Revision Matters: Your Ticket to Success
This guide will transform how you approach revision. Designed specifically for our 16-19 year old students studying IT, we'll explore effective revision techniques, time management strategies, learning styles, and how to leverage technology to maximise your exam performance.
Cracking the Revision Code: Understanding Your Learning Style
Before diving into revision techniques, it's crucial to understand how you learn best. Each person processes and retains information differently, and recognising your best learning style can transform your revision effectiveness.
Which way do you learn best?
Visual Learners
You learn best through seeing. Utilise colourcoding, mind maps, diagrams, and videos. Convert your notes into visual formats and use highlighters to emphasise key points.
Auditory Learners
You absorb information through listening. Record yourself reading notes, explain concepts out loud, discuss topics with others, and use music or rhymes to memorise information.
Combining Learning Approaches
Kinaesthetic Learners
You learn through doing. Create flashcards, act out processes, build models, or walk around whilst reciting information. Movement helps cement knowledge in your memory.
Identifying your primary learning style doesn't mean excluding other approaches. In fact, combining methods often yields the best results. Take a learning style quiz online to discover your preferences, then tailor your revision strategy accordingly.
Planning for Victory: Crafting Your Ultimate Revision Timetable
A well-structured revision timetable is your roadmap to exam success. It helps distribute your workload, prevents last-minute cramming, and ensures comprehensive coverage of all subjects.
Assess your exam schedule
Note all exam dates and prioritise subjects based on proximity and difficulty. Add them to your Outlook Calendar.
Break down examined units into topics
Divide each subject into manageable chunks to track progress more effectively
Allocate realistic time blocks
Schedule 30-45 minute revision sessions with 10-15 minute breaks between
Balance your topics
Alternate between topics. Spend time of both topics you enjoy and those you find challenging
Review and adjust your timetable regularly, and don't forget to celebrate completing milestones.
DAILY REVISION PLAN
DATE
TODAY TOPIC
STUDY SESSION GOAL
TASKS TIMES
Revision Techniques That Actually Work
Evidence-based revision strategies will dramatically improve your learning efficiency and help you retain information longer. These aren't just theoretical4they're techniques backed by cognitive science.
Spaced Repetition
Revise material at increasing intervals over time rather than cramming. This technique exploits the psychological spacing effect, which demonstrates that information is more effectively encoded into long-term memory when studied in multiple, spaced-out sessions.
Active Recall
Test yourself repeatedly rather than passively rereading notes.
Create flashcards, practice questions, or explain concepts aloud without looking at your notes.
This forces your brain to retrieve information, strengthening neural pathways.
Practice Testing
Regularly complete past papers under timed conditions.
This builds familiarity with exam formats, reduces anxiety, and helps identify knowledge gaps. Analyse mistakes thoroughly to prevent repeating them.
The Pomodoro Technique (25 minutes of focused study followed by a 5-minute break) can help maintain concentration during these activities. Remember that switching between topics in a day can help keep your mind fresh and engaged.
Tech-Savvy Revision: Apps and Tools to Boost Your Study Game
Technology offers powerful tools to enhance your revision, from organising notes to tracking progress and creating interactive study materials.
Note Organisation & Flashcards
Notion - Create a personalised knowledge database
OneNote - Synchronise notes across all devices
Anki - Spaced repetition flashcard system
Quizlet - Create shareable study sets
Distractions matter
Focus & Productivity tools
Forest - Block distractions by growing virtual trees
Music - Concentrationenhancing music such as LoFi streams on YouTube
Microsoft To Do - Track tasks and deadlines
Pomodoro timersStructure work/break cycles
When using technology, be mindful of distractions.
Subject-Specific Resources
KnowItAllNinja - Unit specific tuition and guidance (use your college login)
Class Notebook - Utilise your notes and class presentations
Moodle - All presentations are available on your unit Moodle page
Consider using website blockers during revision sessions, and remember that digital tools should supplement, not replace, active learning techniques like writing notes by hand, which has been shown to improve retention.
Top Tip!
If using your computer to help you revise, create a separate user account without access to games and other distracting applications you may have on your regular account.
Mind Maps and Memory Palaces: Visual Revision Strategies
Visual revision techniques leverage the brain's remarkable ability to remember images and spatial relationships, making complex information more digestible and memorable.
