Here is part two of 3 Secret Study Tips to score high in exams. I will keep it short and simple because I know you are lazy if you are interested in reading this blog.

1. The Mozart Effect

In 1993, psychologist Frances Rauscher asked volunteers to listen to Mozart’s sonata for two pianos in D major (K448) for 10 minutes. The result was that for the next 10-15 minutes, the spatial reasoning of these volunteers improved.

And of course, this study BLEW UP. In 1998, Georgia Governor Zell Miller launched a program to distribute classical music CDs to every newborn in his state. It led to an industry of “smart baby” products.

Later studies suggest many different aspects. Some indicate that listening to any music that you enjoy, even rock music, can lead to a temporary spike in your spatial reasoning abilities. Some studies propose that listening to anything that makes you happy, such as a Stephen King horror story, can do the job.

You can refer to my sources and use this fact accordingly: https://parentingscience.com/mozart-effect/

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20130107-can-mozart-boost-brainpower

But for this blog, here’s my suggestion:

Listen to Mozart’s Sonata for two pianos in D major (K448) for 10 minutes before you start studying any subject that needs spatial reasoning (Maths, Physics, Engineering). It can boost your focus, give you a good kick-start to your study session and improve results for at least 15 minutes.

2. Stop Studying In Blocks

Use the method of “interleaving”.

In one study, for example, college students learned to compute the volumes of four different geometric shapes. In a so-called blocked-practice condition, they finished all the problems for one shape before moving on to the next. In interleaved practice, the problems were intermixed. When tested one week later, the interleaved practice group was 43 per cent more accurate. Interleaving allows students to practice selecting the correct method and encourages them to compare different kinds of problems.

To conclude, instead of studying one topic, one type of problem, or one chapter at once, mix them.

3. STOP DEPENDING ON OTHERS

I have noticed that almost all “toppers” I know are students used to studying alone. They never depend for anything on their parents. Not for asking questions, not for teaching them, and not even for keeping them in check. Reminding or more accurately, bugging, their child to study multiple times a day, is a universal and perpetual parental trait. Everybody faces that.

But the “highest scoring” students (and I say that with quotes) are often the ones whose parents do not even know what subjects they are taking.

*cough**cough* Mom, I’m looking at you.

So, this academic year, study on you’re own. Quiz yourself, test yourself, teach yourself.