The Exam Cram

The Exam Cram: ©0000000000000000000©0000000000 WHY 000000O00 Final exams are here and students across the country are pouring coffee and holing up in libraries to devour a semester's worth of information in just a few nights. Is this really the best O000000000000000000000000000000 ©000 way to make the grade? Science says no-stress and cramming C000 CAN HURT YOUR TEST SCORES harm grades more than they help them. Stay Cool: Anxiety Hinders Memory Test anxiety affects 20-50% of students. University of California, Irvine, found that "Short-term stress lasting as little as a few hours can impair brain-cell communication in areas associated with learning and memory." WHY IT HAPPENS: Short-term memory happens in a part of the brain called the Hippocampus. CRH CRH CRH Acute stress causes the CRH temporarily damages When CRH is removed brain to release the neurons in Hippocampus however, the neurons neurotransmitter CRH. that form new memories. heal and begin forming memories with ease. As you can see, test stress smore than just an annoyance. It can actually prevent your brain from forming new memories (which is crucial for studying.) Avoid Cramming THERE ARE 2 BASIC STUDY WHICH METHOD IS BEST? PATTERNS STUDENTS CAN FOLLOW: O CRAMMING While /2% of students believe cramming to be Packing all material into a single study the better way to study, studies say just the opposite. session right before an exam. 2 SPACING 90% Dividing material into several shorter study of students who space their studying sessions over several days leading up to an exam. out learn more than those who cram before a test. WHY CRAMMING DOESN'T WORK: When you cram, you are trying The human memory easily As a result, much of the to speed-memorize a list of stores the beginning and end material is forgotten mere facts, rather than taking time of a list, but tends to largely hours after cramming. to understand the material. forget the middle. Studying Late Sometimes test anxiety can cause students to stay up all night cramming for their exams. 68% of students say the stress 20% say this happens at least once a week. of school keeps them awake at night. IN FACT, STRESS AFFECTS STUDENTS' SLEEP MORE THAN: Caffeine Late-night electronics use Alcohol AVOID PULLING ALL-NIGHTERS: After two weeks of sleeping fewer than six hours a night, students perform as poorly as someone who hasn't slept in 48 hours. This is why students who stay up all night studying actually have lower average GPAS than those who get adequate rest: Students who pull al nighters: 2.95GPA Students who don't pull all-nighters: 3.2OGPA Tips For Success DON'T LET TEST ANXIETY AND CRAMMING AFFECT YOUR GRADES THIS SEMESTER. TRY THE FOLLOWING TIPS: Study for 30-40 minutes a day in the week leading Sleep after studying Exercise before Eat a healthy you study breakfast the morning of the exam Exercising before studying During sleep, the brain up to the test. and taking exams gets encodes what it has recently blood flowing to your brain, learned into memory. Rather Avoid cramming by studying A healthy breakfast of eggs, fruit, and nuts the morning of helping you focus and than staying up all night key material in short, focused absorb more information. cramming, study earlier and sessions leading up to the a test will provide your body rest up-you'll remember exam. You will learn the with the protein, Vitamin B, more in the morning. material better and retain antioxidants, and Omega-3 more of it both during and acids necessary to stay alert after the exam. and focused. OCourse Hero SOURCES: CHICAGOFLAME.COM / COLLEGEDEGREES.COM / WILLIAMS.EDU PRENHALL.COM / SCIENCEDAILY.COM / HEALTH.USNEWS.COM / CONNECTED.WALDENU.EDU Learn. Share. Teach. Achieve.