Recently I read a trending article by Srivinas Rao called “The Power of Writing About the Things You Read”, which discussed the different studying methods employed by top-notch students. The author defined two different approaches to studying that separate these straight A students from those who do not perform as well, and he presented them through the idea of active vs. passive review.
Passive review involves highlighting, re-reading, and trying to memorize content. Active review on the other hand involves actually recreating the material without assistance. This means being able to reproduce the material without referring back to the readings, and even trying to add your own embellishments to it.
I found this advice and learning technique extremely relevant to my situation, as there have been and most likely will be plenty of times where I will need to be able to throughly understand a subject so well that I can not only reproduce it but also make it a topic of my own. This could be applied to anything from research papers, to speeches, to reflections…etc.
This article also subtly hints at the idea that school and learning should not be about the mundane practice of simply memorizing content for the sake of it, but should instead be about understanding and personalizing what you learn in school. I find this a particularly important concept because as a college student, I want to be able to retain and apply the things I learn during my four years here at SCU, and not feel that I wasted my tuition on performing mechanical work that won’t be of use to me once I graduate.
This article was an eye-opening read that reminded me of the importance of learning for myself, and to not simply go about my education passively, but to make it as enriching of an experience as possible.
Images Cited
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