Preparing for Medical School - Page 18
Memorization Techniques
Over the past several decades medical educators
have been carefully scrutinizing the
curriculum in order to update it and keep it
relevant to the demands of a modern medical
practice. One of the unstated goals is to reduce
the extent of memorization needed and
concentrate on the reasoning processes involved
in problem solving. While some
progress has been made, there is and will always
remain a mass of essential information
that has to be memorized, in college, medical
school, and postgraduate training, in order
to successfully complete these
programs.
Below are some memorization techniques that may
prove beneficial during your
education. They can be divided into three
categories:
A. Organize
TIP 1
Remove distractions
If you are not distracted by some outside
elements, such as conversation, radio, or
television, you obviously will be able to
concentrate more effectively on the task at hand.
TIP 2
Get a good night's sleep
After a good night's sleep, one is usually
mentally more alert in the morning than
later in the day. Take advantage of this fact
and try to grasp the major concepts early in
the day, before you start to memorize the
details.
TIP 3
Relax
When you are relaxed, new data can be absorbed
more readily and you will likely
retain it with a greater degree of accuracy.
Being tense will prove mentally distracting
and counterproductive.
TIP 4
Stand while studying
Some people find it helpful to try memorizing
while standing up. You should deter-
mine if this works for you.
TIP 5
Create associations
Store information that you already know in some
way that you can recall. When you
want to add new data, it is desirable to link
the "new" with similar data that you already
know.
TIP 6
Generate images
Draw sketches and/or diagrams and use them to
link together facts and illustrate
relationships.
TIP 7
Scan over the material
Before beginning a reading assignment, skim
over it in order to recognize the main
ideas the writer seeks to convey.
TIP 8
Recite and repeat
When you recite material out loud, you double
the effect by first reading the item
and then hearing it, thereby involving two
different senses. The effect will be further
reinforced by repeating the
information.
TIP 9
Write it
When an important fact comes spontaneously to
mind, promptly write it down.
Even if you do not refer to it later, the act
of recording it will serve to place it in your
mind's memory bank.
B. Think
TIP 10
Overstudy
Study somewhat more than you feel is necessary
to ensure a feeling of self-confi-
dence. This will also reinforce your prior
memorization efforts.
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