail. However, if you would really like to remember what you study then read on.

How does memory work

The forgetting curve

To briefly understand how memory works let me remind you of your favourite dish. I don't know what dish you love but I am sure when I say that you'll remember the taste and the aroma along with the way it looks. You will probably even remember when and where you ate it last. That's how memory works. With interaction. If you have no interaction with certain things there will be no memory of them.

I believe there is a road or Street you walk every day and pass many other people on the way. But you remember only those whom you noticed. A man who sings or talks to himself, a person who was involved in some accident or a beautiful face. What do they have in common with regards to your memory? They attracted your attention or interest. There are a hundred others who pass you everyday, but you won't even know them if introduced. If anyone one of the the people who you noticed, say the man who sings along on the road is only seen once by you, then you will forget him in a couple of days. His face, his voice and his manner of singing are the the touch points you may have noticed. You will need at least a couple of them to remember him some days later. If he comes in front of you, it will be almost impossible to remember. However, if he sings then your chances of recall can increase. Similarly, if you see the beautiful face almost everyday for a month, you will recognise it almost anywhere even after a month. If you help the person involved in an accident and thereafter you meet him or her almost everyday for a month, you'll remember that person even after a year. So you see when the level of interaction increases the chances of remembering something or some one increases.

Basically we have short term and long term memories. A small interaction will trigger our short term memory and we will be able to recall it inside approximately five minutes. As time goes by the chances of recall grow dimmer. For a memory to become a long term memory the interaction will have to be impactful and consistent.

This is illustrated properly by the forgetting curve. Plotted by Edward iEbinghaus n the 1885 the graph illustrates how you can forget something you have have  remember. As time goes by the memory of something you thought you had memorized fades away. Slowly, but surely you will forget things unless you consciously review the thing you want to memorize. 

Biologically speaking the brain has neurons that store memories. However, these neurons don't work alone. They need other sources of stimuli to activate the memory. Basically electrical charges. In layman's language we can say these are triggers to a memory

How do we use this principal for studies

One big challenge that has been identified by many educationists is cognitive load. Most students are studying because they have to and not because they want to. So interest levels vary. To make things difficult the explanation of concepts is not broken down for the weakest of the student. Most classrooms work on the strongest students. The strongest or the most intelligent students, according to the teacher, may in fact be a child who understands the teachers learning style. In most cases standing in front of the class, reading and explaining the concept. Some may take the effort to explain with the help of the black board. However, all students are not accustomed to understanding the teachers oratory style. Honestly it is nothing to do with the teacher. But it is about the student. Here we need to understand learning styles and how children understand things.

Understanding is key

So when we talk of reducing cognitive load it means the easiest way to explain a concept. This is because understanding is the key to remembering concepts. Once you understand a concept then remembering it becomes easy.

Write it down

.vak who proposed it.

Students can have one or more learning styles.
Visual
Most students are visual learners. That means if the concept is explained to them in drawing format like charts graphs or moving images they can understand better.

Auditory learners remember what they've heard. So if you narrate things to them they will remember better. If it is in story format even better. Song format will probably do wonders. That's one reason why we remember songs easily and we used to be taught songs and poems in our childhood. Auditory learners should use phrases or acronyms to remember stuff like facts. One example bring vibgyor for colours of the rainbow. Violet, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange, red.

Kinaesthetic learners need to experience what they learn. Like do an experiment for themselves they need to be given real life examples. Keeping this in mind many schools recommend project work in class. The growing of potted plants, the cutting of potatoes to make colourful art projects and science experiments about physics and chemistry are loved by kinaesthetic learners. A simple act of writing down a definition or note will help a kinesthetic learner to remember longer.

Now you must have thought to yourself that these things happen in school and me or my child use more than one of these styles to learn. That's true. No person adheres to only one learning style. Although one of the learning style may be dominant.

Which brings us to the question if we understand something how do we make sure we remember what we understand.

Who is the adept method from??
.

The  adept method.

Learn about Pedagogy and Dr Hubbard

Adept is an acronym for analogy, drawing, example, plain language and technical definition.

Analogy is to draw likeness to what you are explaining. Teachers need to do this when they are teaching and students need to do this while revising. For example

Example means you compare the explanation with the simplest and real life example that you can.

