Why re-reading your notes doesn't work (and what to do instead)

The problem with re-reading

Re-reading notes feels productive because the material becomes familiar. But familiarity isn't the same as being able to retrieve the information under exam pressure, with no notes in front of you — which is exactly what an exam asks you to do.

Active recall: test yourself, don't just review

Active recall means closing your notes and trying to reproduce the information from memory — writing out a process, answering a practice question, or explaining a concept out loud. The struggle of trying to remember is what strengthens the memory, even when you get it wrong.

A simple way to start

1. Read a page of revision notes once.
2. Close it. Write down everything you can remember, in your own words.
3. Open the notes again and mark what you missed.
4. A day or two later, try again from memory — you should recall more each time.

Use the auto-marked quizzes on each page as a ready-made way to do this without having to invent your own questions.