Practice Questions, Not Flashcards by Carrie

Practice Questions, Not Flashcards by Carrie - May 2016 Scholarship Essay

I have found that the best method for me is to do a lot of practice questions, grade them, go back over the parts I struggled with, and then do some more practice questions. I found I did better on tests where I had a practice test and key available to me. Doing flashcards work for most people, but I find that if I am just flipping through them I'm not really taking in the information and I get more easily distracted. Reading back through old PowerPoint slides and the book cause me the same problem, I get bored space out, and stop taking things in. Reading through my notes can not be even considered because I write them so fast that they are very difficult to read later and I never feel like putting in the amount of effort that is required to decipher them.

The reason I think doing practice questions works for me is it keeps me engaged enough that even if I get the question wrong I will still learn from doing it. They also present with with possible question formats that I could potentially see on the test and prepare for not only knowing the material,but also the thought process that goes with properly answering the question.