Mind Mapping
Start with a central concept and branch outward with related ideas. Use colours, symbols, and images to reinforce connections.
Mind maps mirror how our brains naturally organise information, making them particularly effective for seeing relationships between concepts.
Try websites such as Miro.com (free) or create them by hand for better retention.
Memory Palaces
Also called the "method of loci," this ancient technique involves mentally placing information in specific locations within a familiar place (like your home).
When you need to recall the information, you mentally walk through the space, retrieving the stored details.
This works because our spatial memory is exceptionally powerful and durable.
Other visual techniques include concept maps (showing hierarchical relationships), sketch notes (combining text and simple drawings), and the Cornell Method (dividing notes into sections for questions, facts, and summaries). Experiment with these approaches to find what resonates with your learning style.
Revise together
Studying with peers can significantly enhance your understanding and retention of material, offering perspectives you might miss when revising alone.
Form a study group
Choose 3-5 peers with similar goals and work ethic
Discuss challenging topics
Tackle difficult concepts through collaborative problem-solving
Set clear objectives
Define specific topics and outcomes for each session
Teach concepts
Take turns explaining topics to reinforce understanding
Exchange resources
Share notes, practice questions, and study techniques
Group study works best when combined with individual revision
Online platforms like Microsoft Teams can facilitate virtual study groups when meeting in person isn't possible.
Remember that teaching others is one of the most effective ways to solidify your own understanding. When you explain a concept to peers, you're forced to organise your thoughts coherently and identify any gaps in your knowledge.
Tackling Exam Anxiety: Mental Strategies for Peak Performance
Exam anxiety can undermine even the most thorough revision. Learning to manage this stress is essential for demonstrating your true capabilities in the exam.
Before the Exam
Practice mindfulness meditation daily
Prepare thoroughly to build confidence
Put in the work necessary to prepare yourself fully
Get proper sleep the week before exams
During the Exam
Read all questions carefully before starting
Focus only on your paper, not others around you
Re-read the question and always ensure you are giving the most thorough answer you can.
Always re-read your answers and check if you can improve them.
If anxiety severely impacts your performance, speak with your lecturer about additional support. Some students may qualify for exam accommodations such as extra time or a separate room.
Balancing Study, Sleep, and Self-Care
Effective revision isn't just about study techniques4it's about creating a lifestyle that supports optimal brain function and wellbeing during exam season.
Nutrition
Fuel your brain with foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants, and complex carbohydrates. Stay hydrated and limit caffeine, especially in the afternoon. Consider foods like blueberries, walnuts, oily fish, and whole grains that support cognitive function.
Exercise
Include at least 30 minutes of physical activity daily. Exercise increases blood flow to the brain, reduces stress, and improves concentration. Even a brisk walk between revision sessions can boost cognitive performance.
Sleep
Prioritise 8-9 hours of quality sleep. Memory consolidation happens during sleep, making it crucial for retention. Establish a consistent sleep schedule and avoid screens before bedtime. Late-night cramming is counterproductive.
Mental Breaks
Schedule deliberate downtime. Socialise with friends, pursue hobbies, or practice relaxation techniques. Your brain needs time to process information and recover from intense study periods.
Remember that pushing yourself to exhaustion diminishes returns. It's better to study effectively for shorter periods than to force concentration when mentally fatigued. Listen to your body and mind4they'll tell you when you need a break.
How Effective Revision Shapes Your Future
While your immediate focus may be on achieving good grades, the revision skills you're developing now will serve you throughout your academic and professional life.
Lifelong Learning
The ability to master new information independently
Critical Thinking
Analysing information deeply rather than memorising
Self-Management
Planning, prioritising and meeting deadlines
Resilience
Persevering through challenges and setbacks
University and workplace learning often requires more independent study than school and college. The organised, self-directed approach you're cultivating now will become increasingly valuable. Many employers specifically look for candidates who can rapidly acquire new skills and knowledge.
The metacognitive awareness you develop4understanding how you learn best4is perhaps the most valuable outcome of all. This self-knowledge will help you adapt to new learning challenges throughout your life, whether you're mastering job skills, studying at university, or pursuing personal interests.
Need help?
If you're struggling please speak to your lecturer. We are able to help in many ways including:
Providing mock exam papers
Developing a revision plan with you
Checking your practice answers
Coaching you to help you succeed
Remember that your ultimate success is reliant on the effort you put in