CHAPTER 11PREPARING FOR TESTS: STUDY-READING,

REHEARSAL, AND MEMORY 

IN THIS CHAPTER YOU WILL LEARN:

• What rehearsal is and how it pertains to memory

• How to underline, highlight, and annotate textbooks

•How to take notes from a textbook by outlining, mapping, and summarizing

• How to follow written directions

How are rehearsal and memory related?

In Chapter 1, you read about various ways students prefer to learn (visual, auditory, and tactile) and

about the importance of this to students.

Rehearsing by writing and reciting involves speaking, hearing, writing, and reading.

It is obvious that rehearsing information by writing and reciting involves all of the senses

and addresses various ways of learning.

Writing the information has the added benefit of helping you learn to spell important terms and names you may need to write in test answers.

How are rehearsal and memory related?

As you may have discovered, it is difficult to memorize information

that you do not understand.

This is why you must focus on understanding material before attempting to memorize it.

Thorough comprehension enables you to memorize more efficiently.

To do well on tests, you must study information effectively enough to store it in long-term memory, or permanent memory.

Rehearsal refers to taking specific steps to transfer information

into long-term memory.

Typical steps include writing information down and repeatedly reciting it aloud.

When you are preparing for a test, you should study over several days. This provides you with

enough time for you to transfer information from short-term memory into long-term memory.

Research indicates that both sufficient time and ample repetition are needed to accomplish this transfer.

Before you can rehearse the information in a textbook chapter efficiently, you need to organize it.

Obviously, the better you organize material, the more efficiently you will be able to memorize it.

Perhaps the biggest mistake students make when trying to memorize information for a test is that they spend their time merely rereading the material in their textbook and their notes.

You can reread endlessly, but it does not guarantee that you will remember the information.

Rather than simply rereading the information, you must rehearse it.

Techniques for organizing material

• Underline and annotate textbook material.

• Outline or map information.

• Prepare a summary.

•Make summary review cards (like the ones at the end of each chapter in New Worlds).

How can you underline, highlight, and annotate your textbooks?

More than three-quarters of the material on your college tests may come from your textbooks.

You need to be able to underline, highlight, and annotate the important information in your textbook.

Underlining and highlighting are techniques for marking topics, main ideas, and definitions.

Annotating is writing explanatory notes in the margins of your textbook to organize and remember important information.

Effective students combine underlining and highlighting with annotating.

The process of underlining and highlighting textbook material is a very selective one.

Some considerations for underlining and highlighting:

1. Avoid the most typical mistake students make in marking textbooks: overmarking (underlining and highlighting too much).

You cannot know what is important in a paragraph or section until you have finished reading. Read first, and underline

only after you have identified the important ideas.

Read and think, then underline or highlight selectively.

2. Know the kinds of things you should underline or highlight.

• Underline or highlight the TOPIC of a paragraph.

• Underline or highlight the MAIN IDEA of a paragraph if it is stated directly.

• Underline or highlight IMPORTANT TERMS or DEFINITIONS.

3. Know the kinds of things

you should not underline or highlight.

•Do not highlight supporting details or examples since this results in over marking.

•Once you have underlined and highlighted topics, main ideas, and important terms, you will want to annotate (write explanatory notes and symbols in the margins).

•If a textbook has narrow margins, you may prefer to use notebook paper or even stick-on notes for your annotations, to give yourself more room.

Helpful Types of Annotations

•Write down the topic in the margin beside each paragraph. This is helpful with complex material.

•Writing out an important term and its definition in the margin helps you remember it.

• List essential supporting details in shortened form(that is paraphrased) in the margin.

• Formulated main ideas are helpful annotations.

•Symbols and abbreviations will enable you to locate important material quickly and return to passages that need further study.

Examples of abbreviations and symbols you can use in the margins:

def Definition. Use def when an important item isdefined.

1,2,3… Numbers. Use numbers when an author givesitems in a list or series, or when you want tomake the primary supporting details stand out.

* Use an asterisk to mark important information, such as information the instructor has indicated will be on the test.

? Question mark. Use this when you do notunderstand something and need to come backto it for further study or to get help with it.

How can you take notes from textbooks?

Taking notes from textbooks is another important study skill.

Guidelines for outlining:

•Outlining is a formal way of organizing main ideas and supporting details to show relationships among them.

• Outlines are especially useful for organizing complex material.

•Outlines can help you condense a lengthy section or chapter in order to give yourself an overview.

