Effective Revision

‘When should students start revising?’

‘How long should students revise for?’

These are two of the most frequently asked questions seen by the Oxford Revise team.

The answer in short is…

Revise as you go, and revise in chunks.

When students revise as they progress through the specification, they start to build a body of notes while the information is still fresh in their heads. As they get closer to the exams and are focusing only on revision, they are not starting from scratch. The Knowledge and Retrieval sections in Oxford Revise guides can be used to identify misconceptions and weaker topics to focus on. They can pick up their notes and get started which can give a huge boost to their confidence.

The advice to break down revision into chunks applies to both content and time.

How long do you think you can really concentrate for? 3 hours? 1 hour?

In most cases, it’s likely to be closer to 25 minutes. Research investigated levels of fatigue and concentration in a group of students. Students who studied for 25 minutes and then took a 5 minute break displayed lower levels of fatigue and higher levels of motivation.

These short bursts of focus and breaks is called the Pomodoro technique and is a great way to structure a revision schedule. In this time, students can summarise what they remember from an Oxford Revise knowledge organiser, or answer some of the many exam-style questions to become more familiar with different question formats.

Regular breaks aren’t wasted learning moments. While doing something completely different like having a snack, making a cup of tea, seeing friends or getting some exercise, their brains have time to process what they’ve learned.

Time is one of the most important factors when it comes to impactful revision and student wellbeing. Encouraging students to give themselves as much time as possible to actively revise, and breaking that time into chunks, helps to make them feel less overwhelmed, more in control, and ultimately better prepared to walk into their exams with confidence.

“We need to get out of this habit of thinking that ‘I’ve done three hours tonight, three solid hours.’ It might sound good, but we know that the last hour or two has been nowhere as efficient or effective as the first 25 minutes.” Jon Tait, teacher and revision expert.