Plain language
When learning try to break down the concept to the simplest words possible. Like Einstein said  If you can explain it to someone then it means you have understood it.

Remember Understanding is key. This is also the Feynman technique. Richard Feynman a Nobel prize winning physicist also known to his friends and fans as the great explainer, used to keep a book where he used to add concepts he did not understand. He kept adding more information about the concept till he understood it. Ultimately he used to break it down so that his students would understand easily. That way he remembered the concept well. When two great scientists ask you to understand and explain a concept then I believe you should take the advice.

The protégé effect
The explaining method is so popular that it had another name. The protege effect.

Technical definition
You should also make sense of the technical definition and remember it. Technical definition is breaking for of an idea in a practical way. It may have jargon but it shows you how a concept can be used practically.

Mind mapping

When trying to understand concepts mind mapping can be really helpful. Remember Feynman's book? Mind mapping is something like that. You write down the name of the concept you want to learn and understand in the middle of a page. Once you've done that you start spider web style adding information to that name. You are allowed to draw stuff when needed. So you can write an explanation. Then you can connect another information to that information. Maybe the thing that you are trying to learn has parts or divisions. All of them come around the name you've written in the center. This way you break down the idea and you can see it at one glance.

Upar all understanding hai

However, whatever you do there are some concepts that are a little tricky to memorize. In which case you use methods that have been tried and tested by memory experts

Spaced learning

All things said and done, there are still things that you need to memorize. Like names and dates in history and geography. Actual facts, not concepts. List of things in civics and economics. Experts recommend the use of spaced learning technique. Spaced learning as the name signifies means you understand the concept and keep coming back to it after intervals. Like you read it in the morning. Then you read it the evening. Then again tomorrow morning and evening. Then day after maybe once in the morning then a couple of days after that. The time you revisit the concept you want to remember will increase as days go by until you actually remember it without going back to the book. There are apps that help in organising you spaced repetition learning. The one I believe is popular is ANKISRS. Or you can make a small diary to organise your timings. There is one easy way of doing this with flash cards.

Flash cards are a great way to make notes and understand concepts. When you make flash cards remember to make them in such a way they are self explanatory. There is no prohibition on using abbreviations, drawings or symbols. Whatever makes it easy for you to remember. Whenever you have the time view a flash card and make sure you remember it. Then move to the next one. Flash cards can be used in association with spaced learning also. Like it was explained earlier you need to space out your exercises. So you make boxes. The first box is urgent. The second can be named one day. The third should be named 4th day. The next one week. And the next 2 weeks. When you believe you have memorized one flash card you put it in box number 2 - one day. The next day you memorize the cards in the urgent box and revise the ones in one day box. Now if you believe your brain has cemented the memory of the fact or concept then it goes to the other box - 4th day. You will revise these cards 4 days after you had memorized it the first time. If you get it right this time too it goes to the next box and you look at it 3 days later or one week after you had memorized it first. And then one week later. Thereafter you can revise it at one week intervals. However, in the process if you think you forgot then it goes back directly to the first box regardless of which box you picked it from. 

Flash cards are also used in a different manner. It is called the castle of LOCI technique. This method is specially helpful when you need to remember things in a sequence. So you make your flash cards and then arrange and stick them on furniture and walls in different rooms. This way whenever you walk around the house you remember what is written and after many repetitions you can then recall the cards in sequence when you imagine yourself walking through the house.

Mnemonics

Mnemonics is a system of using whatever memory triggers you have to help you remember stuff. This may include lists. For example VIBGYOR or the colours of the rainbow. Mother very dada for planets in our solar system. Image relation.

Phrases for lists
Number words for numbers like pi. Get from wiki

Flash cards

Cognitive load
ADEPT
Spaced learning
Feynman
Mnemonics
Check out some more in ever note
Brain mostly visual
VAK
Mind maps

Practice tests

Learning & Memory methods:

Feynman technique

Cognitive load

ADEPT - analogy, diagram, example, plain English, technical information 

Spaced Learning

Mnemonics

Auditory, Visual, Kinaesthetic  VAK

Flash Cards

Mind Mapping

Flash Cards

Keywords - triggers - flavours ?? can flavor trigger memories