•Because outlining condenses information and lets you see and understand how an entire section or chapter is organized, an outline makes the material easier to study and remember.

Outlining is best done on separate paper rather than written in the margins.

To outline a paragraph, write its main idea. Then on separate, indented lines below the main idea, write each supporting detail that goes with it, like this:

1. Main idea sentenceA. Supporting detailB. Supporting detailC. Supporting detailD. Supporting detail

For longer passages consisting of several paragraphs, continue your outline in the same way:

I. First main idea sentenceA. Supporting detail for main idea IB. Supporting detail for main idea IC. Supporting detail for main idea ID. Supporting detail for main idea I

II. Second main idea sentenceA. Supporting detail for main idea IIB. Supporting detail for main idea II

III. Third main idea sentenceA. Supporting detail for main idea IIIB. Supporting detail for main idea IIIC. Supporting detail for main idea III

The purpose of your study outline is to show you how ideas are related.

Making your outline look perfect is not as important as making sure that the relationships are clear to you.

Main ideas should stand out, however, and it should be obvious which details go with each main idea.

Roman numerals (I, II, III, etc.) are often used for main ideas, and uppercase letters (A, B, C, D, etc.) are used for supporting details.

This notation helps you see how ideas are related.

When the information you are writing for a main idea or detail is longer than a single line, be sure to indent the second line

beneath the first word in the line above it.

Do not go any farther to the left. The goal is to make the numbers and letters stand out clearly.

An outline can consist of phrases or sentences.

However, when you have complex material, a sentence outline works well

because it gives complete thoughts.

Use the same title for your outline as the one that appears in the original material.

Do not entitle your outline "Outline.“ It will be obvious that it is an outline.

Guidelines for mapping:

Mapping is an informal way of organizing main ideas and supporting details by using boxes, circles, lines, arrows, etc.

The idea of mapping is to show information in a way that clarifies relationships among ideas.

Like outlining, mapping is done on separate paper rather than in the margins of the textbook.

Guidelines for mapping (con’t)

One simple type of map consists of the topic or main idea in a circle or box in the middle of the sheet of paper,

with supporting details radiating out from it.

Another type has the main idea in a box at the top of the page, with the supporting ideas in smaller boxes below it and

connected to it by arrows or “leader lines.”

If the information is sequential (for instance, significant events in World War I), a map can take the form of a flowchart.

(See your textbook for examples.)

Since outlines and study maps both show relationships among important ideas in a passage,

how can you decide which to use for a particular passage?

Your decision will depend on how familiar you are with each technique, and on how the passage itself is written.

Keep in mind that mapping is an informal study technique, whereas outlining can be formal or informal.

When you are asked to prepare a formal outline in a college course, do not assume that you can substitute a study map.

The very process of creating a map helps you understand and transfer the information into your long-term memory.

An added bonus is that you have created a valuable study aid to refer to.

Guidelines for summarizing:

A summary is a way of condensing into one paragraph all the main ideas an author has presented in a longer selection

(such as an essay or article) or a section of a chapter.

When you have identified the main ideas in a passage, you have identified the information necessary

to prepare your summary.

Summarizing is an effective way to check your comprehension.

Writing a summary also helps you transfer the material into your long-term memory.

Do not add anything beyond what appears in the selection itself. You cannot add your own opinions, information you may know about the subject, or anything else that is not one of the author’s ideas.

Keep the author's original sequence of ideas. Present the ideas in your summary in the same order that the author has used. In other words, you must keep the author’s organization and not rearrange the main ideas.

Reword as necessary, providing transitions between main points. You can paraphrase (reword) the main ideas if you like. Be sure to include clear transitions so that your reader will understand the connections among the author’s ideas.

Give your summary the same title as the selection you are summarizing. Do not entitle your summary “Summary.”

After you have organized material, you should rehearse by doing one or more of the following:

• Recite from your notes.

• Write out the information again from memory.

• Recite from chapter review cards.

Too often students try to review for a test simply by rereading their notes and their textbook over and over again.

But rereading is a time-consuming process that does not automatically result in remembering.

It has been estimated that 80 percent of the time spent studying for a test should be used for memorizing; that is, for

transferring information into long-term memory.

You may be wondering, "How can I tell when I have successfully

transferred information into long-term memory?"

The way to find out is to test yourself.

Try to write the information from memory on a blank sheet of paper.

If the material is in your long-term memory, you will be able to recall it and write it down.

If you cannot write it, or if you are able to write only a part of it, then not all of the information is in your long-term memory yet:

you need to rehearse it further.

Until you can say the material aloud without looking at your notes or book, you haven't mastered it,

and you need to keep rehearsing.

It's just this simple: If you can't say it, you don't know it.

Isn't it better to make that discovery while you're studying and there's still to time to learn the material

before you take the test?

How can you follow directions?

An important part of college reading is following written directions.

In particular, it is important for you to understand directions in order to do your assignments correctly, carry out procedures in classes and labs

(such as computer labs and science labs), and earn high grades on tests.

You have probably learned from experience that problems can arise from misunderstanding or failing to follow directions.

When you do not follow directions, you can waste time and lower your grade.

Guidelines for following directions:

There are a few simple things to remember about following written directions:

• Read the entire set of directions carefully before doing any of the steps. This is a time when you should slow down and pay attention to every word.

• Be sure you understand all the words in the directions.

Guidelines for following directions (con’t):

Although directions may use words you see very often, you may still not know precisely what each of the words means. For example, on an essay test you might be asked to compare two poems or contrast two pieces of music.

Do you know the difference between compare and contrast? Unless you do, you cannot answer the question correctly. Other typical words in test questions include enumerate, justify, explain, and illustrate. Each has a specific meaning.

General direction words include above, below, consecutive, preceding, succeeding, former, and latter.

In addition, directions in college textbooks and assignments often include many specialized terms that you must understand.

Guidelines for following directions (con’t):

Circle signal words that announce steps in directions and underline key words.

Not every step in a set of directions will have a signal word, of course, but steps in sets of directions frequently

are introduced by letters or numbers (a, b, c, or 1, 2, 3, etc.)

or words such as first, second, third, next, then, finally, and last to indicate the sequence or order of the steps.

Guidelines for following directions (con’t):

•You should mark directions before you begin following them, since you must understand what you are to do before you try to do it.

•This means finding and numbering steps if they are not already numbered.

• A single sentence sometimes contains more than one step. (For example, "Type your name, enter your I.D. number, and press the Enter key.")

•When you are busy working on a test or an assignment, it is easy to become distracted and leave a step out or do the steps in the wrong order.

Guidelines for following directions (con’t):

•Another reason it is important to number the steps in a set of directions is that even though the steps may not include signal words, you are still responsible for finding each step.

•Especially on tests, then, you should number each step and mark key words in directions.

Things to keep in mind as you prepare for tests:

Here are two helpful things you should know about applying core comprehension skills.

1. When you study, choose the study techniques (underlining, highlighting, annotating, outlining, mapping, and summarizing) that:

(a) are appropriate to the type of material you are studying;

(b) correspond with how you will be tested over the type of material; and

(c) are best suited to you how you learn.

Things to keep in mind as you prepare for tests (con’t):

For example, if you are dealing with complex material, you may prefer to use an outline to organize the information.

If you are enrolled in a course in which the tests include essay questions, you may find it helpful to write summaries of important points in a chapter.

You may want to use different techniques in different courses.

Finally, think about how you learn best:

• If you like to learn by seeing, you may find maps and outlines especially helpful.

• If you prefer to learn by hearing, you may find it helpful to rehearse the material by reading it or saying it aloud after you have written it down.

Things to keep in mind as prepare for tests (con’t):

2. Suggestions for handling outline, summary, and mapped note questions in standardized reading tests:

When you are taking a standardized reading test, you may be asked to choose the correct outline for all or part of a reading selection.

You should rule out as incorrect answers that:

(1) have the information in the wrong order,

(2) list main ideas or details at the wrong level (such as putting a detail at the same level of importance as the main ideas),

(3) leave out main ideas, or

(4) include incorrect information or information that did not appear in the passage.

Things to keep in mind as you prepare for tests (con’t):

When you are taking a standardized reading test, you may be asked to choose the correct set of mapped notes for all or part of a reading selection. You should rule out as incorrect answers that:

(1) have the information in the wrong order,

(2) list details with a main idea that they do not support,

(3) leave out main ideas or important details, or

(4) include incorrect information or information that did not appear in the passage.

AFTER READING THIS CHAPTER, YOU SHOULD KNOW:

• What rehearsal is and how it pertains to memory

• How to underline, highlight, and annotate textbooks

•How to take notes from a textbook by outlining, mapping, and summarizing

• How to follow written directions